Overview
David Cameron is a water resources attorney who advises and represents clients on water rights and environmental issues throughout California.
David’s practice is focused on securing and protecting water rights, the purchase and sale of water rights, compliance with the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), water banking, and related environmental and endangered species issues. His practice includes litigation in state and federal courts, administrative proceedings before the State Water Resources Control Board, public agency representation, as well as transactional water-related matters including due diligence. David enjoys tackling complex legal issues and providing practical solutions to clients, which include water districts, irrigation districts, cities, counties, and agricultural interests large and small.
Honors & Recognitions
Super Lawyers, Northern California Rising Star, Environmental Litigation and Environmental Law, 2014-2021
Order of the Coif
Traynor Honor Society
Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society
Practice Areas
News & Publications
Firm News
Events & Speaking Engagements
Temporary Permits and Groundwater Storage Projects, Co-presenter, Argent Communications 33rd Annual California Water Law & Policy Conference, June 11, 2018
Groundwater Rights: Management, Regulation, and Exercise, Presenter, Half Moon Education Seminar on California Water Laws, Regulations and Recent Developments, May 16, 2018
Conduct and Ethics Training for Water Agency Officials: A Primer on AB 1234, Co-presenter, ACWA 2016 Fall Conference & Exhibition, December 1, 2016
Preparing for Sustainable Groundwater Management: Recharging Groundwater from a Water Rights Perspective, Presenter, CalCIMA 2016 Education Conference, November 8, 2016
Conduct and Ethics Training for Water Agency Officials: A Primer on AB 1234, Co-presenter, ACWA 2016 Spring Conference & Exhibition, May 5, 2016
Publications
Reclamation Releases Environmental Document for Repair of Friant-Kern Canal, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 30, Number 10, July 2020
Federal Circuit Determines CVP Restoration Fund Payments Must Be Proportionately Assessed to Water and Power Customers, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 30, Number 4, January 2020
Fishing Groups and Tribes Challenge Biological Opinion on Klamath Project Operations, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 29, Number 11, August/September 2019
State Water Board Sued on Grounds that its Approval of Amendments to the Bay-Delta Plan Insufficiently Protect Fishery, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, February 2019
Petition filed to Adjudicate Water Rights to the Fresno River, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, November 2018
President and Congress Approve $1.3 Trillion Spending Bill including $20 Billion for Water, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, April 2018
Lawsuit Seeks to have California Waterways Identified as Hydrologically Impaired under the Clean Water Act, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, December 20, 2017
Preparing for Sustainable Groundwater Management: A Review of Groundwater Recharge, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 27, Number 6, March 2017
Governor Brown Approves Assembly Bill 2551, Which Broadens Public Contracting Options for Surface Water Storage Projects, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 27, Number 2, November 2016
Still Waiting for a Federal Response to the Drought: A Legislative Update, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 26, Number 8, May 2016
Does Every Drop Really Count? An Inconsistent Accounting of California’s Water Supply, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 26, Number 3, December 2015
Union of Concerned Scientists Proposes Best Practices to Achieve Goals of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 26, Number 2, November 2015
The Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan: An Impossible Task?, Environmental Law News, Vol. 24, No. 2, November 2015
A Federal Response to the Drought – Three Bills Pending in Congress, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 25, Number 11, August/September 2015
Environmental Groups File Suit Against San Francisco Challenging Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 25, Number 9, June 2015
U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Finds No Significant Impact for Trap and Haul Operation in Conjunction with San Joaquin River Settlement Agreement, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 25, Number 7, April 2015
State Water Resources Control Board Partially Approves Temporary Changes to the State Water Project and Central Valley Project Water Rights Permits, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 25, Number 6, March 2015
Ninth Circuit Upholds Biological Opinion Regarding Impacts of Central Valley Project and State Water Project Operations on Salmonid Species, California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Volume 25, Number 5, February 2015
Community Involvement
Community & Professional
Water Education Foundation Water Leaders Fellowship, Class of 2021
Recognized by Legal Services of Northern California (LSNC) for pro bono support provided to Butte County residents following 2018 Camp Fire
Environmental Law Institute
Groundwater Resources Association
Sacramento County Bar Association, Environmental Law Section
California Lawyers Association, Environmental Law Section
Fresno County Bar Association, Agricultural Law Section
Fresno County Young Lawyers Association, Board of Directors, 2012-2014
California Water Law & Policy Reporter, Contributing Author