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Energy
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May 24, 2013
Oil Rig Makers Can't Duck IP Suit By Nixing Patent
A Texas federal judge on Thursday affirmed the validity of an L.C. Eldridge Sales Co. Inc. patent for an oil-rig exhaust system, shooting down arguments that the patent was indefinite made by several rig manufacturers and owners that Eldridge has sued for infringement.
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May 24, 2013
JPML Head Says New Mix Of Cases Makes Panel More Picky
The U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation has rejected a higher percentage of centralization requests in recent years, a trend the head of the panel told Law360 was due in part to a rise in patent cases and other types of litigation he said were more likely to center on individual issues.
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May 24, 2013
NJ Law Commission Mulls Tweaking Underground Utilities Law
The New Jersey Law Revision Commission on Thursday discussed plans to alter a state law designed to protect citizens from dangerous excavation near utility equipment after the state’s Supreme Court ruled a section of the law that mandates dispute arbitration is unconstitutional.
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May 24, 2013
Exxon In Talks With InterOil For Papua New Guinea Project
Exxon Mobil Inc. has teamed up with InterOil Corp. and its joint venture partner, Pacific LNG Group, to develop petroleum and natural gas projects in Papua New Guinea in an effort to boost that country's export capabilities, InterOil announced Friday.
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May 24, 2013
State Dept. Posting 'Unprecedented' 1.2M Keystone Comments
The U.S. State Department said Thursday that it will post the "unprecedented" 1.2 million public comments submitted in response to an environmental report regarding TransCanada Corp.'s controversial Keystone XL pipeline — the department's first public release of all the comments for a presidential permit application.
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May 24, 2013
Oppenheimer Suit Against Trans Energy Gets Judge's OK
A federal judge on Friday greenlighted a contract suit that investment firm Oppenheimer & Co. brought against natural gas producer Trans Energy Inc. over fees on a $50 million loan, denying Trans Energy’s request to throw the case out.
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May 24, 2013
BLM OKs Calif. Wind Farm Amid Enviro Bird Strike Worries
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management on Friday approved the construction of a 150-megawatt wind farm in southern California, amid concerns from environmentalists over the agency allowing the project to potentially injure or kill an endangered California condor over its 30-year-lifespan without incurring an Endangered Species Act violation.
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May 24, 2013
Law360 Names 10 FCPA Powerhouse Firms
Many savvy law firms boast their expertise in Foreign Corrupt Practices Act matters, but an elite group of 10 firms have emerged as true leaders in the fast-growing field, earning them a spot on Law360’s inaugural list of FCPA Powerhouses.
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May 24, 2013
W.Va. Asks High Court To Limit Greenhouse Gas Regulation
West Virginia has joined more than a dozen states calling for the U.S. Supreme Court to block the federal government from regulating power plants' greenhouse gas emissions, asking it to overturn a D.C. Circuit ruling endorsing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's finding that the gases endanger public health.
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May 24, 2013
White & Case Can’t Rep Coda In Ch. 11, US Trustee Says
The U.S. Trustee on Friday asked a Delaware bankruptcy judge to bar White & Case LLP from representing Coda Holdings Inc. in its Chapter 11 case because one of the firm's partners recently held an executive position at the troubled electric car company.
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May 24, 2013
Energy Storage Bill Would Boost Renewables, Sens. Say
Four U.S senators on Thursday reintroduced a bill that would offer tax incentives for the use of technologies that can store energy, which they claim would spur further renewable energy development and lower electricity costs by reducing the need for electricity at peak hours.
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May 24, 2013
Cuomo Asks NY Regulator To Help Ease Electric Car Rollout
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Friday prodded a state regulator to help remove red tape that could slow down a plan to install thousands of charging stations across New York in order to put 40,000 electric and plug-in hybrid cars on the road by 2018.
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May 24, 2013
Patriot Coal Can Subpoena Docs For Peabody Spinoff Probe
A Missouri bankruptcy judge on Wednesday gave Patriot Coal Corp. the green light to subpoena documents from Morgan Stanley and Duff & Phelps Corp. to further its investigation into Peabody Energy Corp.'s allegedly unfair spinoff of Patriot Coal in 2007.
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May 24, 2013
Senators Float Bill To Fight Gasoline Price Spikes
Minnesota's two U.S. senators on Thursday introduced legislation that would require oil refineries to report their maintenance schedule to the U.S. Energy Department in order to prevent simultaneous closures, which they claim is driving up gasoline prices in the Midwest.
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May 24, 2013
Oil Group Challenges Seals' 'Threatened Species' Status
The Alaska Oil & Gas Association sued the National Marine Fisheries Service in Alaska federal court Wednesday, arguing that a recently implemented rule listing two populations of bearded seals as threatened was not backed by evidence and was an overreach.
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May 23, 2013
Cyber Barrage On Utilities Unlikely To Stir Congress
A Tuesday report by two Democratic lawmakers reveals that several U.S. utilities are the target of “constant” cyberattacks, but while the report is aimed at spurring legislation requiring utilities to step up their security systems, lawyers say any potential bill could have a tough time gaining Republican support to pass out of Congress.
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May 23, 2013
NGL Pipeline Co. Loses Bid To Access Private Land
A Texas appeals court on Thursday nixed a Crosstex Energy Inc. unit’s effort to begin work on part of a natural gas liquids pipeline it intends to route through private property, ruling the company has not shown it is entitled to seize the land.
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May 23, 2013
Donziger Loses Bid To Delay $19B Chevron Case
A federal judge on Thursday refused to delay Chevron Corp.’s case against Steven Donziger, the lawyer accused of using fraud to win a $19 billion pollution judgment against the oil company, despite Donziger’s pleas for more time.
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May 23, 2013
Supervalu Sues Sunoco Over Gas Card Exclusivity Deal
Wholesale grocery supplier Supervalu Holdings LLC sued Sunoco Inc. in Pennsylvania state court Wednesday, accusing the gas station owner of breaching an agreement to give Pittsburgh-area Shop ‘n Save customers discounts on gasoline when they swiped their card at the pump.
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May 23, 2013
China Natural Gas Demands Toss Of Involuntary Ch. 11
China Natural Gas Inc. on Wednesday urged a New York bankruptcy judge to throw out the involuntary Chapter 11 proceedings commenced by a hedge fund owned by one of its directors, saying the filing was part of the directors' effort to gain control of the company.
Expert Analysis
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How To Avoid The Dirty Side Of Clean Energy
Recent news reports on the RusHydro embezzlement, a U.S. Virgin Islands senator's arrest and the Italian mafia infiltration suggest that the not-so-clean side of the clean energy sector may come under greater scrutiny around the world. These reports should serve as a sobering reminder for companies of the risks and consequences of international corruption, say attorneys with Covington & Burling LLP.
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LNG Export Moratorium Has Ended — What Now?
The U.S. Department of Energy's recent order ending a nearly two-year moratorium on liquefied natural gas export approvals provides important insight into how the department will consider pending and future export applications. However, it also raises many questions and indicates that the DOE will not back down from its controversial position on its authority, say attorneys with Day Pitney LLP.
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DC Circ. Backs FERC's Approach To Return On Equity
Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected Southern California Edison’s challenge to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's methodology for determining a company’s base return on equity. One noteworthy lesson from the case is that this method can have a material affect on the ROE, with a large revenue impact, say attorneys with Day Pitney LLP.
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Recent FERC Ruling Dashes Hopes Of Oil Pipeline Watchers
The outcome of High Prairie LLC v. Enbridge Energy LP turned out to be a disappointment for industry watchers hoping for a definitive ruling on whether the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission would break with well-established precedent and require an interstate oil pipeline to interconnect with another pipeline, say attorneys with Bracewell & Giuliani LLP.
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Rise Of The Machines — Predictive Coding Goes Mainstream
The pros of using predictive coding far outweigh the cons. Given the heavy pressure on law firms and in-house counsel to reduce discovery costs, as well as the Justice Department's recent stance on the subject, it appears predictive coding will continue to emerge from the obscure world of legal technology to the mainstream of legal practice, say Michael Moscato and Myles Bartley of Curtis Mallet-Prevost Colt & Mosle LLP.
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The Oil And Gas Operator's Texas Advantage
The interpretation by the Supreme Court of Texas in Reeder v. Wood County Energy LLC grants vast protection to oil and gas operators, but by doing so, it is perceived by some as muddling the differences between tort and contract law, says Michael Bolton and Kate Kalanick of Faegre Baker Daniels LLP.
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4th Circ. Weighs In On Bona Fide Purchaser Defense
The Fourth Circuit recently issued a ruling in PCS Nitrogen Inc. v. Ashley II of Charleston that may limit the availability of the bona fide prospective purchaser defense. By narrowly construing one of the elements of the BFPP defense, the court has underscored the importance of strict compliance with all requirements of the defense, say attorneys with K&L Gates LLP.
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Another Challenge To Calif. Cap-And-Trade Law
The California Air Resources Board has again been sued over its implementation of the Global Warming Solutions Act in Morning Star Packing Co., et al. v. CARB, which resembles an earlier action brought by the California Chamber of Commerce. Petitioners of both cases face the difficult challenge of convincing the court to derail a massive regulatory scheme that is now well underway, say attorneys with Marten Law PLLC.
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The Who, What And Why Of Public-Private Partnerships
Public-private partnerships have been used in a wide range of sectors to provide public services, from power plants and railroads to hospitals and sanitation plants. Yet there are a variety of potential contractual arrangements and the financing of a PPP can be complex, say Maryam Khosharay and Herbert Glaser of Haynes and Boone LLP.
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Latest In EPA's Series Of Aggressive Coal Plant Rules
Recently, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced proposed technology-based effluent limitation guidelines and standards for steam electric power-generating units. These guidelines will certainly impose significant costs, and when coupled with the cost of the EPA’s rules under the Clean Air Act, there can be little question that some coal-fired facilities will close as a result, say attorneys with Latham & Watkins LLP.