Beveridge & Diamond's recent win in the pesticide preemption case Complete Lawn Care v. Montgomery County, 2017 WL 3332362, was featured in Law360 as an important environmental ruling of 2017 in an article titled "4 Environmental Rulings That Flew Under The Radar In 2017."

In August, the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, Maryland invalidated a County ordinance banning pesticide use on private lawns as preempted by State law. Principal Anthony Michaels (Washington, DC) argued the case for a group of successful Plaintiffs: seven local residents, six small businesses, and Responsible Industry for a Sound Environment (RISE), the national trade association representing manufacturers, formulators, distributors and other industry leaders engaged with specialty pesticides and fertilizers used by consumers and professionals. With Anthony on the briefing at B&D were Principals Kathy Szmuszkovicz and Jimmy Slaughter (Washington, DC), Of Counsel Gus Bauman (Washington, DC) and Associate Kaitlyn Shannon (San Francisco).

Jimmy observed in the Law360 article that Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Terrence McGann held that Maryland law dictates where, when and how each pesticide it has authorized may be used and that “no room is left for more regulation.”

“This adds to a growing body of cases finding that localities in various states lack the authority to impose their own local pesticide requirements that effectively ‘veto’ the comprehensive review and approval processes already in place for these products at the state and federal levels,” Jimmy said. “The decision is of particular importance due to the size of Montgomery County, which drew significant attention with its ordinance."

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