D.J. Camerson, II

D.J. Camerson is a Principal at Bressler and a senior member of the firm's preeminent environmental law practice.

D.J. has extensive regulatory, transaction, and litigation experience involving federal and state law environmental issues. He has represented and advised clients on issues involving federal and state air, water and solid and hazardous waste matters. Similar to Bressler, D.J.’s practice is multi-jurisdictional and he has represented a wide range of clients (from Fortune 500 companies to individuals) in New Jersey, Colorado, New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Louisiana, Florida, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and North Carolina.

D.J.’s experience includes complex, multi-party matters to small private actions.  In addition to defending clients in response to governmental and private party actions for cost recovery or contribution, D.J. has prosecuted state and federal cost recovery and contribution claims which included the investigation and identification of responsible parties. D.J. has also served as common counsel for multiple parties at several sites and is serving as national counsel in defense of allegations by various states relating to remediation of former retail gasoline service stations.  He is highly skilled in Federal and State courts and has extensive experience negotiating disputes through mediation and alternative dispute resolution.

D.J. has assisted clients on environmental issues in real estate transactions totaling in excess of $500 million.

D.J. has also led and/or conducted numerous internal/due diligence investigations of environmental incidents and sources/causes of contamination.  D.J. has extensive experience in providing clients with federal and state regulatory advice and dealing with state and federal agencies on regulatory and enforcement issues.  He has assisted clients in obtaining required approvals and permits and negotiated numerous agreements and orders with governmental agencies. 

D.J. has served as a panelist at several bar conferences and has lectured extensively including CERCLA: Liability, Enforcement and Cost Recovery and Hot Topics: Environmental Law for LSRPs 2015 at Rutgers University.  He also was a guest lecturer in the fall of 2015 on environmental law for the Insurance Law course at Rutgers School of Law in Newark. Most recently, he presented on New Jersey State of the Union at a client organized LSRP roundtable conference.  He is a member of the ISRA and Environmental Issues Committee and served as a Director of the Environmental Section of the New Jersey Bar.

D.J. obtained his undergraduate degree in economics from Washington and Jefferson College.  He graduated cum laude and received the Birch Scholarship as the Outstanding Student Athlete.  D.J. obtained his law degree from Vanderbilt University School of Law where he was an associate editor on the Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law.

Experience

D.J.’s experience on environmental issues, includes, among other things,

• Federal and state regulatory permitting and compliance, including interfacing  and negotiating with state and federal agencies
• Purchase and sale of properties with environmental issues
• Federal and state regulatory enforcement actions brought by state and federal agencies
• Defense and prosecution of federal and state cost recovery and contribution actions
• Defense and prosecution of private party cost recovery and contribution actions
• Property-related damages caused by contamination, including stigma, diminution in value, and loss of use
• Negotiation and litigation of issues involving liability or allocation of liability for contamination
• Buying and selling contaminated property
• Compliance with state transfer acts
• Remediation of properties, including working with environmental consultants and licensed site professionals
• Contract negotiations and disputes concerning environmental issues
• Directing and participating in historical and forensic analysis to determine source of the contamination and site conditions
• Issues relating to the off-site migration of contamination (where contamination migrates from a client’s property to off-site/non-owned properties)
• Vapor intrusion
• Natural resource damages
• Remediation funding sources and financial assurances
• Brownfield initiatives
• Hazardous waste management
• Remediation of radiological contamination
• Land use issues including wetlands and flood hazard control
• New Jersey specific issues including ISRA, Spill Act, Solid Waste, Water Quality and Control, Air Quality, Electronic Waste Management Act, Historical Preservation, Water Pollution, and Air Quality 
• Federal specific issues including CERCLA, RCRA, Clean Water Act, Oil Pollution Act, Toxic Substances Act, Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know, Air Pollution and National Historic Preservation Act
• Site access agreements and, if necessary, obtaining court-ordered site access

News & Alerts

Speaking Engagements & Events

Articles & Publications

Professional Affiliations

• Member, American Bar Association
• Member, New Jersey State Bar Association
• Member, Pennsylvania State Bar Association
• Member, Site Remediation Advisory Group (NJBAR - Environmental Section)
• Master, Justice Stewart G. Pollock Environmental American Inn of Court

Awards & Honors

• Included in the list of the Best Lawyers in America®, 2017-2025
• Received the Best Lawyers^™ 2022 "Lawyer of the Year" award in Environmental Law, New Jersey

This award is conferred by Best Lawyers. A description of the selection methodology is available here. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.   

• Recognized in the Chambers USA Guide to "America's Leading Lawyers for Business," Environmental, 2019-2022 and 2024

This award is conferred by Chambers & Partners. A description of the selection methodology is available here. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.