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Energy
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November 19, 2024
Trump Names Wall St. Exec For Chief Commerce Role
Donald Trump will nominate longtime Wall Street financier Howard Lutnick to head up the U.S. Department of Commerce, the president-elect announced Tuesday, selecting a top member of his transition team to oversee a vast bureaucracy that grapples with key trade policies.
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November 19, 2024
Treasury Finalizes Partnership Tax Credit 'Direct Pay' Regs
The U.S. Treasury Department finalized regulations Tuesday to make it easier for tax-exempt entities that co-own development projects to qualify for a direct cash payment of clean energy tax credits by electing out of their partnership tax status.
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November 18, 2024
DC Circ. Doubts It Can Confirm Foreign Enforcement Order
The D.C. Circuit did not seem at all convinced Monday morning that two Mauritian mining companies could lean on a treaty governing arbitral awards to enforce a foreign court judgment confirming a $50 million arbitration award against Zimbabwe stemming from a soured joint mining venture.
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November 18, 2024
Trump Taps Fox Host Sean Duffy For Transportation Secretary
President-elect Donald Trump announced Monday he will nominate former Wisconsin congressman and Fox Business host Sean Duffy to serve as head of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
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November 18, 2024
Worker Urges High Court To Fix Rift In Axed Age Bias Suit
A former Halliburton employee asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to overturn a Tenth Circuit order shuttering his age bias suit after finding he couldn't challenge an arbitration award because the case was voluntarily dismissed, arguing the ruling creates a "twilight zone" in the law.
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November 18, 2024
Trump DOE Pick Signals Funding Flux For Clean Energy Cos.
President-elect Donald Trump tapping oilfield services executive Chris Wright as U.S. energy secretary underscores the frostier federal reception that awaits clean energy companies, but experts say the industry shouldn't cede the playing field to fossil fuels just yet.
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November 18, 2024
Chancery Consolidates 2 Musk, Derivative Damage Suits
Delaware's chancellor on Monday combined two class suits that separately targeted Elon Musk's massive sales of Tesla Inc. stock and alleged diversions of Tesla talent to Musk's spun-off artificial intelligence venture, while ordering coordination with a suit seeking damages arising from alleged insider trading in late 2022.
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November 18, 2024
Venezuela Slams Withholding Of Stock Docs In Citgo Sale
Venezuela has urged a Delaware federal judge to order a special master overseeing the auction of oil giant Citgo's parent company to give the country a copy of the now-executed and unredacted stock purchase agreement he made with another party.
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November 18, 2024
EPA Has No Choice But To Rethink Smog Rule, DC Circ. Told
U.S. Steel Corp. told the D.C. Circuit that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was obligated to reconsider its so-called "good neighbor" smog emissions rule after it was partially invalidated by a court, arguing the agency's own brief confirms that its refusal to do so was improper.
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November 18, 2024
8th Circ. Set For Arguments In Oil Lease Termination Row
The Eighth Circuit set arguments on Friday for Dec. 18 in an appeal over a North Dakota federal judge's decision to throw out Denver-based Prima Exploration Inc.'s lawsuit alleging the Bureau of Indian Affairs schemed with two rival companies to end its lease on land within the Fort Berthold Reservation.
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November 18, 2024
Brazil's Unigel Seeks Ch. 15 Nod For $810M Restructuring
Several units of Brazilian petrochemical producer Unigel Group have urged a New York bankruptcy court to recognize their overseas bankruptcy plans to address roughly $810 million of debt, saying factors including the war in Ukraine and inflation have hampered the companies' liquidity.
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November 18, 2024
Former GE Exec Guilty Of Faking Docs In $1.1B Power Deal
A Manhattan federal jury on Monday convicted a former GE Power executive of using forged documents, then taking a $5 million kickback, in what federal prosecutors called a corrupt effort to close a $1.1 billion energy deal in Angola.
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November 18, 2024
Ex-Utility Co. Worker Says OT Violations Were 'No Secret'
A former employee of North Carolina-based utility services company Stake Center Locating LLC asked an Illinois federal judge to certify his proposed class of workers that were allegedly not paid proper overtime, stating that "it's no secret SCL uniformly requires its locators to work off the clock."
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November 18, 2024
Pa. AG-Elect Likely To Target AI, Robocalls And Opioids
Pennsylvania Attorney General-elect Dave Sunday is likely to focus on cracking down on artificial-intelligence-related scams that prey on vulnerable populations, unwanted robocalls, and opioid makers, while being less inclined to hammer down on energy and fossil fuel companies, experts said.
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November 15, 2024
DC Circ.'s White House NEPA Upheaval Sends Shockwaves
The D.C. Circuit's recent decision declaring the White House Council on Environmental Quality lacks the authority to issue legally binding regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act shocked environmental attorneys and has the potential to ignite federal agency chaos, experts say.
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November 15, 2024
Ex-GE Exec's Connection To Forged Docs Is Clear, Feds Say
Prosecutors told a New York federal jury Friday that trial evidence clearly proves a former GE executive knowingly used forged documents to secure a $1.1 billion gas turbine deal in Angola and demanded millions of dollars for his troubles.
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November 15, 2024
Judge Doubts Wildfire Trial Plan Would Hurt Some Plaintiffs
A Colorado state judge was skeptical Friday that a single liability trial for the thousands of plaintiffs suing Xcel Energy over a 2021 wildfire would deprive some people of a fair day in court, pressing lawyers for individual plaintiffs to explain why his plan would infringe on due process.
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November 15, 2024
GAO Says EPA Must Act On Waste Sites' Climate Risks
Nearly 70% of the nation's hazardous waste treatment, storage and disposal facilities are vulnerable to climate change impacts such as flooding, wildfires, storm surge and sea level rise, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency needs to be more proactive, a new federal report says.
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November 15, 2024
PetroQuest Gets Interim OK To Tap $847K In Del. Ch. 11
A Delaware bankruptcy judge Friday granted interim permission for oil and gas company PetroQuest Energy Inc. to access $847,500 of new money financing from its lenders as it plans to sell its assets in East Texas.
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November 15, 2024
FERC Ignored Calif. Hydro Permitting Mischief, DC Circ. Told
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission turned a blind eye to clear evidence that California's water board gamed the permitting process in concluding that the state agency didn't waive its Clean Water Act permitting authority over two hydroelectric dams, the D.C. Circuit heard this week.
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November 15, 2024
EV Carmaker Lucid Sued In Del. For Inflated Biz Claims
A stockholder who bought electric-car maker Lucid Group shares sued in Delaware's Chancery Court on Friday to recover derivative damages for the company tied to claims that the business raised billions on knowingly inflated production outlooks only to later drastically downsize its forecast.
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November 15, 2024
Wis. Agency Issues Permits To Reroute Enbridge Pipeline
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources approved permits needed for Enbridge Energy to move forward with a proposal to reroute a 12-mile portion of its controversial Line 5 pipeline around a Native American reservation and build a new 41-mile segment outside the area.
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November 15, 2024
FERC Can't Justify Pipeline Project Extension, DC Circ. Told
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's ability to extend pipeline construction deadlines simply cannot be applied to a wholesale revision of a proposed southern spur of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, opponents of the project told the D.C. Circuit Thursday.
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November 15, 2024
Oil Terminal Co. Offers $2M To End Falsified-Inspection Claims
A Gulf Oil successor has offered to pay the state of Connecticut $2 million to settle accusations the company failed to secure new construction permits and spent years fabricating and falsifying inspection reports for existing bulk gasoline terminal tanks along New Haven Harbor in Long Island Sound, court filings show.
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November 15, 2024
4 Oil Giants Invest $500M To Boost Global Energy Access
Four oil and gas industry giants — BP, Equinor, Shell and TotalEnergies — announced a commitment Friday to invest a total of $500 million in support of a United Nations goal to ensure access to clean and affordable energy worldwide by 2030.
Expert Analysis
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How To Grow Marketing, Biz Dev Teams In A Tight Market
Faced with fierce competition and rising operating costs, firms are feeling the pressure to build a well-oiled marketing and business development team that supports strategic priorities, but they’ll need to be flexible and creative given a tight talent market, says Ben Curle at Ambition.
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Series
Rock Climbing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Rock climbing requires problem-solving, focus, risk management and resilience, skills that are also invaluable assets in my role as a finance lawyer, says Mei Zhang at Haynes and Boone.
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What Chevron's End Means For How Congress Does Business
The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo decision, overturning the Chevron doctrine, will have a far-reaching impact across the entire public policy life cycle, beginning with how Congress writes its laws and extending through agency implantation and judicial review, say attorneys at K&L Gates.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Dance The Legal Standard Two-Step
From rookie brief writers to Chief Justice John Roberts, lawyers should master the legal standard two-step — framing the governing standard at the outset, and clarifying why they meet that standard — which has benefits for both the drafter and reader, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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The Rise Of State And Local Environmental Leadership
While Congress is deadlocked, and a U.S. Supreme Court with a hostility toward the administrative state aggressively dismantles federal environmental oversight, state and local governments are stepping up with policies to shape a more sustainable future for all species, says Jonathan Rosenbloom at Albany Law School.
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NYSE Delisting May Be The Cost Of FCPA Compliance
ABB’s recent decision to delist its U.S. depository receipts from the New York Stock Exchange, coupled with having settled three Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement actions, begs the question of whether the cost of FCPA compliance should factor into a company's decision to remain listed in the U.S., says John Joy at FTI Law.
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CFTC Action Highlights Necessity Of Whistleblower Carveouts
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's novel settlement with a trading firm over allegations of manipulating the market and failing to create contract carveouts for employees to freely communicate with investigators serves as a beacon for further enforcement activity from the CFTC and other regulators, say attorneys at Davis Wright.
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5 Tips For Solar Cos. Navigating Big Shifts In US Trade Policy
Renewable energy developers can best mitigate new compliance risks from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative’s increased tariffs on imported solar cells, and simultaneously capitalize on Treasury Department incentives for domestic solar manufacturers, by following five best practices in the changing solar trade landscape, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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Series
Being A Luthier Makes Me A Better Lawyer
When I’m not working as an appellate lawyer, I spend my spare time building guitars — a craft known as luthiery — which has helped to enhance the discipline, patience and resilience needed to write better briefs, says Rob Carty at Nichols Brar.
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Half-Truths Vs. Omissions: Slicing Justices' Macquarie Cake
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Macquarie v. Moab provides a road map for determining whether corporate reports that omit information should be considered misleading — and the court baked it into a dessert analogy that is key to understanding the guidelines, say Daniel Levy and Pavithra Kumar at Advanced Analytical Consulting Group.
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Lead Like 'Ted Lasso' By Embracing Cognitive Diversity
The Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso” aptly illustrates how embracing cognitive diversity can be a winning strategy for teams, providing a useful lesson for law firms, which can benefit significantly from fresh, diverse perspectives and collaborative problem-solving, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.
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3 Areas Of Enforcement Risk Facing The EV Industry
Companies in the EV manufacturing ecosystem are experiencing a boom in business, but with this boom comes increased regulatory and enforcement risks, from the corruption issues that have historically pervaded the extractive sector to newer risks posed by artificial intelligence, say attorneys at MoFo.
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Ambiguity Ruling Highlights Deference To Arbitral Process
A New York federal court’s recent ruling in Eletson v. Levona, which remanded an arbitral award for clarification, reflects that the ambiguity exception’s analysis is not static and may be applied even in cases where the award, when issued, was unambiguous, says arbitrator Myrna Barakat Friedman.
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Keeping Up With Carbon Capture Policy In The US And EU
Recent regulatory moves from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the European Commission in the carbon capture, sequestration and storage space are likely to further encourage the owners and operators of fossil fuel-fired power plants to make decisions on shutdowns or reconfiguration to meet the expanding requirements, say Inosi Nyatta and Silvia Brünjes at Sullivan & Cromwell.
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New State Climate Liability Laws: What Companies Must Know
New legislation in Vermont and New York creating liability and compliance obligations for businesses deemed responsible for climate change — as well as similar bills proposed in California, Massachusetts and Maryland — have far-reaching implications for companies, so it is vital to remain vigilant as these initiatives progress, say Gregory Berlin and Jeffrey Dintzer at Alston & Bird.