Sacramento 916.520.5435
Education
- J.D., University of California College of the Law, San Francisco (formerly University of California, Hastings College of the Law), 1984
- A.B., summa cum laude, University of California at Berkeley, 1973
Bar Admissions
- California, 1984 (inactive)
Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
- U.S. District Court, Central District of California
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
- U.S. Court of Federal Claims , 2014
Steven P. Saxton
Retired
For nearly 30 years, public agencies, businesses and agricultural landowners have looked to Steve Saxton to successfully handle water, resources, and land use litigation and representation in both private negotiations and in state and federal courts throughout California.
Steve’s practice is grounded in a deep appreciation for the far-reaching policy concerns that are part of all resource management and land use disputes. With each case, he offers a thorough assessment to ensure that clients make their legal decisions with the understanding that even the smallest water right or entitlement issue must be resolved with an eye to this broader context.
Steve strives for practical solutions to litigation and provides particular attention to the technical complexities entailed in all of the matters he handles. This means placing a priority on getting engineers, planners, and hydrologists engaged and prepared early in the process. Steve’s goal in every case is to provide both the legal and technical analyses that can avoid or shorten litigation. And when litigation is unavoidable, he works to ensure that this expertise can be readily understood and correctly acted on by judges, juries, and other decision makers.
Professional, Community And Pro Bono Involvement
- American Bar Association, Section of Environment, Energy and Resources, Litigation Committee, Past Co-Chair
- Association of California Water Agencies, Federal Affairs Committee
- California Lawyers Association, Litigation and Natural Resources Sections, Former Member
- California Lawyers Association, Environmental Law Section
- Sacramento County Bar Association, Environmental Law Section, Former Member
- Goodwill Industries of Sacramento Valley and Northern Nevada, Board of Directors, 2003-present
- Camellia Symphony Orchestra, Former Director
- Alta California Regional Center, Former Director and President
- Parents for Special Children, Former Director
Honors & Rankings
- AV Preeminent® Rating by Martindale-Hubbell®, 1993-present
- Sacramento Magazine, Top Lawyer, Environmental, Energy & Natural Resources, 2015-2016, 2018
- Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society
- Lead litigation and appellate counsel for Sacramento Valley CVP contractors asserting area of origin rights to contract water supplies.
- Litigation co-counsel for the Kern Water Bank Authority defending CEQA and related claims challenging the Monterey-Plus Agreement for allocating State Water Project supply.
- Lead CEQA counsel for Sacramento Municipal Utility District defending PG&E challenge to Yolo County annexation.
- Lead litigation counsel for California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation in several CEQA challenges to facilities construction and modification.
- Lead trial counsel for a consortium of Sacramento Valley water contractors in defense of Endangered Species Act claims regarding chinook salmon and Delta smelt.
- Lead litigation counsel for Monterey County in defense of recreation contract claims arising from proposed Salinas Valley Water Project.
- Lead trial counsel, Santa Maria Valley Groundwater Basin adjudication (successful representation of plaintiff against claims of groundwater basin overdraft).
- Litigation and appellate counsel defending Sacramento River Settlement Contractors against ESA challenges to contract renewals.
- Lead litigation counsel defending Monterey County Water Resources Agency against CEQA, Public Trust Doctrine and Constitutional (Proposition 218) challenges to Salinas Valley Water Project.
Announcements
3 related itemsIn the News
2 related items-
March 13, 2013Legal Battles Over California Water Supplies Set to Escalate With Final Bay-Delta Plan
Bloomberg BNA, Water Law & Policy Monitor -
December 6, 2012Farmers Fight in 9th Circuit Over Water During Droughts
San Francisco Daily Journal
Speaking Engagements / Events
1 related items-
2010California Water Quality & Its Impact on Supply, Law Seminars InternationalPresenter
Legal Alerts
17 related items-
July 15, 2014Sacramento River Settlement Contractors Ask U.S. Supreme Court to Review Scope of Endangered Species Act
Water Law -
May 29, 2014Immediate Curtailment of Post-1914 Appropriative Water Rights
Water Law -
May 6, 2014Orange County Trial Court Upholds Cadiz Valley Groundwater Project
Water Law -
April 21, 2014Updated Water Supply Amounts for State and Federal Projects
Water Law -
March 2014Governor Brown Signs Emergency Drought Legislation Into Law
Water Law -
October 2012No Tax Relief for the Anexed: Court of Appeal Holds Proposition 218 Does Not Apply to Annexations
Water Law -
August 2012Ninth Circuit Affirms Priority of Water Rights Held by Sacramento River Settlement Contractors In the Face of Endangered Species Act Challenges
Water Law -
October 2010First District Court of Appeal Defers to Water Agency’s Discretion and Upholds Urban Water Management Plan, Rejecting Claim That Any “Uncertainty” About Future Water Supplies Requires Analysis of Alternative Supplies
Water Law -
July 2010Court of Appeal Holds That CEQA Is Not Triggered By a Public Agency’s Investigation of Sites for a Potential Project
Land Use Law -
June 2010California Supreme Court Confirms that the California Constitution Does Not Require Secret Ballots in Proposition 218 Ballot Proceedings
Water Law -
January 2010First District Court of Appeal Clarifies Calculation of Special Benefits and Proportionality for Assessments Subject to Proposition 218
Water Law -
December 2009Second District Court of Appeal Upholds EIR for Transfer of 41,000 Acre-Feet Per Year of State Project Water Despite Uncertain Status of the Monterey Agreement
Water Law -
March 2009First Appellate District: The California Constitution Compels Local Governments to Keep Ballots Confidential in Fee Elections and to Inform the Public of That Fact
Water Law -
July 2008In a Landmark Case Interpreting Proposition 218, the California Supreme Court Expands the Judiciary’s Role in Reviewing the Adequacy of Local Benefit Assessments
Water Law -
June 2008California Supreme Court Upholds CALFED Environmental Impact Report
Water Law -
April 16, 2008Court of Appeal Finds Water Supply Assessments Not Actionable Until Completion of Environmental Review Process
Water Law -
September 2007Applying Principles from the California Supreme Court’s 2007 Decision in Vineyard Area Citizens, Court of Appeals Upholds EIR Against Challenge to Water Supply Analysis
Water Law
Publications
3 related items-
May 1, 2013Big Deal – The Ninth Circuit May Yet Preserve the Bargain that Made the Central Valley Project Possible
California Water Law & Policy Reporter -
April 2009Climate Change and Water in California
Co-author, Western Water Law and Policy Reporter, Vol. 13, No. 6 -
January/February 2003Downey Brand’s 75 Years of Water Law Practice: A History of Forging the Future
Sacramento Lawyer
Steve has served in several capacities to advance the interests of the special needs community. He has served on the Boards of Sacramento Parents for Special Children, as a director and President of the Alta California Regional Center, and for the past several years on the board of Goodwill Industries of Sacramento Valley and Northern Nevada. In his volunteer efforts, as in his practice, Steve is devoted to making public institutions function for those they serve and ensuring the regulation of private interests is as efficient and unobtrusive as possible.
Professional, Community And Pro Bono Involvement
- American Bar Association, Section of Environment, Energy and Resources, Litigation Committee, Past Co-Chair
- Association of California Water Agencies, Federal Affairs Committee
- California Lawyers Association, Litigation and Natural Resources Sections, Former Member
- California Lawyers Association, Environmental Law Section
- Sacramento County Bar Association, Environmental Law Section, Former Member
- Goodwill Industries of Sacramento Valley and Northern Nevada, Board of Directors, 2003-present
- Camellia Symphony Orchestra, Former Director
- Alta California Regional Center, Former Director and President
- Parents for Special Children, Former Director
Honors & Rankings
- AV Preeminent® Rating by Martindale-Hubbell®, 1993-present
- Sacramento Magazine, Top Lawyer, Environmental, Energy & Natural Resources, 2015-2016, 2018
- Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society