Melissa A. Thorme

• Challenged the water quality standards for salinity applicable in the Southern Delta in state court on behalf of a Central Valley city and succeeded in receiving a writ of mandate instructing the State Water Resources Control Board to review and revise the standards in accordance with state law, namely Water Code sections 13241 and 13242.
• Successfully prosecuted an industrial discharger before the Steering Committee of a southern California Sanitation District that violated local ordinances and its sewer use permit, securing substantial administrative penalties and permit revocation.
• Settled a $4 million dollar initial Administrative Civil Liability Complaint for Mandatory Minimum Penalties (MMPs) for a small mutual water company in Lake County for a suspended penalty amount of $2.8 million that was completely expunged after the client converted its company into a non-profit and received over $2.5 million in State grant funds to be spent on upgrading its drinking water treatment plant.
• Settled three different enforcement actions by two Regional Water Boards and one County District Attorney against an agricultural operation for alleged unlawful discharges during storm events that funded 2 large Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) to provide clean drinking water to nearby homes and rehabilitate creek beds.
• Succeeded in extricating the state’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, a county, a city, a sanitation agency, and at least two industrial stormwater clients from Clean Water Act citizen suits without any litigation or the need for a settlement, and settled numerous other cases for industrial and municipal clients in stormwater and sewer spill cases.
• Settled a proposed Administrative Civil Liability of over $1 million for a single sewer spill for $130,000, plus $120,000 in suspended penalties if this small Central Valley city completes Enhanced Compliance projects aimed at avoiding future spills.
• Tried a multiple week breach of contract case in Federal district court for a public utilities district in Southern California and received a decision finding bad faith breach of contract. The case involved numerous issues relating to engineering, water quality, and regulatory requirements under state and federal law.
• Drafted amicus curiae briefs for the League of California Cities, California State Association of Counties, and the National League of Cities before the U.S. Supreme Court and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in the Natural Resources Defense Council v. Los Angeles County Flood Control District case (USSC Case No. 11-460) and in support of additional review (USSC Case No. 13-901).
• Challenged U.S. EPA’s approval and disapproval of water quality standards the Los Angeles Region in Federal court and succeeded in removing the municipal drinking water (MUN) use from waterways in that region that had only been conditionally designated and gaining clarity on regulating using narrative water quality objectives.
• Appealed NPDES permits for the cities of Burbank and Los Angeles all the way to the California Supreme Court in the City of Burbank v. State Water Resources Control Board case, which resulted in a ruling requiring the Water Boards to perform additional state law analysis if requirements more stringent than required by federal law are included in discharge permits. Have done dozens of other permit appeals, many of which are placed in abeyance.
• Represented a Central Coast wastewater treatment plant in a 17-hour adjudicatory hearing before the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board over a million dollar Administrative Civil Liability Complaint related to a sewer spill that occurred during a declared flood emergency. The matter was ultimately settled.
• Specialized expertise in water quality based on a solid science background, which provides a unique understanding of chemical, biological, and ecological ramifications of water quality policies and regulation, as well as a clear understanding of the regulations and their history.
• Substantial Federal court litigation experience, including discovery, taking and defending fact and expert witness depositions, briefing, and oral advocacy.
• Extensive State court experience, including writ practice in Superior Courts and substantial appellate advocacy experience briefing and arguing cases before California Appellate Courts and the California Supreme Court as counsel to parties and amicus curiae.
• Negotiated scores of achievable NPDES permits for municipal and industrial storm water and wastewater discharges throughout California, as well as agricultural waivers, Section 404 permits, 401 Certifications, and waste discharge requirements for dredging projects.
• Administratively and judicially challenged unlawful or unreasonable provisions in numerous NPDES permits for publicly owned treatment plants and municipal separate storm sewer systems where reasonable permits could not be negotiated.
• Defended and settled administrative NPDES permit enforcement actions and Mandatory Minimum Penalty (MMP) actions related to water quality, and citizen suits filed under the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the Resource Conservative and Recovery Act (RCRA) against municipal and industrial clients. Several enforcement defense matters resulted in no penalty or a substantially reduced penalty to the client.
• Commented on, negotiated the terms of, or litigated several Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs), including for chloride, trash, nitrogen, bacteria, mercury, and pesticides, and Site Specific Objectives (SSOs), including for copper, nickel, and cyanide.
• Successfully litigated California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) cases, including one in Federal court. In other situations, helped draft environmental documents that were never challenged.

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In addition to practicing law and having a family, Melissa spends her free-time as a weekend equestrienne, real estate broker, and aspiring best-selling writer. Working on publishing her third novel and fourth book, she has previously published two legal thrillers under the pen name, M. T. Kingsley. All of the proceeds from the sales of her books go to charity, including the Anne B. Kingsley Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation that raises money to fund research for early detection of ovarian cancer, which prematurely took the life of her mother-in-law. Melissa loves to travel and hopes to one day become a spa critic when she ultimately retires from law practice.

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Professional, Community And Pro Bono Involvement

• American Bar Association, 1991- present
• Downey Brand LLP, Former Executive Committee Member
• California Association of Sanitation Agencies (CASA), Attorneys Committee and Federal Legislative Committee
• Central Valley Clean Water Association, Associate member
• California Department of Real Estate, Salespersons License 1986-2019, Broker License since 2019
• California Lawyers Association, Environmental Law Section
• Santa Lucia Preserve Community Service District, Board of Directors, 2019 to present
• Putah Creek Council, Board of Directors 2015-2019
• Norwood 4-H Club (Yolo County), Community Club Leader, 2012-2014; 4-H Project Leader 2004-2015
• Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA), Clean Water Sub-Committee and TMDL Workgroup, Former Chair
• Sacramento River Toxic Pollutant Control Program Subcommittees, Former Facilitator
• Riparian Improvement Organization (RIO), Former President
• Tulane University School of Law, Environmental Advocacy class, Former Instructor and Environmental Law Fellow/Co-Director of Environmental Law Clinic

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Honors & Rankings

• AV Preeminent^® Rating by Martindale-Hubbell^®
• The Martindale-Hubbell^® Bar Register of Preeminent Women Lawyers^™
• Best Lawyers^® 2018 Water Law “Lawyer of the Year” in Sacramento
• Best Lawyers in America^©, Water Law, 2008-2023
• Best Lawyers in America^©, Environmental Law, Natural Resources Law, 2023
• Sacramento Magazine, Top Lawyer, Environmental, Energy & Natural Resources, 2015-2022
• Super Lawyers, Northern California Super Lawyer, Environmental Litigation, 2006, 2012-2013, 2016-2022
• Best Lawyers, Women in the Law, 2016
• Recipient of two LiFE awards for environmental literature
• Roscoe Hogan Environmental Law Essay Contest, Winner
• LEXIS Excellence in Writing Award, Winner

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