Steve Levitas represents a wide range of corporate and governmental clients on environmental regulatory matters, with an emphasis on wastewater permitting and compliance, wetland and stream permitting and mitigation, water quality policy, remediation and redevelopment of contaminated property, and alternative energy.

From 1993 through 1996, Mr. Levitas served as Deputy Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Environment, Health and Natural Resources. Prior to his tenure as Deputy Secretary, he served as Director and Senior Attorney of the North Carolina Environmental Defense Fund, which he helped found in 1987.

Mr. Levitas has been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® for Environmental Law since 2005; listed in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business every year since 2004; listed as #1 in the area of Environmental Law in the 2011 and 2012 editions of Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business; named one of the Triad area's "Movers and Shakers" for 2010 by Business Leader Magazine; named to Business North Carolina magazine's "Legal Elite" list since 2003; recognized in The International Who's Who of Business Lawyers for 2009 and 2011; and listed as a North Carolina "Super Lawyer" in Environmental law by SuperLawyers magazine since 2006. He is AV® rated by Martindale-Hubbell.*

*CV, BV, and AV are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedure's standards and policies.

Professional & Community Activities

North Carolina Bar Association Environmental Law Section, Member

American Bar Association Standing Committee on Environmental Law, Past Member

Biofuels Center of North Carolina Board of Directors, Member

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Institute for the Environment Board of Visitors, Member and Past Chairman

Opera Company of North Carolina Board of Directors, Member and Past Chairman

Triangle Land Conservancy Board of Directors, Past Member

Southeast Energy Alliance Board of Directors, Member and Secretary

Education

  • Harvard Law School, J.D. (1982)
    cum laude
  • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, B.A. (1976)

Bar Admissions

  • North Carolina (1983)

Admissions

  • U.S. Supreme Court (1986)
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (1985)
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina (1983)

Clerkships

  • U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina — Honorable James B. McMillan

Who We Are

Suite 1400, 4208 Six Forks Road
Raleigh, NC, 27609
USA
t +1 919.420.1707
f +1 919.510.6145

Steven J. Levitas

Experience Highlights

Environmental counsel to private equity fund investing in redevelopment of contaminated property
Provide environmental counsel to a private equity fund in connection with regulatory, liability transfer and insurance issues relating to the more
City of Raleigh groundwater variance
Obtained complex variance for the City of Raleigh allowing the use of monitored natural attenuation to remediate groundwater and resulting in savings more
Renewable energy projects with governmental entities
Advise renewable energy project developers on government procurement requirements relating to energy services and purchase agreements. more
Environmental insurance coverage dispute
Represented insured in resolving substantial insurance coverage dispute associated with the remediation of an 85-acre former chemical manufacturing more