Published Articles & Thought Leadership

This article provides the first comprehensive framework for calculating damages in water contamination litigation based on Maximum Contaminant Level Goals, the health-based standards established by EPA. The article addresses a critical gap in environmental law: while courts recognize that water providers can suffer compensable injury from contamination below regulatory limits, no coherent methodology exists for measuring those damages. The article is particularly timely given the historic $13 billion PFAS class action settlement, which implicitly adopted MCLG-based damages by compensating water systems for any detectable contamination. Hopkins, Timothy J., "Maximum Contaminant Level Goals in Water Contamination Litigation: Why Health-Based Standards Matter," 56 ENVTL. L. REP. (forthcoming February 2026).

This article demonstrates how investor-owned water utilities can achieve health-protective drinking water standards (MCLGs) while maximizing shareholder returns through rate-of-return regulation. By treating to MCLGs rather than minimum regulatory compliance (MCLs), utilities increase rate base, enhance long-term profitability, and deliver superior public health outcomes. The article challenges the conventional assumption that utilities lack economic incentive to exceed minimum standards, showing how regulatory economics can align private profit with public health. Hopkins, Timothy J., "Harnessing the Profit Motive for Public Health: A New Path to Achieving Health-Based Drinking Water Standards," 56 Envtl. L. Rep. (forthcoming March 2026).

Environmental Law Reporter (ELR) is the leading scholarly journal for environmental law professionals, published by the Environmental Law Institute. ELR articles are widely cited by courts, practitioners, and scholars.