Energy & Utilities Law, Constitutional Law

Fifth Circuit Knocks Out Climate Change Liability Lawsuit Again

by J. Wylie Donald | McCarter & English: Climate Change &... on 5/16/2013

Res judicata is one of those phrases learned in law school that seemed of limited utility. How often is someone going to bring the same claim twice?...more

Court Affirms Authority of NJ Board of Public Utilities to Override Municipalities

by Dennis Linken on 5/13/2013

Court Affirms Authority of NJ Board of Public Utilities to Override Municipalities by Dennis C. Linken on May 3, 2013 A recent State Superior Court, Appellate Division, case has affirmed the overarching authority of the...more

The PUHCA, Chenery & The Run For The Roses

by Keith Paul Bishop | Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis... on 5/2/2013

Earlier this week, I mentioned the former Public Utility Holding Company Act (aka PUHCA). Although it was repealed several years ago, the PUHCA remains important as the legal substrate upon which the famous, and still...more

Climate Change Legal Theories: The Atmospheric Public Trust Doctrine Moves Another Step Forward

by J. Wylie Donald | McCarter & English: Climate Change &... on 4/30/2013

One of the shibboleths of those following climate change litigation is the idea that new legal theories will be surfaced, fired in the furnace of litigation and then forged as the vehicle for addressing climate change in the...more

New Floodplain Ordinance Targets Oil and Gas Operations

by Mark Clark | Spilman Thomas & Battle, PLLC on 4/26/2013

The County Commission in Doddridge County, West Virginia is currently considering amendments to its Floodplain Ordinance as a result of a December 17, 2012 decision by the Circuit Court of Doddridge County. (Comments to the...more

Challengers Double Down on Opposition to California’s Carbon Allowance Auctions

by Peter Hsiao, Sue Landsittel, William Sloan | Morrison & Foerster LLP on 4/25/2013

A second lawsuit has been filed challenging one of the centerpieces of California’s innovative cap-and-trade climate change regulatory program: the auction process implemented by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to...more

Would a Ban on Fracking Constitute a Takings?

by Nancie G. Marzulla on 4/23/2013

Fracking is all the rage these days, a means of increasing domestic energy production by injecting fluid into cracks that exists in rock formations to open them up and allow oil and gas to flow out and be collected. There is...more

California's Cap and Trade Program Goes to Court Again

by Jon Costantino | Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP on 4/22/2013

The other shoe finally dropped. The much-speculated and much-anticipated “tax vs. fee” AB 32 Cap and Trade lawsuit has finally been filed. A diverse coalition of businesses and trade groups filed a lawsuit in a state superior...more

California Environmental Law and Policy Update - April 11, 2013

by David D. Cooke, Emily L. Murray, Sandi L. Nichols | Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis... on 4/16/2013

Environmental and Policy Focus - ..Court rules CEQA streamlining provision unconstitutional: CourtHouse News - Apr 3 - A section of a California law aimed at streamlining construction projects by moving...more

SEC Files Initial Brief in Conflict Minerals Rule Case

by Edward Sarnowski | Holland & Knight LLP on 4/16/2013

The SEC recently filed its initial brief in the case pending in the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in which the National Association of Manufacturers, United States Chamber of Commerce, and Business...more

4th Circuit Issues Two Standing Opinions on the Same Day

by Ellis, Lawhorne & Sims, P.A. on 4/11/2013

The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals had the opportunity to consider constitutional standing requirements in two very similar cases. The opinions offer some insight into the application of the Lujan test....more

The Alaska Constitution and Alaska Oil and Gas Projects

by Lisa Doehl | Davis Wright Tremaine LLP on 4/10/2013

In the March 29th decision of Sullivan v. Resisting Environmental Destruction on Indigenous Lands (REDOIL), the Supreme Court of Alaska held that the Alaska Constitution requires only one “best interest finding” (that an oil...more

World Trade Organization Rules Against Ontario’s “Buy Local” Program

by Bruce Goodman | Varnum LLP on 3/5/2013

The Province of Ontario has imposed a requirement that in order to participate in its feed in tariff program (FIT) for solar energy a project much source at least 60% of the solar project content from within the Province....more

Federal Circuit Affirms Dismissal Of ESA Fifth Amendment Takings Claim

by Ben Rubin | Nossaman LLP on 3/5/2013

On February 27, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a Fifth Amendment takings claim based on the finding that the claim was "not ripe." The claim is unusual because it arose in...more

Two Steps Forward and Two Steps Back

by Ben Rubin | Nossaman LLP on 3/4/2013

Before you get your hopes up, this is not a reference to "Opposites Attract" by Paula Abdul, and I will not be singing. Rather, I am referring to the Montana Legislature's recent decision to repeal a two-year-old law that...more

Ohio Court: State Oil And Gas Law Pre-Empts Local Drilling Regulations

by Scott Bent | BakerHostetler on 2/28/2013

The nationwide oil and gas boom has exposed a rift in the relationship between state and local governments seeking to regulate shale drilling and development. This tension has been playing out in several key shale states –...more

Oil And Gas Law Alert - High Watermark: State Of North Dakota Wins First Round Of Riverbed Title Dispute

by J. Scott Childs, Jannelle Steger Combs | Leonard, Street and Deinard on 1/31/2013

On January 28, 2013, in the consolidated matters of Reep v. State and Brigham Oil v. North Dakota, the Northwest Judicial District Court of North Dakota issued an Order for Partial Summary Judgment, concluding that the "State...more

The Supreme Court Speaks; Some Taxpayers Shudder

by Elliott B. Pollack | Pullman & Comley, LLC on 1/30/2013

Originally published in the Commercial Property Executive on January 16, 2013. Property owners frequently raise legitimate questions about hard-to-fathom differences between assessments of similar properties, as well as...more

SEC Files Brief in Lawsuit Challenging Extractive Industry Transparency Rule

by Amy Lehr | Foley Hoag LLP - Corporate Social... on 1/10/2013

On January 2, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) filed its brief (.pdf) in the lawsuit brought by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the American Petroleum Institute (“API”), the National Foreign Trade Council, and the...more

Alberta First Nations Challenge Constitutionality of Federal Regulatory Reforms

by Sander Duncanson, Martin Ignasiak, Jessica Kennedy | Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP on 1/10/2013

On January 8, 2012, the Mikisew Cree First Nation and the Frog Lake First Nation (the First Nations), both located in Alberta, filed notices of application (the Applications) with the Federal Court seeking judicial review of...more

Hydraulic Fracking – Recent Developments in CA, NY, NJ and PA

by Gregory Lahr | Sedgwick LLP on 12/21/2012

For our readers who are keeping tabs on developments in the hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) industry, we thought you would be interested in Sedgwick’s latest Hydraulic Fracturing News Flash regarding a recent proposal in...more

When is a Resolution of Necessity Tainted By Prior Agency Obligations?

by Brad Kuhn | Nossaman LLP on 12/5/2012

One of the prerequisites to instituting an eminent domain action is the governing agency's adoption of a resolution of necessity to acquire the necessary property. At the time of adopting the resolution, the agency cannot be...more

Alberta Court of Appeal Decides Panel Not Required to Determine Adequacy of Crown’s Aboriginal Consultation

by Martin Ignasiak, Jessica Kennedy | Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP on 12/1/2012

On November 26, 2012, the Alberta Court of Appeal released the decision of Justice Slatter denying leave to appeal a decision made by the Joint Review Panel (the Panel) established to evaluate Shell Canada’s application to...more

High Court Weighs In on Surface Owners’ Appeal Rights

by Dale W. Steager | Spilman Thomas & Battle, PLLC on 11/30/2012

In Martin v. Hamblet, decided November 21, 2012, the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals determined that a surface owner may not appeal issuance of a well work permit by the Department of Environmental Protection for a...more

Sutherland Salt Shaker - November 2012

by Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP on 11/28/2012

In This Issue: - The Lone Star State Swings the Lasso Around E-Commerce Services - Don’t Mess with Texas: No Three-Factor MTC Election for You! - SALT Pet of the Month - The Clicks Keep on Coming in...more

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Energy & Utilities Law › Constitutional Law