Elizabeth B. Davis

Partner

Atlanta
171 17th Street NW
Suite 2100
Atlanta, Georgia 30363

Biography

Beth is a partner and co-chair of the Environmental practice. She is also a member of the Healthcare practice and the Life Sciences industry team.

Beth serves clients across a broad spectrum of industries, including chemical companies, real estate developers, retailers, lenders, drug and medical device manufacturers, and more. In her environmental practice, she guides clients through the nuances of regulatory compliance and permitting. She also handles the environmental facets of corporate and real estate transactions, as well as occupational safety and health compliance and zoning and land use issues. Beth has extensive experience with counseling and litigation in all aspects of federal and state laws related to hazardous substances and hazardous waste, underground storage tanks, water, air, pesticides, endangered species, and occupational safety and health. She works diligently to mitigate risk for develops and builders and litigates citizen suits related to these areas.

Further, Beth is well versed in handling matters involving FDA and CPSC compliance. She counsels manufacturers, importers, and retailers regarding compliance with consumer product and food, drug, and medical device requirements to get their products to market. Beth also investigates and negotiates FDA and CPSC issues and related recalls.

In addition to her role as a trusted legal advisor, Beth functions as a true business partner for her clients. Empathetic and deeply familiar with each client’s needs, she identifies and implements practical solutions to achieve their goals while helping them navigate highly complex and technical regulations. Beth helps companies not only understand the requirements that apply to them and how to satisfy them in a cost-effective manner, but how to use these regulations to their advantage.

Understanding that regulatory issues are ongoing, Beth also makes sure that these solutions build trust between the company and the regulator to ensure the company’s continued growth and efficient operations. She has represented several clients in bet-the-company issues and focuses on helping her clients emerge from these situations with optimal results and a positive relationship with the regulator.

Beth is a frequent author and speaker on topics involving FDA and CPSC compliance, along with issues associated with water, hazardous waste, air compliance, brownfield redevelopment, and other environmental issues concerning industrial and commercial operations, real estate transactions, and development.

Outside of her practice, Beth enjoys spending time outdoors, biking, and kayaking.

Experience

  • Representing purchasers, lenders, and developers with all aspects of brownfield developments in various jurisdictions, including Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Maryland, and Tennessee.
  • Negotiating construction permits, operating permits, synthetic minor permits, Title V permits, and Prevention of Significant Deterioration (“PSD”) permits for facilities all over the country, and resolution of numerous air compliance issues across the country.
  • Successfully defending chemical manufacturer regarding issues associated with Tier II and Tier III reporting under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (“EPCRA”), including audit policy and corporate-wide audit.
  • Advising various clients regarding compliance with the Clean Water Act, including point source and stormwater discharges, NPDES permits, permits for industrial and construction-related stormwater discharges.
  • Assisting companies with Endangered Species Act compliance and negotiation of Habitat Conservation Plans for projects in Georgia, Florida, Virginia, Indiana, Missouri, Ohio, New Mexico, and Colorado.
  • Successfully defending federal enforcement actions under Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (“CERCLA”); Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (“RCRA”); Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (“FIFRA”); EPCRA; the Clean Air Act; and Clean Water Act at facilities across the country.
  • Successfully defending state enforcement and citizens’ suits filed under the Clean Water Act and RCRA.
  • Obtaining federal and state permits under RCRA, the Clean Water Act, the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (“NPDES”) and wetlands programs.
  • Obtaining federal and state authorizations under FIFRA to manufacture and nationally distribute pesticides and related devices.
  • Successfully defending companies regarding FIFRA enforcement actions and lifting Stop Sale orders.
  • Assisting various companies in complying with the Toxic Substances Control Act (“TSCA”), including pre-manufacture notifications, significant new use rules, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements associated with manufacturing, importing, exporting, processing, or distributing chemicals.
    • Counseling numerous manufacturers, importers, and retailers regarding compliance with consumer product safety requirements, including the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, the Federal Hazardous Substances Act, the Poison Prevention Packaging Act and the Flammable Fabrics Act.
    • Designing and managing investigations of alleged safety issues associated with a broad spectrum of consumer products, including consumer electronics, batteries, furniture, furniture finishes, and various personal care products.
    • Designing and managing national voluntary fast-track recalls for consumer products manufacturers and importers.
    • Counseling manufacturers and importers regarding regulatory requirements triggered when product safety issues arise in jurisdictions outside the U.S.
    • Successfully defending allegations against international manufacturers and distributors of consumer electronics involving product liability and product safety.
    • Designing and managing investigations of alleged safety issues associated with a broad spectrum of consumer products, including consumer electronics, batteries, furniture, furniture finishes, and various personal care products.
    • Designing and managing national voluntary fast-track recalls for consumer product manufacturers and importers.
      • Designing and managing investigations of alleged safety issues associated with a broad spectrum of medical device, including radiation-emitting products, drug packaging, and drug applicators.
      • Designing, negotiating, and managing recalls for food, drug, and medical device manufacturers and importers.
      • Counseling various manufacturers regarding compliance with numerous FDA requirements, including pharmaceutical and medical device approval processes, off-label drug use and related issues, food safety issues and recalls, issues associated with food additives.
      • Advising clients on premarket issues and approval strategies, including marketing submissions, product classification, establishment registration, product listing, and medical device reporting.
      • Advising marketers of conventional foods and dietary supplements regarding compliance with FDA regulatory requirements and reviewing labeling for issues such as health and “natural” claims and nutrient content claims. Also advising on current good manufacturing processes (“CGMP”) and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (“HACCP”) issues in food manufacturing agreements.
      • Representing manufacturers and distributors in getting their drugs, medical devices, and cosmetics to market in compliance with requirements enforced by FDA and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

        Credentials

        • University of Georgia School of Law, Juris Doctor
        • Agnes Scott College, Bachelor of Arts - Political Science,
          cum laude
        • State of Georgia
        • U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia
        • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia
        • United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia
          • American Bar Association
            • Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources
            • Section of Litigation
          • Lambda Legal National Leadership Council
          • National LGBTQ+ Bar Association, member
          • National LGBTQ+ Bar Foundation, Board Member and Secretary
          • State Bar of Georgia, Environmental Law Section
          • Stonewall Bar Association of Georgia

        Recognition

        • Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers, Environmental Law, 2022, 2023, 2024
        • Best Lawyers in America®, Environmental Law, 2021-25
        • “Distinguished Career Award,” Agnes Scott Alumnae Association, 2020
        • Top-Rated Lawyer in Energy, Environmental, and Natural Resources Law, Corporate Counsel and The American Lawyer Magazine
        • “Legal Elite,” Georgia Trend
        • AV Preeminent®, Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings

        News & Insights

        Thought Leadership

        Publications

        • “Solar Power Plant Operators: Are You Prepared for a Reliability Audit?” Renewable Energy World, October 2018

        Speaking Engagements

        • Fighting Water Wars: A Litigation Primer,” Georgia Association of Water Professionals Spring Conference, April 2024
        • “Promoting Inclusion and Diversity in the Workplace,” 2022 DRI Life, Health, Disability, and ERISA Seminar, May 2022
        • 2018 Lavender Law Conference, August 2018
        • 2017 Lavender Law Conference, August 2017
        • “Legal Challenges and Solutions Related to the Vapor Intrusion Pathway for Redevelopment Projects,” Southeastern States Vapor Intrusion Symposium, April 2016