About Daehnke Cruz
The Daehnke Cruz Law Group, situated in Newport Beach, California, is a nineteen-year law partnership between its founding partners, John Cruz and Kevin Daehnke. These long-standing partners bring to the Firm their big law firm backgrounds, including Finley Kumble (John Cruz), Fulop & Hardee (Kevin Daehnke) and Hill, Farrer & Burrill (Mr. Daehnke). The partners together have more than 45 years of experience in the cleanup and remediation of contaminated properties, including redevelopment of Brownfield sites, and in the political arena. With Kevin Daehnke's twenty-seven (27) years in environmental law and decade-long involvement at the forefront of California's statutory and regulatory Brownfields initiatives, and with the real estate background and extensive political contacts of John Cruz, the Firm is able to provide unsurpassed environmental legal expertise and acumen.
Although the Firm is located in Southern California, it serves clients throughout all of California, including many contaminated sites in Los Angeles and Orange Counties, as well as many Central and Northern California locations. The Firm is also beginning to work outside of California, spearheading a nationwide effort to resolve environmental liability issues critical to jumpstarting renewable energy projects on landfills and other contaminated sites.
Beginning in early 2005, the two law partners downsized their law partnership from ten attorneys to three attorneys, and devoted significant effort and monetary resources to creating, and getting enacted into law, California Senate Bill 989, California's newest Brownfield redevelopment tool. At that time, John Cruz was handpicked to work full-time for Governor Schwarzenegger; and in August, 2007, Mr. Cruz joined the then-Governor's Cabinet as the Appointments Secretary.
Daehnke Cruz Law Group has always emphasized pragmatic approaches to dealing with contaminated properties, including utilization of its specialized experience in working with state and federal regulators at the forefront of cutting edge environmental regulatory programs. The partners pride themselves on knowing how to cut through the regulatory bureaucracy at the state, federal and local levels, to ensure that site cleanup and remediation of contaminated property is efficient and focused. The Partners know that many site cleanup problems result from utilizing the wrong cleanup program, working through the wrong regulatory agency, hiring the wrong environmental consultant or not knowing how to navigate California's complex regulatory framework, or who to talk with at the government level, to get things done efficiently and effectively. Daehnke Cruz Law Group knows how to avoid these problems and to focus, instead, on sensible win-win solutions.
Mr. Daehnke is a frequent speaker at State and local Bar programs and on panels and conferences, typically focusing on environmental remediation and Brownfields redevelopment issues. He has authored or co-authored dozens of articles and publications on these topics, and has served in leadership positions on numerous committees, associations and panels.
