“She has great analytical, legal and writing skills. She provides excellent and timely services and is sophisticated in her analyses of issues.”
“Jane is a strong and knowledgeable lawyer, particularly with regard to environmental matters.”
– Chambers USA
Jane Steadman joined Kanji & Katzen in 2011 and became a member of the firm in 2022. Jane works in the Seattle office. Jane may be contacted at jsteadman@kanjikatzen.com.**
Education:Jane received her B.A. degree cum laude in biology, with minors in anthropology and environmental studies, from Kalamazoo College in 2001. In 2009, she graduated magna cum laude, with an Environmental & Natural Resources Law Certificate, from Lewis & Clark Law School. At Lewis & Clark, she was an Associate Editor for Environmental Law, a Lands & Wildlife Project Coordinator for the Northwest Environmental Defense Center, and a volunteer for the Public Interest Law Project. Jane participated as a student law clerk in both of the law school’s environmental clinics—the Pacific Environmental Advocacy Center (now Earthrise) and the International Environmental Law Project (now Global Law Alliance for Animals and the Environment).
Prior Experience: Prior to joining Kanji & Katzen, Jane was a legal analyst in The Wilderness Society’s National Forest Action Center, where she worked on National Forest policy and U.S. Forest Service planning processes across the West. During law school, she clerked for Earthjustice, Crag Law Center, and the Oregon Natural Desert Association. Before law school, Jane worked as a campaign organizer for Save Our Wild Salmon in support of the Columbia and Snake Rivers Campaign.
Areas of Concentration: Jane represents Tribal Governments in matters involving tribal sovereignty, natural resources, and reserved water and fishing, hunting, and gathering rights. She has assisted client tribes in complex litigation, administrative processes, and settlement negotiations involving numerous treaties and statutes, including, among others, the Stevens Treaties, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, National Environmental Policy Act, Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, Washington’s Model Toxics Control Act, and the Sikes Act. She has litigated complex cases involving common law theories such as trespass and public nuisance. She also regularly helps tribes reach solutions to problems through alternative means to formal legal processes, as well as assists tribes with their regulatory codes.
Representative matters include:
- United States v. Washington (Culverts, Subproceeding 01-1), 853 F.3d 946 (9th Cir. 2017), aff’d per curiam 138 S.Ct.1832 (2018) (holding State of Washington’s maintenance of culverts that posed barriers to salmon passage violated Tribes’ treaty fishing rights).
- Bad River Band of Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Bad River Rsrv. v. Enbridge Energy Co., Inc., 626 F. Supp. 3d 1030 (W.D. Wis. 2022) (holding pipeline company in trespass), 2023 WL 4043961 (W.D. Wis. June 16, 2023) (holding pipeline company liable for public nuisance and ordering removal of crude oil pipeline). Note: This case is currently on appeal before the Seventh Circuit.
- Settlement for the Suquamish Tribe to redress unpermitted discharge of millions of gallons of untreated or improperly treated sewage from a wastewater treatment plant in Seattle. Under the settlement, King County will pay the Tribe $2.5 million for harm caused by the spills, invest $2.4 million in environmental protection and habitat restoration projects, and comply with an enforceable schedule to complete wastewater treatment infrastructure upgrades to reduce the risk of future untreated sewage discharges. Press Release: https://suquamish.nsn.us/king-county-unanimously-approves-settlement-with-suquamish-tribe-over-sewage-spill-dispute/
Awards and Honors: Jane is ranked nationally by Chambers USA in Native American Law, and she received the 2024 Distinguished Environmental Law Graduate Award from Lewis & Clark Law School. Upon graduation from Lewis & Clark, Jane was inducted into the Cornelius Honor Society. She also received the Bernard F. O’Rourke Award for the best original research paper on a natural resource topic, the Pro Bono Award, and an award for Best Appellate Brief. As an undergraduate, Jane received the Department of Anthropology award for her student work in applied anthropology.
Community Service and Personal Interests: Jane enjoys exploring wild places, traveling, cooking, hiking, kayaking, and playing with her dog Dowagiac (Jack, for short). She currently serves as a board member for Crag Law Center. From 2015 to 2024, she served as a member of the Litigation Committee for the Sierra Club’s Washington Chapter. From 2015 to 2017, she served as a Trustee for the Indian Law Section of the Washington State Bar Association.
Bar Memberships:
State of Washington
State of Oregon
United States Supreme Court
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
United States District Court for the Western District of Washington
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington
United States District Court for the District of Columbia (application pending)
United States District Court for the District of North Dakota
Tribal Court for the White Earth Nation
Publications:
Jane G. Steadman, Protecting Water Quality and Salmon in the Columbia Basin: The Case for State Certification of Federal Dams, 38 Envtl. L. 1331 (2008)
Michael C. Blumm & Jane G. Steadman, Indian Treaty Fishing Rights and Habitat Protection: The Martinez Decision Supplies a Resounding Judicial Reaffirmation, 49 Nat. Resources J. 653 (2009)
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