Overall
Key cases
Industries
Intellectual Property
Labor & Employment
Corporate
Practice Areas
Energy
-
June 5, 2013
China Starts Probe Of EU Wine In Escalating Trade Row
China's Ministry of Commerce on Wednesday launched anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations into wines from the European Union, fueling fears of a looming trade war between two of the world's largest economies a day after the EU imposed tariffs on Chinese-made solar panels.
-
June 5, 2013
V&E Reps Summit Midstream In $460M Pipeline Assets Buy
Texas-based Summit Midstream Partners LP has acquired natural gas gathering assets in the Bakken and Marcellus shale plays for $460 million and will issue $300 million in new debt, the General Electric Co.- and Energy Capital Partners LLC-backed energy company said Wednesday.
-
June 5, 2013
Sierra Club Sues BNSF Over Coal Spillage From Railcars
The Sierra Club and other environmental groups on Tuesday made good on their threat to sue BNSF Railway Co. for polluting Washington state waterways with coal by allegedly allowing ash to escape from railcars, launching a Clean Water Act suit in federal court.
-
June 5, 2013
Ex-BP Engineer Blasts DOJ's Bid To Quash Subpoena
A former BP PLC engineer accused of destroying evidence related to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill argued Tuesday that a subpoena he served to a computer forensics firm should stick, disputing the U.S. Department of Justice's claim that it has a 'privileged' relationship with the firm.
-
June 5, 2013
EPA Watchdog To Probe Methane Leak Reduction Policy
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's efforts to lower methane releases from breached natural gas pipelines will face new scrutiny during the upcoming months, as the agency's internal watchdog said Tuesday that it is launching an investigation into the government's emissions reduction actions.
-
June 5, 2013
Rakoff Grants Partial Win To Wexford In Suit Over $674M Deal
A New York federal judge on Monday granted partial summary judgment to Wexford Capital LP, a firm accused of misleading Archer Well Co. Inc. into purchasing a group of shoddy pump service companies for $674 million, removing one of the defendants and clearing the way for a mid-August bench trial.
-
June 5, 2013
Chevron's Argentina Assets Unfrozen In $19B Amazon Fight
Argentina's Supreme Court on Tuesday suspended a freeze on Chevron Corp.'s assets in the country secured by indigenous Ecuadoreans attempting to enforce a disputed $19 billion pollution judgment, saying the oil giant’s Argentine subsidiaries were not party to the Ecuadorean litigation.
-
June 5, 2013
EPA Says Coal Mine Designation Suit Doesn't Stick
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency asked a Washington federal court Tuesday to toss a suit alleging it improperly delayed responding to a demand that it designate coal mines as stationary sources governed by air pollution performance standards, saying it has denied the petition and the case is therefore moot.
-
June 5, 2013
Idemitsu-Led Group Closes $5B In Funds For Vietnam Refinery
Japanese oil refiner Idemitsu Kosan Co. Ltd. and its investment partners, including a subsidiary of Kuwait's national oil company, have closed $5 billion in project financing from a group of private and state-owned banks for their $9 billion refinery project is Vietnam, Idemitsu said Wednesday.
-
June 5, 2013
FCPA Powerhouse: Reed Smith
Building up its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act work over the past decade with a collaborative structure and a growing local focus that has yielded major triumphs, Reed Smith LLP has quickly emerged as a leader in the field and appears poised to maintain that status for years to come.
-
June 4, 2013
Trustee Slams $25M Bid For Bankrupt Electric Car Co. Unit
The U.S. trustee objected Monday to the planned bankruptcy sale of a unit of electric-car maker Coda Holdings Inc. to lenders led by private equity firm Fortress Investment Group LLC, saying the $25 million stalking horse deal wastes assets that would otherwise benefit the debtors' estate.
-
June 4, 2013
US Offshore Wind Leases Only Half The Battle For Industry
The first-ever offshore wind energy lease sale in U.S. coastal waters unveiled by the Obama administration Tuesday removes some obstacles for potential projects, but attorneys warn that high costs and complex logistics will still present significant hurdles for developers hoping to successfully plant turbines in the ocean.
-
June 4, 2013
US Owes Drilling Cos. $684M In Lease Row, Fed. Circ. Told
A pair of oil and gas exploration companies in a recent brief urged the Federal Circuit to revive their $684 million suit claiming the U.S. Department of the Interior breached a lease deal by imposing new environmental and safety requirements following the Deepwater Horizon disaster.
-
June 4, 2013
Dynegy Ch. 11 Plan Gets Nod Over Investor's Objections
A New York federal court on Tuesday approved Dynegy Inc.'s bankruptcy plan, finding that a disgruntled investor behind a securities class action couldn't object to the plan because he had opted out of the release of claims against the company's former executives.
-
June 4, 2013
Vorys Picks Up Bankruptcy Expert From Andrews Kurth
Vorys Sater Seymour and Pease LLP has added to its Houston office a former Andrews Kurth LLP partner who specializes in complex commercial bankruptcy, adding depth to Vorys’ finance, energy and real estate group, the firm announced Monday.
-
June 4, 2013
EU Imposes Anti-Dumping Tariffs On Chinese Solar Panels
The European Commission on Tuesday decided to levy anti-dumping duties on solar panels and their components imported from China, after concluding the devices were being sold in Europe for well below fair-market value and harming domestic manufacturers.
-
June 4, 2013
McGuireWoods Lures Former Top Senate Official To DC Office
McGuireWoods LLP will add a former senior U.S. Senate Finance Committee staffer as partner in its Washington, D.C., office, bringing additional regulatory and legislative expertise to the firm's clients across the tax, health care, energy and trade sectors, the firm announced Tuesday.
-
June 4, 2013
GOP Rep. Revives Bill To Cut EPA Out Of Coal Ash Regulation
U.S. Rep. David McKinley, R-W.Va., on Monday resurrected legislation that would leave toxic coal ash regulation to states by preventing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from classifying it as a "hazardous substance" within its jurisdiction, after a previous version died in Congress last year.
-
June 4, 2013
FCPA Powerhouse: Kirkland & Ellis
Kirkland & Ellis LLP's Foreign Corrupt Practices Act practice, which spans six continents, is among the most formidable in the entire world — but since the firm cautiously avoids FCPA cases that involve high price tags, its work often flies under the radar.
-
June 4, 2013
Kinder Morgan To Spend $107M On Texas Pipeline Extension
Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP plans to invest $107 million to expand its pipeline network in the Eagle Ford Shale in Texas by more than 30 miles, the Houston-based midstream limited partnership said Monday.
Expert Analysis
-
A Tale Of 2 Cities: Beijing And DC On Climate Change
In the U.S., it seems that the Obama administration will press forward with regulatory action on climate change. Similarly, China's response to climate change-related pollution continues to push ahead. Both countries' efforts signal that climate change will likely be strengthened, but real difficulties for business and investors remain, say attorneys with Fulbright & Jaworski LLP and Norton Rose LLP.
-
Ralls Case Shows Importance Of Proactively Engaging CFIUS
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia recently dismissed most claims of Chinese-owned Ralls Corporation’s civil action against an executive order that prohibits Ralls’ acquisition of four wind farm project companies in Oregon. The case exemplifies the importance of notifying and engaging the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States voluntarily before closing a transaction that may raise national security concerns, says Alexandra Lopez-Casero of Nixon Peabody LLP.
-
New CEQA Bill — Cure Or Band-Aid?
In response to a business community campaign calling for broad California Environmental Quality Act reform, Sen. Darrell Steinberg, D-Calif., released his highly anticipated CEQA "modernization" bill. So far, the bill is more remarkable for what it lacks than for what it contains, but it still could reduce CEQA delay and uncertainty, says Barbara Schussman of Perkins Coie LLP.
-
9th Circ. Clears The Air For Mine Owners
In the recent case, Center for Biological Diversity v. Salazar, the Ninth Circuit ruled that mining plans of operations do not expire after temporary closures. This decision marks notable, favorable precedent for the mining industry and project proponents and helps settle expectations for mining plans of operations, says Tyler Welti of Perkins Coie LLP.
-
Dissecting FATCA: Oil And Gas Trader Edition
Under the U.S. Department of Treasury's Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, foreign oil and gas traders must take steps now to ensure that they are on the correct path to compliance. On the other hand, the Treasury should issue additional guidance allowing withholding agents to apply for refunds on behalf of the recipients of withholdable payments. Otherwise, there may be too much administrative burden, creating a tax windfall for the Treasury, say attorneys with Bracewell & Giuliani LLP.
-
Will AIA Power Clean Technology?
The creation of cost-effective, efficient means to challenge the validity of a patent will certainly become one of the long-lasting impacts of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act. For clean technology companies, the proceedings offer a way to navigate the tidal wave of industry patents issued under fast-paced examination programs, say attorneys with Robins Kaplan Miller & Ciresi LLP.
-
Calif.'s Road To Fracking Regulation Will Be Bumpy
For the foreseeable future in California, fracking regulation will continue to move forward on three parallel paths: through the courts, legislature and agencies. Unfortunately, however, none of these paths are likely to provide the industry with clear rules regarding fracking activities in the next year, say attorneys with Bingham McCutchen LLP.
-
Sharpen Your Pencils For Conflict Minerals Disclosures
As the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission-mandated conflict minerals disclosure deadline draws near, companies must push forward with their diligence and compliance efforts, using this as an opportunity to rethink certain aspects of their operations and derive efficiencies when possible, says Barbara Jones of Greenberg Traurig LLP.
-
Power Plays: EPA's Role In Electric Power Generation
Although unlikely, it is possible that legislation could be passed in the next Congress that would impact a number of electrical generation regulatory developments — for example, legislation that could preempt the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to regulate coal combustion residuals in favor of the states, says Henry Eisenberg of Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP.
-
Act Now To Harness IRS Energy Tax Credits
With $150 million of advanced energy manufacturing tax credits now available from the Internal Revenue Service, eligible applicants should act quickly to meet the April 9, 2013, submission deadline and review a few basic considerations about the credits, say attorneys with Nixon Peabody LLP.