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Jayni F. Hein

Of Counsel

San Francisco +1 415 591 7011

  • About
  • Representative Matters
  • Credentials
  • About

    Jayni F. Hein co-chairs the firm’s Carbon Management and Climate Mitigation industry group.

    Jayni joined Covington after serving as a senior political appointee in the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) during the Biden Administration, where she led clean energy, infrastructure, and federal permitting.

    Jayni has extensive experience advising clients on climate and environmental laws and regulations, including the Clean Air Act, National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, and federal energy statutes. She draws on her significant government experience to help clients successfully advance clean energy and other infrastructure projects, including solar, semiconductor, domestic manufacturing, carbon removal, and carbon, capture, and sequestration (CCS) projects.

    In addition, she advises companies and investors on compliance with California’s climate disclosure laws (SB 253, SB 261, and AB 1305), as well as ESG compliance and strategy in light of increased scrutiny of corporate climate and net-zero commitments. She frequently advises on sustainability reporting, environmental marketing, and carbon accounting.

    She also counsels clients through government investigations, enforcement actions, and shareholder-driven assessments, and conducts corporate and investment due diligence.

    Areas of Expertise

  • Practices and Industries
  • Representative Matters
    • Provide regulatory counsel to financial institutions, technology companies, and multinational corporations regarding California climate disclosure requirements (SB 253, SB 261, and AB 1305), sustainability reporting, energy and climate regulation, carbon markets, and environmental marketing.
    • Provide permitting and regulatory counsel to developers of semiconductor manufacturing facilities, solar, domestic manufacturing, carbon removal, and more.
    • Represent clients across sectors in federal and California regulatory and litigation proceedings, including matters involving the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, NEPA, PURPA, NHPA, and California regulatory requirements.
    • Conduct environmental and climate-related due diligence for investors and companies.
    • Counsel clients through government enforcement actions and investigations, as well as shareholder proposals and agreements.
    • Advise companies and organizations on federal and state government awards and relevant permits and approvals.
    • Represent civil rights organizations in an amicus brief in support of PEN America, Penguin Random House, and a diverse group of authors in a federal lawsuit challenging removals and restrictions of books from public school libraries.

    Areas of Expertise

  • Credentials
    Education
    • University of California, Berkeley School of Law, J.D.
        • Order of the Coif
        • Certificate in Environmental Law
    • Harvard Law School
        • Harvard–Berkeley Exchange Program
    • University of Virginia, B.A.
        • with highest distinction
        • Phi Beta Kappa
    Bar Admissions
    • California
    • U.S. Supreme Court
    • U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
    • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
    Government Experience
    • White House
    Memberships and Affiliations
    • Adjunct Professor of Law, New York University School of Law (2017-2021)
    • Co-author, Environmental Law & Policy (Foundation Press, 2024)
    Previous Experience
    • White House Council on Environmental Quality, Senior Director for Clean Energy, Infrastructure & NEPA
    • Institute for Policy Integrity, New York University School of Law, Natural Resources Director
    • Center for Law, Energy & the Environment, Berkeley Law, Executive Director
    • Associate at global law firm

    Areas of Expertise

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