Frank Friedman

Frank Friedman, a graduate of Columbia College and Columbia Law School, is a consultant and expert/expert witness in environment, health and safety (EHS) and risk management. He has been a professional in these areas for more than fifty years. He has broad internal experience in the chemical, oil and gas exploration and production, petroleum refining and marketing, mining and pipeline industries and as a consultant has been advising utility and power companies on program management, strategies and energy issues and chemical, manufacturing, consumer products, pharmaceutical, power and energy, mining, service companies and hospitals on program management and compliance. He serves and has served as an expert witness on EHS management systems and their historical development, including management of Superfund liabilities. He has served as an expert or expert witness in cases involving process safety management; alleged environmental malpractice; standard of conduct in managing TCE; class action involving alleged personal injuries and other damages arising from the sale of pesticides; class action involving alleged dioxin exposure and contamination; a dispute between two companies involving management standards; and a compliance matter involving underground tanks. 

He was appointed by the U.S. Department of Justice in 2003 as the consultant to the probation officer in the settlement of an environmental criminal case involving Ashland, Inc., overseeing Ashland’s compliance in its facilities throughout the U.S. He also has advised the U.S. Department of Justice and EPA on environmental management systems, including as a Distinguished Speaker to the Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance.

He started as an attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice in what is now the Environment and Natural Resources Division in the late 1960’s, where he worked on some of the early cases in this area. He began his corporate career in 1970 and for almost twenty years was a senior (Senior VP and VP level) corporate EHS officer with large multinational corporations.  He is recognized as a worldwide leader in developing and rapidly implementing leading edge EHS programs.  He has organized and managed both centralized and decentralized departments requiring rapid decision making, turnarounds and integration into business plans.  He has engaged in extensive troubleshooting at facilities and operations worldwide. His book, Practical Guide to Environmental Management (Environmental Law Institute, 11th edition, 2011, 12th edition (with John C. Cruden) to be published in 2023), is widely viewed as the standard reference and teaching text on its subject. That book also contains detailed discussions relating to the integration of environment, safety, health, and process safety/risk management as well as auditing. He has also recently published his revised chapter on Environmental Audits/Assessments for the ELI treatise, Law of Environmental Protection  (2022 edition)

He was named by the National Law Journal as one of a small group “who stand out not only for their success in representing their clients’ interest, but also for their influence on the law.” He has been a member of the Executive Committee and Chairman of the Finance and Audit Committee of the Board of Directors of the Environmental Law Institute, as well as having served as a Visiting Scholar. He is a member of an advisory committee on the environmental law program at Columbia Law School.