Directory Profile

Lauren is a natural resources attorney based in California and serving as the Director of California Water Law for Trout Unlimited.

Water law has always been central to her practice guiding clients through its legal intricacies in advisory and litigation contexts. Within water law, Lauren's focus is on water rights. This includes the history and origins of the different types of water rights, the current operation and interplay of water rights, and the impact of proposed legislation on water rights. Her practice experience covers all aspects of administrative and public agency law including public agency liability, reorganization, and transparency laws. She has supported clients in complex and high-stakes litigation and as a result, has briefed the U.S. Supreme Court, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, federal district courts, and every level of California state court on novel water law matters.

Lauren drafted several pieces of legislation that are now codified in the California Public Resources Code and Water Code, including the law that established the Administrative Hearings Office for California's statewide water enforcement agency. For the bills she drafted, she often served as the technical advisor supporting the legislative and lobbyist teams and negotiating amendments with interested parties. She has advised two foreign countries on water law issues, which included presenting legal frameworks that promote extreme conservation in conditions of water shortage.

While Lauren represents many different industries, she has unique and extensive experience serving the agricultural industry. Many of her public agency clients have provided irrigation water to some of the most productive farmland in the country. Lauren values the importance of local agriculture while also understanding the challenges of limited resources and a changing climate.

Lauren graduated from the University of Arkansas's LL.M. Program in Agricultural and Food Law in 2014 and from the UCLA School of Law in 2013. She frequently speaks at conferences and guest lectures on water law topics. She published several law review articles on water law and serves on two boards of directors of nonprofits in California.