Sarah D. Lile holds the position Of Counsel at Williams Acosta PLLC and advises clients on environmental, eminent domain, real estate and litigation matters.

Ms. Lile holds a B.A. in Political Science form Wayne State University and graduated cum laude from the University of Detroit Law School. From 1982 to 1984 she served as law clerk to the Honorable Julian Abele Cook, Jr., former Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. Ms. Lile is also a former Assistant Dean and lecturer in law from Wayne State University Law School.

Prior to joining Williams Acosta, Ms. Lile was the Director of the Department of Environmental Affairs for the City of Detroit where she served from 1995 to 2005. During her tenure, Ms. Lile guided the development and implementation of the City’s environmental policies with particular focus on cleaning up and reclaiming former industrial sites in Detroit.

Before entering public service, Ms. Lile actively practiced in the areas of environmental law, real estate, eminent domain, commercial and general litigation. Ms. Lile has a comprehensive background in environmental law, planning and policy, including brownfield redevelopment, water resources and solid waste management and enforcement. She has worked and works extensively on state and federal brownfields legislation and rules, including Michigan’s Brownfield Redevelopment Financing Act and the Part 201 Amendments to the Michigan Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act and the federal Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfield Redevelopment Act.

Ms. Lile formally chaired the City of Detroit Brownfield Redevelopment Authority (DBRA) and served on the steering committee for the Southeast Michigan Water Quality Consortium. She has served on state and federal advisory committees including: the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality Advisory Committee the Michigan Air Quality Advisory Committee, the United States Environmental Protection Agency Local Government Advisory Committee, and Government Advisory Committee (GAC) to the USEPA Administrator for the Council on Environmental Cooperation (CEC) under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Ms. Lile is past President and Trustee of the Municipal Waste Management Association, an affiliate of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, a former member of the Executive Committee of the Institute of Continuing Legal Education (ICLE) and the former Co-Chair of the Detroit/Wayne County Roundtable on Sustainable Development.

slile@williamsacosta.com