During the past several years, Buchanan has grown to one of Central Pennsylvania's leading law firms. Our Harrisburg Government Relations Center's attorneys and government relations professionals represent a record number of new clients in hundreds of new matters in the Midstate. Our growth in Harrisburg mirrors the firm's major expansion nationally and internationally, ranking us as one of the nation's largest law firms.

The Harrisburg Government Relations Center provides a comprehensive range of legal services for businesses, individuals, nonprofit organizations and government entities.

Practice Areas

Our Harrisburg professionals understand the mix of legal, regulatory and business issues that our clients face in the following areas:

Energy and Utility Law. Our Energy & Utility Law Section strives to provide innovative solutions to current regulatory and legislative issues facing the energy and utility industry. We focus on strategic planning and regulatory consultative services for energy and utility companies on a national and international basis. By analyzing issues from legal, legislative, regulatory and business viewpoints, we are able to provide our clients with dynamic approaches to improve and expand their operations.

The group includes a former chairman and staff of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, enabling us to provide clients with solutions that encompass an understanding of the challenges and concerns facing regulators in the energy and utility industry.

Environmental Law. Our group has had extensive practice in Pennsylvania supporting brownfields, land recycling and Pennsylvania Act 2 liability protection. We also provide business counseling and guide clients through governmental investigations relating to potential serious environmental violations and on how to avoid potentially debilitating penalties. We help clients in landfill acquisitions, metals recovery technology and permitting appeals.

Government Relations. We provide clients with advocacy services before the General Assembly and Executive Branch agencies of state government so that clients have the strongest possible voice in the development of policy, legislation and regulations that affect their operations. During the past several years, a number of clients have benefited from the hard work of the Rendell administration, the General Assembly, legislative staff and the members of our Government Relations Section in shaping the state budget.

Health Care. We counsel and advocate for health care providers in their relationships with regulators and third-party payors. We also represent for-profit and nonprofit providers in a variety of regulatory matters, including reimbursement disputes, obtaining licensure or certification, defending against criminal, civil and administrative sanction actions as well as advising on tax questions, zoning issues and an array of issues arising in health care merger and acquisition matters.

Insurance Regulation. We counsel insurance industry clients on regulatory initiatives, issues and problems. We provide clients with a thorough foundation in state administrative law, with a focus on Pennsylvania administrative practice and procedure. Our clients include numerous insurers and our services extend far beyond commercial insurance companies to HMOs, PPOs, long-term care facilities, bail bondsmen, public adjusters, third-party administrators, and insurance agents and brokers who represent insurers.

Tax and Estate Planning. Our lawyers focus on a range of business succession, estate planning, estate administration and probate litigation, including marital deduction planning, life insurance trusts, charitable lead trusts, charitable remainder trusts, private foundations, GRATS and GRUTS. We also focus on qualified personal residence trusts, family limited partnerships, generation skipping trusts, qualified retirement plans, asset protection trusts and premarital agreements.