OPM

Senior Counsel

Peter has been an environmental, land use, and consumer attorney and advocate since 1983. He has held various roles in Washington, DC including Of Counsel at the Center for Food Safety; Vice President for U.S. Government Policy at Conservation International; Director of International Conservation at Defenders of Wildlife; and Staff Attorney at the Center for Science in the Public Interest. Additionally, he worked as a contracted consultant on endangered species recovery efforts with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Turner Endangered Species Fund in New Mexico. Prior to that, he served as an Attorney and Policy Analyst for the U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, and was also in private law practice. His career has centered on bringing the best science to bear in environmental protection efforts; he has specialized in working with scientists so their findings can inform good policy, as well as in federal litigation. Most of his work has been in aid of wildlife conservation in the fields of pesticides, genetically modified organisms, invasive species, wildlife disease prevention, international trade, land use conflicts, and other areas. Peter received his law degree from the University of Puget Sound (now Seattle University) School of Law and also has a master’s degree in Environmental Studies from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, with a focus on conservation biology.

COMMENTARY | Anonymous Activism and Whistleblowing in the Age of Trump

by | January 24, 2025
PEER anticipates a flood of requests for our legal services during Trump 2.0. Here's an overview of our approach to anonymous activism and whistleblowing ...

Trump Acting to Execute Federal “Enemies List”

by | January 23, 2025
Involuntary Leaves, Reassignments, and Mass Probation Revocations ...

PEERMail | Starting the New Year Strong

by | January 7, 2025
Victories for federal employees and public health, and a thank you for your generosity during our end-of-year fundraising campaign ...

Feds Finally Regulate Administrative and Investigative Leave

by | December 17, 2024
PEER Petition and Lawsuit Prompted Move to Enforce 2016 Anti-Limbo Law ...

COMMENTARY | Trump’s Enemies List: Dismantling the Civil Service

by | July 10, 2024
If elected, Donald Trump will likely pick up where he left off – going after the federal merit system founded more than 140 years ago ...
Phone: 202-265-7337

962 Wayne Avenue, Suite 610
Silver Spring, MD 20910-4453

Copyright 2001–2025 Public Employees for
Environmental Responsibility

PEER is a 501(c)(3) organization
EIN: 93-1102740