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Category Archives: Energy Enforcement

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Energy Enforcement

FERC’s New Infrastructure and Environmental Impacts Priority – What to Expect in Enforcement Cases

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Office of Enforcement (OE) has historically focused on four “priorities,” as described in its annual Report on Enforcement. Those four priorities included (1) fraud and market manipulation; (2) serious violations of Reliability Standards; (3) anticompetitive conduct; and (4) conduct that threatens the transparency of regulated markets. In the 2021… Continue Reading
Energy Enforcement, Enforcement and Prosecution Policy and Trends

Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency Issues Initial Guidance on Essential Workers, Sectors

As many industries transition to alternate working arrangements in response to COVID-19, certain sectors and functions essential to the nation’s public health, safety and community well-being must continue to operate. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) of the Department of Homeland Security recently released an initial list of “Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers” to help… Continue Reading
Compliance, Energy Enforcement

FERC Directs NERC to Amend its Sanctions Guidelines by July 21, 2020

Entities registered with the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) to comply with mandatory electric reliability standards (Reliability Standards) or face civil penalties should take note of an order issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on January 23, 2020 in Docket No. RR19-7-000 (January 23 Order).  In the January 23 Order, FERC, which oversees NERC… Continue Reading
Energy Enforcement

FERC Rescinds Notice of Alleged Violation Policy

This week, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) issued an order rescinding its Notice of Alleged Violation (“NAV”) Policy. The NAV Policy was put in place by a 2009 order and authorized FERC’s Office of Enforcement Staff (“OE staff”) to ask the FERC Secretary to issue a public NAV at the stage of the investigation… Continue Reading
Energy Enforcement

Lessons From FERC Staff Reversal In Footprint Power

This post recently appeared in Law360, available for subscribers here. Anyone practicing in the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission enforcement arena should sit up and take notice of the recent developments in the Footprint case at FERC. The most public step in an enforcement procedure before FERC is the issuance of an order to show cause,… Continue Reading
Anti-Bribery and Corruption, Compliance, Energy Enforcement

A Compliance Plan for the Extractive Industries Payment Disclosure Rule

In the prior post we described the SEC’s new Rule 13q-1 that took effect on Monday (September 26). In this post, we discuss steps covered companies should take to comply with the rule. To review: Rule 13q-1 requires issuers involved in the commercial development of oil, natural gas and minerals to disclose payments they, their… Continue Reading
Energy Enforcement, Enforcement and Prosecution Policy and Trends, Fraud, Deception and False Claims

Court Holds FERC De Novo Review to Proceed as “Ordinary Civil Action”

Last week, a federal district judge ruled for the first time that the “review de novo” promised by section 31(d) of the Federal Power Act (“FPA”), 16 U.S.C. § 823b(d), will be “treated as an ordinary civil action requiring a trial de novo.”  FERC v. Maxim Power Corp., Civ. No. 3:15-30113-MGM, at 2 (D. Mass.… Continue Reading
Energy Enforcement

FERC Market Manipulation Case Still Alive After Ruling in Silkman and Lincoln Paper Case

For the past several years, FERC has been investigating several energy industry participants under several theories of market manipulation, discussed previously here.  Gradually, these cases have moved from administrative proceedings to U.S. district courts, which have resulted in a small handful of written opinions, none of which have fully settled the substantive questions of what… Continue Reading
Anti-Bribery and Corruption, Compliance, Election and Political Law, Energy Enforcement, Securities and Commodities

Avoiding Waiver When Disclosing Facts to the Government

All but a handful of courts find that companies disclosing privileged communications or protected work product to the government waive both of those protections. Courts properly analyzing waiver rules also recognize that disclosing historical facts does not cause a waiver – because historical facts are not privileged. In two related cases, Judge Francis of the… Continue Reading

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