Hume M. Ross

Hume provides comprehensive regulatory strategy and litigation support for clients in heavily regulated industries, including manufacturing, crop protection, energy storage, construction, and consumer products. He has extensive experience with the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), the Consumer Product Safety Act, the Endangered Species Act, and the Clean Air Act.

He specializes in products and sectors that are subject to substantial regulatory scrutiny. Hume works with agencies to shape regulations that have not yet been written, challenges and defends agency actions in court, and represents clients in enforcement matters. He provides compliance counseling, including internal audit and investigation support, conducts due diligence reviews, and helps clients get to market and efficiently manage challenges once there.

As a former practicing civil engineer and in-the-field construction project manager, he identifies and bridges gaps between scientists, regulators, attorneys, C-suite executives, and boots-on-the-ground personnel that other counsel may not recognize as the root cause of regulatory and compliance challenges.

Representative Matters

• Assisted multiple manufacturers with audits and related internal investigations of FIFRA and Clean Air Act compliance; provided related counseling under the EPA’s self-disclosure and “audit” policies to drastically reduce or eliminate civil penalty exposure.
• Represented trade associations and pesticide registrants in several litigations concerning EPA’s obligations under the Endangered Species Act in connection with pesticide registrations.
• Assisted clients in the crop protection industry with joint venture agreements, acquisitions, and restructurings, as well as toll manufacturing and production agreements.
• Assisted a commercial building owner in the Washington, DC region with response to a novel allegation under the Clean Water Act; worked with local regulators concerning the issue and assisted the client in developing response and remediation options.
• Obtained a positive ruling for a non-settling CERCLA PRP that a settling PRP could not use the contribution bar in settlement with the plaintiff to extinguish certain contractual indemnification rights.
• Helped major electronics manufacturers evaluate product and service offerings to identify changes needed to comply with a variety of building, energy, and safety codes for novel products.
• Helped a vehicle manufacturer with regulatory compliance in connection with deployment of Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) technology on vehicle fleet.
• Assisted multiple clients with investigations into field failures of consumer electronic devices and provided advice concerning the need for, and conduct of, related recalls and consumer notifications.
• Drafted comments to EPA concerning proposed update to industry-specific NESHAP and NSPS rules under the Clean Air Act based on extensive input from technical consultants and industry stakeholders and obtained favorable revisions in final rules.
• Obtained a favorable ruling on appeal from the EPA’s Environmental Appeals Board for a pesticide registrant in connection with a novel claim under FIFRA.
• Obtained a favorable settlement for a pesticide manufacturer following an appeal of new requirements for fumigation of commodities issued by a regulator.
• Counseled clients in connection with complex environmental contamination claims, including Superfund sites, environmental resource damages claims, and cases involving numerous state and environmental non-governmental organization stakeholders.
• Obtained several favorable rulings for a D.C. non-profit in the D.C. Superior Court and Court of Appeals in a matter presenting novel questions under D.C. landlord-tenant and wage-payment laws.

Professional Experience

• Law Clerk, U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC), Office of Unfair Import Investigations (2015)
• Civil Engineer, VStructural, LLC (VSL) (2006-2014)

Recognitions

• Included in The Best Lawyers in America directory of “Ones to Watch” for Administrative/Regulatory Law (2023-2026) and Environmental Law (2026)