Paz, F. Bryan

Law Practice 

As a registered geophysicist and former environmental consultant, Mr. Payne brings a unique perspective to the practice of environmental law. Mr. Payne employs his legal expertise, technical background, and regulatory experience as a former Special Assistant Attorney General in Montana's Superfund program to ensure excellent results for his clients. These clients have spanned a wide range including: individuals, Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, plaintiffs, defendants, regulators, and the regulated community. For many of the environmental liabilities faced by these clients, insurance coverage and other related issues could be the difference between a successful resolution and business failure. Mr. Payne has extensive, successful experience representing policyholders in obtaining coverage from their past and present insurers to cover the costs of environmental liabilities.

Mr. Payne is a native of Libby, Montana where his family settled in the early pioneer days. Following law school he practiced law in San Francisco before returning home to Montana in 1998 and settling in Helena. He was a staff attorney for the Montana Department of Environmental Quality’s state superfund program before joining the firm in 2000. He has been the managing shareholder of the firm since 2001. Chambers and Partners has identified Mr. Payne in the Natural Resource and Environmental field as a leading lawyer according to criteria most valued by clients. Mr. Payne has also earned an AV rating from Martindale-Hubbell as a Litigation and Environmental attorney. He is an avid skier with his wife and three children and an armchair quarterback for the Rams.