Shute Mihaly & Weinberger LLP

06/04/2026

The California Public Utilities Commission has approved a final plan to relocate a proposed LS Power energy facility from a sensitive orchard in Coyote Valley to the existing Metcalf substation.

This decision follows significant community advocacy aimed at protecting the Coyote Creek wildlife corridor, a vital migratory path for bobcats, badgers, and deer traveling between the Santa Cruz Mountains and the Diablo Range.

SMW represented the Santa Clara Open Space Authority, led by Ellison Folk.

A team of five Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger attorneys have won “California Lawyer Attorney of the Year" (CLAY) Awards from The Daily Journal for their work on a decade-long CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) case in Kern County. The CLAY Awards went to Rachel B. Hooper, Kevin P. Bundy, Susa...

06/03/2026

Approximately 10,274 acres north of Lake Tahoe have been transferred to the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California.

Facilitated by a $5.5 million grant from the California Wildlife Conservation Board, the Wasi-siw Land Trust purchased the former Loyalton Ranch for long-term conservation and renamed it the WélmeltiɁ Preserve.

The tribe is currently seeking to establish a $750,000 endowment to manage the cleanup of the land and protect its critical water and wildlife resources.

This is the largest tribal land return ever completed in the Sierra Nevada

06/02/2026

The Trust for Public Land and the East Bay Regional Park District have secured an option agreement to acquire the former Golden Gate Fields site, a 161-acre waterfront property spanning Albany and Berkeley.

The project aims to transform the shuttered horse racing track into a world-class public park, filling a critical gap in the San Francisco Bay shoreline.

Trust for Public Land, in partnership with the East Bay Regional Park District, announced that it has secured an option agreement on the former Golden Gate Fields property in Albany/Berkeley, creating a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform the site into a future public park.

05/30/2026

A recent statewide poll reveals that 64% of California voters are likely to withdraw support from lawmakers who approved environmental review exemptions for polluting industries near homes and schools.

72% of Californians expressed support for CEQA across party lines.

https://capitolweekly.net/voters-oppose-advanced-manufacturing-ceqa-exemptions/

05/29/2026

Pictured: SMW team members as cover models for Bay Nature’s 25th anniversary celebration at the Presidio’s Golden Gate Club.

The firm attended and sponsored the event alongside clients, including the Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST), Sonoma Land Trust, and the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District.

Fun facts: SMW’s very own Emma Lewis was awarded Bay Nature’s 2021 Young Leader Award, while Matt McKerley currently serves on the Board.

05/27/2026

🌿 For 50 years, the Land Trust has protected land not only for its beauty and natural value, but for its essential role in sustaining life.

Our latest blog post, Land as a Climate Solution: Protecting Habitat, Biodiversity, and Resilience in Napa, explores how permanently protected lands support clean water, store carbon, and provide essential habitat for the species that call this region home.

When people think about climate solutions, they often picture technology, renewable energy, electric vehicles, or innovative infrastructure. But one of the most powerful solutions we have is also one of the oldest: land.

🌎 By protecting Napa’s land, we protect the systems that support us all, clean water, wildlife habitats, resilient ecosystems, and a sense of place that cannot be replicated.

✨ Read the full story and learn more about this work through the link in our bio, or by visiting napalandtrust.org

05/16/2026

In photos: the team’s first First Thursday meeting and firm-wide lunch at our new office.

05/14/2026

Despite the claim that clearing regulations will lead to abundance for all and solve the housing crisis, historical data suggest that this is not true. Instead, it often strips away the legal tools used to prevent corporate exploitation.

Read why the push to gut the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and other environmental and land-use protections under the banner of “abundance” bears a striking resemblance to Reagan-era supply-side economics.

https://debunkingtheabundanceagenda.org/

05/12/2026

A recent Congressional briefing hosted by the Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) and the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) centered on urgent federal policy shifts required to combat the escalating wildfire crisis.

Representing the firm, Sara Clark emphasized that traditional suppression is no longer sufficient, advocating instead for the strategic expansion of beneficial fire.

Read the full article on our link in bio.

05/09/2026

In a final look back at 396 Hayes, we’re bidding farewell to the Irene Pijoan painting from our downstairs conference room.

Firm lore says the painting was accepted as partial payment of a bill in the early days of SMW.

Now, thanks to the Firm’s donation, the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento will have its own Pijoan. She had her first studio in Sacramento, so we and the Crocker are pleased to make the connection and bring the work to a local audience.

We’ve asked the museum to let us know when the painting will be on display in case anyone wants to make a trip to say hi to our old friend.