Covington possesses a premier energy litigation practice.
In both the domestic US and international arenas, we have extensive experience representing clients in disputes arising from the energy industry, including upstream production of oil and natural gas; downstream refining and marketing of oil, gasoline, natural gas, natural gas liquids, and petrochemicals; transportation of oil and natural gas; electric generation; wholesale electric transmission; and wholesale bulk power transactions.
We have represented energy sector clients in some of their most significant disputes, including lawsuits and arbitrations involving multi-billion dollar controversies. We frequently represent energy clients in litigation and arbitration, governmental investigations and enforcement actions, and administrative proceedings. Notable work includes:
- Prosecuting multi-billion dollar claims in the Court of Federal Claims in connection with Government breaches of Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) leases.
- Representing energy companies and investors in arbitrations against foreign governments after the expropriation or unlawful treatment of investments.
- Defending a major energy company in a formal investigation and litigation at FERC in connection with alleged natural gas market manipulation and affiliate abuse.
- Appearing for a trade association in high-profile cases affecting the energy sector, such as environmental challenges to OCS lease sales and exploration plans, climate change litigation against energy companies, and Supreme Court review of antitrust claims against a downstream joint venture between two major companies.
- Recovering $780 million of insurance proceeds for liabilities arising from the grounding of the Exxon Valdez.
- Representing upstream oil and gas companies in challenging Minerals Management Service royalty payment orders for OCS oil and natural gas production.
- Giving strategic advice to an energy company in connection with class action litigation concerning royalty calculations for natural gas.
- Representing natural gas pipeline operators in responding to a CFTC investigation concerning alleged market manipulation.
- Representing a services company executive in connection with an FCPA investigation relating to a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Africa.
- Defending an energy and chemical company against class action lawsuits alleging injuries and property damage due to environmental releases.
- Representing a California electric utility in evidentiary proceedings at the FERC to establish disputed terms of must-run contracts with merchant generators.
- Defending a mining company and other businesses in lawsuits brought by foreign plaintiffs under the Alien Tort Claims Act.
Our litigation experience encompasses both private party litigation and disputes with government agencies before state courts, federal district courts, and the Court of Federal Claims. We also have represented energy clients in important cases before appellate courts and the Supreme Court of the United States.
Our arbitration lawyers have represented energy sector clients and investors in proceedings constituted by the International Center for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), the Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), and the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce, as well as ad hoc tribunals in various forums.
We also have represented energy clients in investigations and regulatory proceedings involving many governmental agencies, including the following:
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
- Commodity Futures Trading Commission
- Federal Trade Commission
- Securities and Exchange Commission
- Environmental Protection Agency
- Department of the Interior
Covington lawyers with substantial energy litigation and arbitration experience include Steven Rosenbaum, who has obtained $1.7 billion in judgments and settlements for energy clients in actions against the government in the Court of Federal Claims; Robert Fleishman, who regularly represents clients in connection with FERC and CFTC enforcement proceedings; and Thomas Cubbage, who has handled a variety of domestic litigation and international arbitration in both the oil and gas and power sectors. Other members of the energy litigation team in our Washington, San Francisco, and London offices include many recognized as leading lawyers by Chambers USA and Chambers Latin America, such as former FERC Commissioner William Massey, international arbitration advocates Oscar Garibaldi, Eugene Gulland, and Gaëtan Verhoosel, international arbitration and FCPA lawyer O. Thomas Johnson, environmental lawyer Theodore Garrett, insurance coverage litigators Donald Brown, David Goodwin, and Mitchell Dolin, and appellate advocate Robert Long.
Representative Matters
Our lawyers have represented energy clients in the following types of representative subject matters:
Upstream U.S. Oil and Gas Operations
- Court of Federal Claims Litigation
- Represented a coalition of eleven oil and gas companies whose efforts to pursue development of their California offshore oil and gas leases were thwarted by the federal government.
- Represented other oil companies, including ExxonMobil, Shell, and Chevron, in successful breach of contract lawsuits involving leases offshore Alaska, Florida, and North Carolina.
- Royalty Disputes
- Represented an oil producer in litigation that invalidated the Minerals Management Service (MMS) effort to impose “price trigger” conditions on royalty relief under the Deep Water Royalty Relief Act.
- Represented OCS producers in successful challenge to MMS royalty payment orders that disputed their reliance on FERC tariff rates when determining transportation allowances.
- Represented an association of independent producers in challenging attempted MMS assessment of royalties on certain take-or-pay settlement proceeds.
- Represented a natural gas liquids producer in successful challenge to MMS royalty payment orders premised on unpublished agency guidance.
- Represented a natural gas producer in its response to a state court decision concerning the valuation of gas in “marketable condition” and potential private class action claims.
- Environmental Disputes
- Represented the American Petroleum Institute as amicus in case alleging fossil fuel producers are responsible for greenhouse gas emissions and climate change that resulted in Hurricane Katrina damage.
- Represented an oil company and its subsidiaries in a variety of litigation in several states involving alleged contamination caused by naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM).
- Represented the API and numerous energy companies as intervenors in litigation concerning MMS five-year leasing programs and the adequacy of environmental assessments for particular OCS lease sales.
- Agency and Congressional Investigations
- Represented an oil and gas company and its executive in connection with congressional hearing to examine absence of “price trigger” conditions on royalty relief for deepwater OCS leases.
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