Water Law

Griffith, Masuda & Hobbs provides comprehensive water law advice and representation.  If you are a public agency, protecting your groundwater and/or surface water rights is essential to your constituents and to enable your agency to carry out its mission.  If you are an individual, protecting your water rights is essential to you, your family, your business, and your community.  We welcome the opportunity to serve you.

Experience

Griffith, Masuda & Hobbs advises and represents clients in the following matters:

  • Implementing the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA).
  • Groundwater rights, management, and regulation.
  • Pre-1914 surface water rights.
  • Post-1914 surface water rights.
  • Riparian water rights.
  • State Water Project contract rights.
  • Recycled and reclaimed water rights.
  • Area of Origin rights.
  • Surface water use reporting.
  • Groundwater use reporting.
  • Integration of surface water and groundwater resources through conjunctive use and water banking.
  • Water conservation.
  • Long-term and short-term transfers and leases of pre-1914, post-1914, and contract surface water.
  • Groundwater leases.
  • Reservoir recreation management, operations, and planning.
  • Water treatment, transmission, and distribution systems.
  • Surface water and groundwater quality.
  • The interface between water resources and land use planning, including Water Supply Assessments.
  • Urban Water Management Plans.
  • Environmental laws – CEQA and NEPA.
  • Water and energy interface — power costs are a major cost component of multi-million dollar water projects.
  • Small hydroelectric projects.
  • Formation and administration of ditch, pipeline, drainage, and pump improvement districts within a water district and community irrigation facilities.
  • Proposition 218 fees, charges, assessments, and taxes.
  • Acting as issuer's counsel on public financings, e.g., general obligation bonds, revenue bonds, certificates of participation, commercial paper and warrants, and joint power agency revenue bonds.
  • Acquiring. managing, and enforcing easements and rights-of-ways for irrigation ditches and municipal and irrigation pipelines.
  • Salmonid and other fish resource issues, including riparian habitat restoration projects, management and mitigation plans, and fish flows under Federal Energy Regulatory Commission hydroelectric licenses.
  • Attorney to four different types of water districts – irrigation district, county water district, California water district, and water conservation district.
  • General counsel to an Integrated Regional Water Management Joint Powers Act Authority.

 

CONTACT US TODAY

Griffith, Masuda & Hobbs, A Professional Law Corporation is committed to answering your questions about Water Law, Public Law, and additional practice area law issues in California.

We’ll gladly discuss your case with you at your convenience. Contact us today to schedule an appointment.

I acknowledge that contacting Griffith, Masuda & Hobbs through this website does not create an Attorney-Client Relationship. Any information I send is not protected by the Attorney-Client Privilege.

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