Kronick Moskovitz Tiedemann & Girard was established in 1959 with a focus on water law and water-related resource law. Founders Stanley Kronick and Adolph Moskovitz first met in 1950 when they shared an office as staff attorneys for the Regional Counsel’s Office of the Bureau of Reclamation where they formulated the water allocation plan that altered California’s water policy and became the basis for the water and hydroelectric projects implemented by Governor Edmund G. Brown that have helped the California economy flourish for more than five decades. The complexity of legal and governance issues related to water quickly led Kronick into other areas of public agency law intensifying our experience throughout the complicated network of regulatory agencies and at every level of the state and federal court systems, including the United States Supreme Court.
California’s water law and policies continue to evolve, and Kronick remains at the forefront assisting public agencies and other users in shaping those laws and policies. Kronick attorneys develop and implement strategies to achieve client objectives while complying with new laws and policies. Kronick has experience with all aspects of water supply development and management as general or special counsel to a broad spectrum of clients; including cities, counties, special districts, farmers, ranchers, mutual water companies, real estate developers, financial institutions, and private landowners. We work constructively with stakeholders to anticipate challenges, identify common ground, and design practical solutions to achieve success for each client operating in the water industry.
Kronick attorneys are well versed in imported and groundwater supply issues. With regard to imported water supplies, Kronick represents a variety of interests, and thus, brings a broad perspective to solving problems, not just one focused on particular local issues. Our attorneys are involved in numerous CEQA and NEPA challenges, negotiations regarding the Monterey Amendments, and have handled many water transfers for State Water Project clients. We have extensive experience related to water supply analysis including assessing the sufficiency of water supplies to sustain new development projects pursuant to SB 610/221. Our attorneys also represent many clients who are dependent on imported supplies from the federal Central Valley Project as well as municipalities and other public agencies dependent on a variety of imported water supplies. This breadth of knowledge across water supply sources and recipients prepares us to provide sound advice on most water supply issues. This knowledge relates to the wholesale, retail, and end-user customer aspects of imported supplies.
With regard to groundwater supplies, our attorneys have extensive experience in this specialized area of law. We represent several public agencies that rely extensively on groundwater supplies as well as private landowners with wells, from independent homeowner to very large agricultural operations. Our attorneys participated in several basin-wide groundwater adjudication proceedings. It is no secret that Government is tightening regulation of groundwater use in response to intensifying demand. The state’s new Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (“SGMA”) took effect January 1, 2015. The state has ranked 127 groundwater basins as high or medium priority under the Act. Cities, counties or water agencies in high- and medium-priority basins must adopt regulatory plans to correct or prevent groundwater overdraft. Depending on local circumstances, the plans might prohibit new wells, monitor and cut pumping, and impose fees. Starting in 2020, the state will review local plans to determine whether to impose more restrictive state pumping regulations.
Meanwhile, groundwater disputes are on the rise. Entire groundwater basins are being adjudicated to determine pumping rights that divide a basin’s safe yield among competing users. One pending environmental lawsuit seeks to prohibit local well-drilling permits unless surface streams are protected from the effects of groundwater pumping. And groundwater impacts are receiving more attention during the California Environmental Quality Act review.
Kronick attorneys are at the forefront of these intense new issues. We represent clients that are newly formed Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (“GSA’s”) and helped form them whether it be through Joint Powers Agreements, Memorandum of Agreements (or Understanding), or by expanding the powers of an existing public agency. We are continuing to help form governance structures for these entities and prepare Groundwater Sustainability Plans. Our unique capability includes have two attorneys that are also Professional Engineers specializing in water resources and groundwater.
Kronick attorneys regularly acquire and defend water rights and entitlements (both groundwater and surface water rights), contractual entitlements and petitions for change. We have considerable experience representing clients before state and federal regulatory agencies, including State Water Resources Control Board, Regional Water Quality Control Boards, Public Utilities Commission, State Lands Commission, State Reclamation Board, Department of Fish and Game, Army Corps of Engineers, National Marine Fisheries Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
People
Publications
Newsroom
- California Department of Water Resources/State Water Project
- State Water Resources Control Board/Regional Water Quality Control Boards
- Bureau of Reclamation/Central Valley Project
- Fish and Wildlife Resource Agencies
- Delta Stewardship Council
- California Water Commission
- Delta Conservancy
- Regional and Local Water Districts
- CPUC-regulated Water Districts
- Clean Water Act
- Safe Drinking Water Act
- Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act
- Endangered Species Acts – State and Federal
- Environmental Review Laws – State and Federal
- Delta Reform Act
Speaking Engagements
04.05.2024
|Speaking Engagement
|Legal & Institutional Management Framework
Date
April 5th
Location
University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law
Kronick Shareholder Holly Roberson will present at the Water Education Foundation’s Water 101 Workshop on April 5th. This comprehensive workshop dives into the intricate history, geography, and legal landscape surrounding water in California, shedding light on current challenges facing the state.
Holly will deliver a session focusing on the overview of water management institutions and regulatory agencies in California. She will discuss their roles and responsibilities, highlighting key governing laws at both the state and federal levels.
To learn more and to register, please visit the event website.
04.11.2023
|Speaking Engagement
|California Tribal Water Summit
Date
April 11-13
Location
Sacramento
Kronick is proud to sponsor the California Tribal Water Summit on April 11-13 in Sacramento. This is a convening of Tribal, State, and Federal leaders to discuss water issues and strategies towards watershed resilience of California’s sacred waters. Participants will help inform State water policy and advance issues of equity, access and incorporation of Tribal Ecological Knowledge in the California Water Plan. For general questions contact: TribalWaterSummit@water.ca.gov; to register please visit the event website.
02.04.2023
|Speaking Engagement
|19th Annual California Water Law Symposium
Date:
Saturday, February 4th
Location:
University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law
Kronick is pleased to sponsor the 19th Annual California Water Law Symposium, “Diverse Needs: Species Protection and Water Supply.” Participating schools include Golden Gate University School of Law, Stanford Law School, UC Berkeley School of Law, UC Davis School of Law, UC College of the Law, San Francisco, and the University of San Francisco School of Law. Partnering schools will each host a panel consisting of prestigious speakers and practitioners within the field of water law discussing various topics like hydropower, agriculture, indigenous peoples, and innovation in the reconciliation between water supply and species protection. Kronick attorney Kaitlin Harr will moderate the panel discussion about “Innovations in Accommodating Water Supply and Species Protection.”
For more information and to register, please visit the event website.
11.30.2022
|Speaking Engagement
|ACWA 2022 Fall Conference
Date
Wednesday, November 30
Location
Indian Wells, CA
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.
07.29.2022
|Speaking Engagement
|Groundwater Sustainability Implementation in California
Date
July 28-29
Location
Virtual
Kronick Shareholders Eric Robinson and Holly Roberson will present at the virtual Groundwater Sustainability Implementation in California conference. Eric will provide opening remarks as Program Co-Chair as well as participate in the discussion “Lessons for Water Masters from Implementation of Existing Pre and Post SGMA Adjudications.” Holly will discuss “Sovereign-to-Sovereign Tribal Consultation During the Implementation Phase for GSPs.” For more information or to register, please visit the event website.
05.04.2022
|Speaking Engagement
|Water Law Update or Revolution?
DATE
May 4
LOCATION
Sacramento, CA
OVERVIEW
Kronick is pleased to once again sponsor the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) 2022 Spring Conference. Shareholder Eric Robinson will participate in a panel discussion about a water policy reformer group that has proposed “updating” California water laws to address drought and climate change. The proposal recommends 11 water law changes, including Funding the State Water Resources Control Board to “verify” riparian and pre-1914 appropriative water rights; funding underrepresented groups to participate in water rights and water quality proceedings; empowering the SWRCB to initiate comprehensive surface water rights adjudications encompassing interconnected groundwater rights; deploying real-time surface water diversion and use monitoring and reporting; adopting an updated Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan before 2024; adopting a regulation specifying how water users will meet water quality objectives of the Bay-Delta WQCP, and other proposals. The report has received extensive attention from California’s water community and resulted in multiple pieces of legislation. A variety of stakeholders will discuss the report and what the recommendations would mean for water management in California.
For more information and to register, please visit the event website.
11.05.2021
|Speaking Engagement
|Groundwater Sustainability Implementation in California
Date
November 4-5
Location
Virtual
Kronick Shareholders Eric Robinson and Holly Roberson will present at the virtual Groundwater Sustainability Implementation in California conference. Eric will provide opening remarks as Program Co-Chair as well as participate in a discussion about “Groundwater Shortages: Managing the Tension Between Allocations, Production Rampdowns, and Water Right Claims by Competing Pumpers.” Holly will discuss “Sovereign-to-Sovereign Tribal Consultation Issues and Environmental/Economic Justice Considerations in Development of GSPs.” For more information or to register, please visit the event website.
10.19.2020
|Speaking Engagement
|Tribal Water in California
DATE
October 19 & 20
LOCATION
Virtual
OVERVIEW
At the upcoming Law Seminars International seminar, Kronick Shareholder Holly Roberson will provide an update on the State implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) and the impact on Tribes and discuss the basics of Tribal Consultations, such as when federal agencies are involved and the most effective approaches from a best practice standpoint.
09.23.2020
|Speaking Engagement
|Money Matters: Understanding Financial Conflicts of Interest for Public Entities/Board Members
Date
Sept. 9, 16, 23 and 30 • 10 am – 11 am PDT
Location
Virtual
Kronick Associate Olivia Clark will participate in the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) CLE Workshop Series in a panel discussion about Government Code Section 1090, which prohibits public officials from having financial interests in contracts that they have a hand in. Sounds simple, right? But who is a public official? Sure it is someone elected or appointed to a Board. But it also can include staff members of an agency, and can even include consultants. And what is a financial interest? In many cases, it is easy to know, but in others, you might be surprised at what counts as a financial interest. Join us for this panel that will cover the black letter law, but also wrestle with a number of hypotheticals that could come to life in your world.
For more information, please visit the event website.
07.29.2020
|Speaking Engagement
|Water Infrastructure Projects
DATE
July 29
LOCATION
Webinar
OVERVIEW
At the upcoming Law Seminars International seminar, Kronick Shareholder Scott Morris will discuss the interplay among the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), regulatory structure for water utilities, and a review of NEPA/CEQA – the resulting legal, technical, and environmental justice issues.
07.16.2020
|Speaking Engagement
|The Need for Consultation with Tribal Governments as Sovereign Nations in GSP Development and Tips for Reaching Win-Win Solutions
DATE
July 16 & 17
LOCATION
Virtual Meeting via Zoom
OVERVIEW
At the upcoming Law Seminars International seminar, Kronick Shareholder Holly Roberson will discuss federally reserved rights as senior rights; consultation requirements and how they differ from stakeholder participation; addressing Tribal concerns about sharing pumping and aquifer management data; tips for effective consultation and reaching solutions.
12.04.2019
|Speaking Engagement
|Groundwater Production Allocations Under SGMA
DATE
December 4
LOCATION
San Diego, CA
Overview
Kronick is pleased to again sponsor the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) Fall Conference in San Diego. Shareholder and Practice Group Manager of Kronick’s Natural Resources Group, Eric Robinson will participate in a panel discussion regarding groundwater production allocations under SGMA. As Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSAs) prepare their plans to meet the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act’s (SGMA) requirements, they may need to utilize a variety of tools to achieve sustainability. For groundwater basins in overdraft, production allocations may be a vital tool for the GSAs. However, SGMA explicitly states that it does not alter water rights, which means the GSAs have to carefully navigate between the confines of water rights and SGMA requirements in developing and implementing their groundwater sustainability plans (GSPs). This program will explain the legal framework, different types of groundwater rights, lessons learned from existing groundwater production allocation programs, potential pitfalls and practical approaches to developing a GSP with production allocations as a component to reaching sustainability goals.
12.03.2019
|Speaking Engagement
|Government Code Section 1090: How to Stay Out of the Headlines (and Out of Jail)
DATE
December 3
LOCATION
San Diego, CA
OVERVIEW
Kronick is pleased to again sponsor the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) Fall Conference in San Diego. Associate Olivia Clark will participate in a panel discussion about Government Code Section 1090, which prohibits public officials from having financial interests in contracts that they have a hand in. Sounds simple, right? But who is a public official? Sure it is someone elected or appointed to a Board. But it also can include staff members of an agency, and can even include consultants. And what is a financial interest? In many cases it is easy to know, but in others you might be surprised at what counts as a financial interest. Join us for this panel that will cover the black letter law, but also wrestle with a number of hypotheticals that could come to life in your world.
For more information, please visit the event website.
10.18.2019
|Speaking Engagement
|Uncooperative Federalism
DATE
October 18
LOCATION
Yosemite, CA
OVERVIEW
Kronick is pleased to again sponsor the California Lawyer Association’s Environmental Law Conference at Yosemite on October 18 – 20, 2019. Shareholder Daniel O’Hanlon will discuss the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s biological assessment for Central Valley Project operations, stating that the proposal will “maximize water supply delivery and optimize power generation consistent with applicable laws.” Environmental groups call it a “plan for extinction.” The Bureau is also threatening to refuse to comply with some state requirements in the Delta and proposing to enlarge Shasta Dam notwithstanding limiting provisions of the California Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. This panel will discuss the potential for conflicts in state and federal water policy, requirements for federal compliance with state law and possible responses if the federal government fails to comply.
07.25.2019
|Speaking Engagement
|Sustainable Groundwater Planning in California
DATE
July 25 & 26, 2019
LOCATION
Sacramento, CA
Overview
Kronick attorneys Eric Robinson, Holly Roberson and Constantine Baranoff will present at the Sustainable Groundwater in California conference in Sacramento. Eric will provide opening remarks as Program Co-Chair as well as participate in a discussion about conjunctive management of groundwater interconnected with surface streams as a practical approach for achieving resilient and sustainable water supplies. Constantine’s presentation will discuss propositions 26 and 218 and other constraints, tips for identifying the optimal funding structures for initial GSP development and GSP implementation activities. Holly will discuss federally reserved water rights; consultation requirements; effective consultation; reasons why Tribes may be reluctant to participate in a GSA or share pumping and aquifer management data; confidentiality; practical tips for addressing those concerns. For more information or to register, please visit the event website.
06.20.2019
|Speaking Engagement
|The Public Trust Doctrine: Expanding or Contracting?
DATE
June 20-21
LOCATION
Omni Hotel, San Francisco
OVERVIEW
Kronick is pleased to again sponsor the annual California Water Law & Policy conference on June 20-21, 2019 in San Francisco. Shareholder Daniel O’Hanlon will participate in a panel discussion about lack of trust in Public Agencies, is it “An Emerging Litigation Trend to Challenge Agency Decisions?” Kronick can offer friends of the firm a $100 discount off the regular tuition pricing upon entering the code: “Friend of Kronick Moskovitz” when registering here.
REGISTRATION
Please visit the event website for more information.
04.23.2019
|Speaking Engagement
|Never a Dry Class: Thinking About Drought During a Wet Year
Date
Tuesday, April 23rd
Location
South Lake Tahoe, NV
Overview
Kronick is proud to sponsor and exhibit at the California Rural Water Association’s EXPO which provides training, technical assistance, resources and information to assist water and wastewater utilities in achieving high standards of service. Kronick attorney Holly Roberson will be participating in a Drought 101 panel discussion.
02.07.2019
|Speaking Engagement
|Legal and Institutional Management Framework
DATE: Thursday, February 7
ORGANIZED BY:
Water Education Foundation
PROGRAM OVERVIEW:
Kronick attorney Holly Roberson will be presenting on “Legal and Institutional Management Framework ” at Water 101 Workshop on February 7 at McGeorge. The workshop covers the history, geography, legal and political facets of water in California as well as hot topics currently facing the state. Holly will cover include:
Water Management Institutions
Summary of Governing Laws
REGISTRATION:
Please visit the event website for more information.
07.27.2018
|Speaking Engagement
|Sustainable Groundwater Planning in California
DATE:
July 26-27, 2018
LOCATION:
Sacramento, CA
Organized By:
Law Seminars International (LSI)
Program Overview:
Kronick attorneys Scott Morris, Jonathan Christy and Holly Roberson will present at the Sustainable Groundwater Planning conference in Sacramento on July 26-27.
Scott will provide opening remarks as Program Co-Chair and participate in a panel discussion about “Cross-Boundary Flows and Basin Coordination” discussing the legal issues around coordination challenges and issues (a) within a groundwater basin, (b) with adjacent basins, and (c) when an adjacent basin is on the critical list and yours is not; essential terms for coordinating agreements.
Jonathan’s presentation will discuss financing options and strategies for GSA/GSP and what GSP developers and stakeholders need to know about constraints and viable pathways.
Holly’s panel will discuss legal parameters for working with Tribes as sovereigns, including requirements for Tribal consultation.
Registration:
Please visit the event website for more information and to register.