Wellinghoff

President Obama has tapped FERC Commissioner Cheryl LaFleur to be acting chair of the agency, taking over Monday from Chairman Jon Wellinghoff, who will leave the Commission after seven years of service.

The law firm of Stoel Rrives LLP announced Monday that outgoing FERC Chairman Jon Wellinghoff will join the practice when he departs the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Wellinghoff submitted his resignation to President Obama on May 28, but no date has been set for his departure (see Daily GPI, May 30). His term as chairman expired in June, but he can continue to serve until Congress adjourns for the year. Stoel Rives, which has offices in Washington, DC, and San Francisco, has nearly 100 attorneys. It has received a prestigious National First-Tier ranking for Energy Law in every edition of the annual U.S. News-Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” survey, and has been recognized as one of the nation’s best law firms for renewables and alternative energy by independent research Chambers and Partners for four consecutive years, according to Stoel Rives. Obama tapped Wellinghoff as FERC chairman in March 2009. He has served on the Commission since 2006. Wellinghoff has 37 years experience in regulatory, consumer and commercial law.

Top Senate lawmakers called on FERC and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission four months ago to execute a memorandums of understanding (MOU) to coordinate their actions in monitoring natural gas and electricity market trading. But the agencies failed to iron out their disagreements, mostly over jurisdiction.

High Prairie Pipeline LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Durango, CO-based Saddle Butte Pipeline LLC, expects FERC to act soon on its complaint that Enbridge Energy Ltd. has discriminated against it by denying it an interconnection to deliver oil from the Bakken Shale formation to the market hub at Clearbrook MN, a spokesman said Tuesday (see Shale Daily, June 4).

FERC Chairman Jon Wellinghoff has tapped Thomas R. Sheets, a partner in the Las Vegas law firm of McDonald Carano Wilson, to be general counsel of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, succeeding Cynthia Marlette. Sheets has more than 32 years of energy industry, administrative practice and regulatory hearing experience. He has served as chairman of the Nevada Tax Commission for the past four years and was senior vice president and general counsel of Southwest Gas Corp. As FERC general counsel, Sheets will represent the Commission before the courts and Congress and will be responsible for the legal aspects of the agency’s activities.

FERC Chairman Jon Wellinghoff announced that Susan J. Court, director of the Office of Enforcement (OE), is retiring after 27 years of service in the federal government. Her successor will be Norman Bay, a former U.S. Attorney for New Mexico and current associate professor of law at the University of New Mexico. He is expected to join the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on July 6.

FERC Chairman Jon Wellinghoff announced that Susan J. Court, director of the Office of Enforcement (OE), is retiring after 27 years of service in the federal government. Her successor will be Norman Bay, a former U.S. Attorney for New Mexico and current associate professor of law at the University of New Mexico. He is expected to join the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on July 6.