Lauren D. Bernadett, Senior Counsel
Lauren is a natural resources lawyer who counsels private and public clients through regulatory compliance, administrative processes, and litigation in state and federal courts. Lauren’s substantive experience covers many aspects of water, natural resources, administrative, public agency, mining, land use, and contract law.
Lauren is an adjunct professor of law and teaches Agricultural Water Law for the University of Arkansas School of Law. She frequently guest lectures, speaks at conferences, and gives MCLE presentations on water law, focusing on California water rights and drought.
Legal Experience
Litigation/Administrative Hearings
- Briefed the California Supreme Court and the United States Supreme Court on Proposition 26 and water rights fees issues.
- Represented clients in administrative hearings before the California State Water Resources Control Board.
- Represented public agency client in litigation on California’s 2015 water curtailments.
- Represented private client in appealing a BLM decision to the Interior Board of Land Appeals.
General Counsel
- Served as general counsel for water, irrigation, and levee districts and utility cooperatives.
- Served as negotiator for two CVP contractors in the WIIN Act negotiations with the federal government for permanent repayment contracts.
- Advised land use developers on CEQA compliance and potential litigation against municipality.
- Advised mining clients on vested rights, SMARA, and local land use compliance.
Legislation
- Drafted and advised the California legislature on the bill that created the California State Resources Control Board’s Administrative Hearings Office.
- Served as attorney-advisor on bills regarding water rights adjudication and fees for committee meetings in the 2018 and 2019 legislative sessions.
Before joining Kronick, Lauren worked at law firms focusing on water, natural resources, and mining law. She was also a lobbyist and advocate for the Association of California Water Agencies on water rights, groundwater, and agriculture.
Professional Activities & Affiliations
- Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch, Natural Resources Law (2024)
- Top Lawyers, Sacramento Magazine (2019-21)
- Super Lawyer Rising Star (2017-20, 2022-2023)
- Best of the Bar, Sacramento Business Journal (2019)
- Member, California Lawyers Association
Admitted To Practice
- United States Supreme Court
- United States Court of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit
- United States District Court, Eastern District of California
Academic Background
LL.M. in Agricultural and Food Law, University of Arkansas School of Law, 2014
J.D., University of California, Los Angeles School of Law, 2013
- Managing Editor of the UCLA Law Review
- Joyce A. Will Scholarship in Environmental Law
B.A., University of California, San Diego, 2010
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Overview
Phone: (916) 321-4374 | Email: lbernadett@kmtg.comAreas of Practice
Newsroom
Speaking Engagements
08.02.2023
|Kronick Workshop
|Damien Schiff in Conversation: Exploring the Sackett Case and the Supreme Court’s Decision
When: Wednesday, August 2nd
Time: 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Where: In-person at Kronick’s Office, 1331 Garden Hwy, 2nd Floor, Sacramento, CA 95833 (lunch provided) or virtually via Zoom
Related Practices/Industries
Join us for an MCLE panel discussion featuring Damien Schiff of the Pacific Legal Foundation, who recently secured a groundbreaking victory in the US Supreme Court case, Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency.
Kronick attorney Lauren Bernadett and Brenda Bass, Policy Advocate at California Chamber of Commerce, will engage Damien in an insightful conversation about his decade-long litigation before the Supreme Court, specifically focusing on the definition of “waters of the U.S.” This includes an in-depth exploration of his recent 9-0 SCOTUS triumph in the Sackett case. The discussion will provide valuable insights into the far-reaching implications of the Court’s ruling on federal jurisdiction over wetlands and water quality standards, as well as the legal arguments and procedural history.
Questions? Heather Ward (916-321-4577 or hward@kmtg.com)
Sackett Cato Supreme Court Review Article (July 20) [DRAFT]
Damien’s Sackett II Presentation
MCLE Credit:
Kronick is a State Bar of California MCLE-approved provider and this program has been approved for one hour of MCLE credit.
Download your MCLE certificate and evaluation form.
11.30.2022
|Speaking Engagement
|ACWA 2022 Fall Conference
Date
Wednesday, November 30
Location
Indian Wells, CA
Related Practices/Industries
Kronick is pleased to once again sponsor the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) Fall Conference in Indian Wells on November 29-December 1, 2022. Shareholder Eric Robinson will participate in a panel discussion that will explore lessons learned from groundwater rights adjudications with an eye toward how they can inform future adjudications and implementation of SGMA, whose groundwater sustainability plans have similarities to physical solutions imposed by adjudication judgments. Senior Counsel Lauren Bernadett will participate in a panel that will review some of the most notable cases and how agencies are responding. This session coincides with the fall release of ACWA’s Summary of Appellate Cases publication.