Jillian B. Blanchard

Jillian Blanchard is the managing partner of Rudder Law Group and focuses her practice on federal, state and local environmental laws, land use, natural resource permitting and energy law. Jillian specializes in managing the environmental review and permitting processes for complex infrastructure, utility, energy, and development projects. Jillian works with private and public entities to guide development projects through the entitlement process, with a particular focus on federal and state resource agency permitting and the environmental review process. Jillian has a specialized expertise in representing clients before a variety of state and federal regulatory agencies, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NOAA Fisheries, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the State Water Quality Control Board and Regional Water Quality Control Boards, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the California Coastal Commission, the California Public Utilities Commission and the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission and has spent her career building strong relationships with these regulators. Jillian is regularly sought out as a natural resource permitting strategist for large controversial projects in and around San Francisco Bay, including Alameda Point Base Redevelopment, India Basin in San Francisco, the 34th America's Cup Project, James T. Herman Ferry Terminal in San Francisco, Oakland International Airport Runway Safety Project, and development at the Port of Oakland.

Jillian’s background combines top-flight private law firm experience with public agency expertise. 
As the managing partner of Rudder Law Group, Jillian represents investor-owned utilities, public agencies, and private developers and provides legal advice and strategy regarding the CEQA/NEPA  and environmental permitting processes associated with energy projects, water projects, aviation, and complex redevelopment projects in California.