Administrative Hearings & Appeals
Daniel H. Thompson
Retired
Dan Thompson is Board Certified by The Florida Bar as an expert in State and Federal Government and Administrative Practice. He assists clients with governmental regulatory matters, with a particular emphasis on environmental and land use issues. His experience includes licensing, permitting, enforcement, policy development, government contracts, bid disputes and assistance in the transfer and development of environmentally-distressed property. This can involve negotiation, administrative and civil litigation, rulemaking, regulatory due diligence, appearances before legislative and administrative bodies, including the Florida Cabinet, various Florida House and Senate committees, Florida Commission on Ethics, Department of Education Commission for Independent Education, Water Management District Governing Boards (South Florida Water Management District, Southwest Florida Water Management District, and Suwanee Water Management District), Orange County School Board, City and County Commissions, such as Tallahassee, Hamilton County, Miami-Dade County, and City of Hollywood, as well as state professional boards, including Boards of Accountancy, Architecture and Interior Design, and Electrical Contractors and such other activities as are necessary to resolve client problems. Dan’s practice also includes general civil and appellate litigation.
Dan has also spoken at numerous seminars offered by The Florida Bar, the American Bar Association, the Florida Chamber of Commerce, and various other professional, trade and other organizations.
Representative Matters 
- Federal court litigation over the scope of Clean Water Act NPDES permitting requirements associated with the water management activities of the South Florida Water Management District
- Administrative litigation over the issuance of environmental permits to the Florida Department of Transportation to widen 20 miles of U.S. 1 through wetlands in the Everglades and Florida Keys
- An arbitration hearing, as arbitrator, over an application by Tampa Bay Water for environmental permits to construct a 1100 acre, 15 billion gallon reservoir in Hillsborough County
- Rule development activities before the Florida Department of Environmental Protection ("DEP") (including rule drafting, public hearing participation and rule challenge litigation) associated with the promulgation of a numeric phosphorus criterion for the Everglades
- Assisting a major oil company resolve a variety of ongoing environmental concerns associated with its operation of oil terminal facilities located in Port Everglades, Tampa and Jacksonville related to state cleanup program eligibility, the remediation of leaking tanks and resolution of stormwater runoff permitting requirements
- Resolving the regulatory and enforcement concerns of state and local agencies in order to enable a developer to obtain the necessary authorizations to construct in a cost-effective manner a major mixed use development on a 20-acre portion of an old municipal landfill located in Tampa
- Assisting a landfill company with obtaining an unprecedented closure agreement from the DEP that enabled the client to use the Chapter 11 Bankruptcy process to freeze the cancellation of its closure insurance, thereby enabling the insurance to be used for reimbursement to the client of its closure costs, and also enabling the client to stay in business and protect its other assets.
- While at DER and DEP, chief litigation and legislative strategist for the State of Florida's response to the so-called "Everglades Lawsuit," and a leader in negotiations that resulted in the 1991 Settlement Agreement and the 1993 Statement of Principles, as well as the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Everglades Protection Act (1991) and the Everglades Forever Act (1994)
- Served as counsel to Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Commission on Oil Spill Response, composed of the Chairs of the County Commission of the Northwest Florida counties, along with representatives of various state agencies between 2012-2013
- Served as General Counsel of the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation between 1986 and 1993
- Served as attorney for the Department of Environmental Regulation’s Environmental Regulation Commission (gubernatorial-appointed members)
- Served as Deputy Secretary of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection between 1993 and 1995
- Served as the chief liaison between the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the Environmental Regulation Commission
Awards & Honors
- Chambers & Partners USA, America's Leading Business Lawyers, Environment, 2007-2024
- The Best Lawyers in America®, 2007- 2025
- Best Lawyers' 2018; 2020; 2022; 2024 Water Lawyer of the Year
- Best Lawyers' 2017 Environmental Lawyer of the Year
- Florida Super Lawyers, 2006-2020
- Board Certified, State and Federal Government and Administrative Practice
- Martindale-Hubbell, AV® Preeminent™ rated
Community Activities / Associations
- Member, Board of Directors, The Florida Bar Foundation
- Member, Budget & Finance Commitee, The Florida Bar Foundation
- Member, Board of Directors, Legal Services of North Florida
- Member, Administrative Law Section, The Florida Bar
- Member, Environmental Land Use & Law Section, The Florida Bar
- Mentor, Florida State University Environmental Law Society Mentor Program
- Former President, Board of Directors, Bobbin Brook Homeowners' Association
- Tallahassee Area Director, Yale Alumni Schools Committee
- Former Member and President, Board of Directors, Florida Legal Services, Inc.
- Former Co-Chair, Refuge House Capital Campaign
- Former President, Legal Aid Foundation, Tallahassee Bar Association
- Former Member, Executive Council of the Environmental and Land Use Law Section, The Florida Bar
In the News
Fifty-Six Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in the 2025 Edition of Best Lawyers In America
August 15, 2024
Berger Singerman Recognized by Chambers USA for Twentieth Consecutive Year
June 1, 2023
Forty-Three Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in the 2023 Edition of Best Lawyers In America
August 18, 2022
Berger Singerman Recognized by Chambers USA for Nineteenth Consecutive Year
June 1, 2022
Thrity-nine Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in the 2022 Edition of Best Lawyers In America
August 19, 2021
Thirty-Five Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in the 2021 Edition of Best Lawyers In America
August 19, 2020
Twenty-Seven Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in 2020 Edition of Florida Super Lawyers
June 8, 2020
Thirty Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in the 2020 Edition of Best Lawyers In America
August 14, 2019
Twenty-Eight Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in 2019 Edition of Florida Super Lawyers
May 29, 2019
Berger Singerman Recognized by Chambers USA for Sixteenth Consecutive Year
April 24, 2019
Thirty Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in the 2019 Edition of Best Lawyers In America
August 14, 2018
Tallahassee Democrat: Briefcase: July 8
July 8, 2018
Thirty-One Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in 2018 Edition of Florida Super Lawyers
June 17, 2018
June 3, 2018
Berger Singerman Recognized by Chambers USA for 15th Consecutive Year
May 2, 2018
Thirty Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in the 2018 Edition of Best Lawyers In America
August 14, 2017
American Recycler quotes Floyd Self and Daniel Thompson in, "EPA rollbacks and what they mean"
July 31, 2017
Berger Singerman Receives High Marks by Chambers USA for Fourteenth Consecutive Year
May 29, 2017
Twenty-Eight Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in the 2017 Edition of Best Lawyers In America
August 14, 2016
Thirty-Six Berger Singerman Attorneys Recognized in the 2016 Super Lawyers Florida Edition
June 13, 2016
Berger Singerman Receives High Marks by Chambers USA for Thirteenth Consecutive Year
June 1, 2016
Events & Speaking Engagements
July 18, 2018
October 24, 2017
July 17, 2017
July 19, 2016
Doing Business in Florida Blog
Public Infrastructure Contract Solicitations: A Legal Primer
June 1, 2021
Florida’s Rejection of Chevron Deference
December 18, 2018
The Fate of Florida Administrative Law in Light of the Passage of Amendment 6
December 2, 2018
How to Obtain Multiple Extensions of Permit Expiration Dates
October 11, 2017
Florida Legislature Passes “Public Notice of Pollution Act”
May 3, 2017
Judge Strikes Down Proposed "Public Notice of Pollution" Rule
January 8, 2017
Changes Coming to Florida Cleanup Rules
July 28, 2016
Prior Affiliations
- Deputy Secretary of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, directing its regulatory divisions and district Offices and supervising approximately 1300 employees from (1993-1995)
- Florida Department of Environmental Regulation ("DER"), as Deputy General Counsel for Enforcement, General Counsel and Assistant Secretary (1982-1993)
- Previously, Adjunct Professor of Law at the Florida State University College of Law, and staff and supervising attorney at Florida Legal Services, Inc. and Legal Services of North Florida, Inc.