Elaine R. Albrich

Partner

Elaine Albrich teams with clients to offer practical, strategic solutions for navigating and resolving complex situations involving use of land, impacts to natural resources and resource lands, discretionary permits and licenses, and other government-imposed hurdles. Her practice focuses on the energy and alcohol beverage industries as well as traditional real estate development and rural economic development opportunities.

Elaine’s style is to work with clients early on in a project to develop cost efficient strategies to minimize problems and avoid, to the extent possible, extended legal proceedings. This involves developing a coordinated local, state, and federal permitting strategy, establishing working relationships with local regulators, or participating in local code amendments, agency rulemakings, or legislative actions. She regularly represent clients in hearings and proceedings before city and county governing bodies, hearings officers, the Land Use Board of Appeals, the Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council, the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, and the Oregon Court of Appeals.

Practice Highlights

Energy Facility Siting

Elaine has helped clients permit over 1,000 MW of renewable energy over the last 10 years in addition to helping clients site traditional energy facilities. Her work has involved resolving jurisdictional issues (county versus Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council); advising on complex permitting strategies and interpreting new siting requirements; negotiating good neighbor agreements, noise easements, and mitigation plans; leading settlement talks with local opposition; and defending permit approvals when needed. She also performs permitting due diligence reviews for energy financing deals.

Land Use

The scope of Elaine’s land practice is broad, and includes assisting clients in pre-purchase due diligence for both urban and rural lands, issuing permitting opinions, obtaining conditional use permits and post acknowledgment plan amendments, navigating environmental and greenway reviews, permitting outdoor mass gatherings, and defending permit approvals. She is particularly familiar with permitting activities on agricultural and timber resource lands, including residential development, wineries and cideries, agritourism events, festivals, commercial activities in conjunction with farm use, and other non-traditional uses. She also assists clients in obtaining substantial compliance determinations from local governments for environmental remediation projects.

Alcohol Beverage and Hospitality

Elaine’s alcohol beverage practice focuses on manufacturers, retailers, and event venues. She works with clients to obtain the necessary government approvals to operate, including land use approvals, wastewater permits, and construction-related stormwater permits (NPDES 1200-C). Once facilities are up and operating, Elaine works with clients on strategies to grow and address growth-related issues such as neighborhood compatibility. From a transactional perspective, she assists clients in drafting and negotiating various agreements, including venue agreements, production agreements, and facility sharing agreements (custom crush or alternating proprietorships).

Admitted to Practice

Oregon, 2005
Washington, 2010

Education

J.D., University of Oregon School of Law, 2005
- Editor in Chief, Journal of Environmental Law and Litigation, 2004-2005
B.S., Environmental Studies and General Science, University of Oregon, 2000

Memberships & Affiliations

- Board Chair, Sustainable Northwest, 2013-present
- Board Member, Northwest Cider Association, 2015-2017
- Former Board Chair, Proud Ground, 2011-2014
- Former Board Member, Ashland Independent Film Festival, 2014-2016

Professional Recognition

- Named one of the "Best Lawyers in America" in Energy and Land Use and Zoning Law by Best Lawyers, 2021-present
- Selected as Portland's "Lawyer of The Year" in Energy Law by Best Lawyers, 2023
- Named as one of "America's Leading Lawyers for Business" by Chambers USA in Real Estate: Zoning/Land Use (Oregon), 2020-2022; Named an "Up and Coming Lawyer" in Real Estate: Zoning/Land Use (Oregon), 2019
- Selected to "Oregon Rising Stars" in Land Use/Zoning, Energy & Natural Resources, Environmental, Thomson Reuters, 2013-2018

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