Michael Heard Snow is an associate in the firm's Policy and Regulatory practice focusing on how people interact with, and power activities in extreme environments and areas beyond national jurisdiction such as the Arctic, the high seas, deep sea, and outer space. His practice includes advising clients on all aspects of permitting, regulatory, and environmental requirements for activities in these areas including, novel space technologies, nuclear maritime shipping, Bering Sea fishing, geoengineering, and coastal zone management.
Before joining the firm, Michael worked as an attorney-advisor for the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), completing rotations in the Enforcement, Oceans and Coasts, and Environmental Review and Coordination Sections of NOAA General Counsel. In this position, he served as the staff lead on environmental issues to the Office of Space Commerce (OSC) Commercial Remote Sensing Regulatory Affairs Office (CRSRA), participated in a complete overhaul of NOAA's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) procedures, and implemented NOAA General Counsel's delegated authority as a NOAA civil prosecutor. Before joining NOAA, Michael served as a project manager in the Maritime Administration's Deepwater Ports office, where he was responsible for advising on large-scale deepwater infrastructure projects.
Michael began his legal career as a John A. Knauss Sea Grant College Fellow placed with the US Committee on the Marine Transportation System (CMTS), a Cabinet-level interagency coordinating committee chaired by the Secretary of Transportation. He subsequently served as a Senior Advisor to the Executive Director of the CMTS where he led cross-government teams developing policy on offshore energy, Arctic marine transportation, and innovative science and technology. His teams developed the first national guidance on responding to offshore munitions and explosives of concern, helped finalize the 10-year National Strategy for the Arctic Region (NSAR), and regularly engaged with Congress, industry, and the public in order to improve federal policies that impact the marine transportation system.
