Skip to main content
Insights
Inflation Reduction Act
Supreme Court Upholds Arbitration Award in Favor of British Natural Gas Investor in Argentina
To listen to the podcast, please click here . On March 5, 2014, the United States Supreme Court upheld a $185 million arbitration award obtained by the United Kingdom's BG Group PLC against the Republic of Argentina, pursuant to a...
Partnership Verdict In Dallas: You May Be Married and Not Know It
On Tuesday, March 4, 2014, a Dallas jury found that Enterprise Products Partners, L.P. ("Enterprise") had entered into a partnership with Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. ("ETP") to jointly develop a crude oil pipeline from Cushing, Oklahoma to the Texas Gulf...
Paper Company, Arguing that FERC Lacks Jurisdiction over Demand Response, Files Motion to Dismiss FERC Manipulation Action
On December 2, 2013, FERC filed a Petition for an order affirming its assessment of a civil penalty in the District of Massachusetts against Lincoln Paper and Tissue, LLC ("Defendant"), alleging that the Defendant engaged in a manipulative scheme as...
Third Circuit Asks U.S. Attorney General for Opinion on Federal Power Act Pre-emption of State Law
In an unusual move, on February 21, 2014 the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ("Third Circuit") asked the U.S. Attorney General for his opinion as to whether the Federal Power Act ("FPA") preempts New Jersey's Long Term Capacity...
FERC Responds to Barclays Motion to Dismiss as Without Merit and so Aggressive That if Granted it Could "Eviscerate" FERC's Ability to Regulate Wholesale Power Markets
On July 16, 2013, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC") issued an order finding Barclays Bank PLC ("Barclays"), Daniel Brin, Scott Connelly, Karen Levine, and Ryan Smith (together with Barclays, "Defendants") in violation of FERC's anti-manipulation regulations and assessed significant...
Second Circuit Reinforces High Pleading Burden for Director Duty of Oversight Claims
To listen to the podcast, please click here . In Welch v. Havenstein , No. 13-2648-cv, 2014 WL 322055 (2d Cir. Jan. 30, 2014) (summary order), aff’g In re SAIC Inc. Derivative Litigation , 948 F. Supp. 2d 366 (S.D.N.Y...
Barclays Motion to Dismiss Raises Significant Issues About FERC Jurisdiction
After an investigation of actions in the western electricity markets by Barclays Bank PLC ("Barclays"), Daniel Brin, Scott Connelly, Karen Levine, and Ryan Smith (collectively, the "Traders" and together with Barclays, "Defendants"), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC") issued an...
Pooled Units and the Implied Surface Easement
On January 7, 2013, the Court of Appeals for the First District of Texas (Houston) (the " Court ") held that under Texas law the implied surface easement inherent in the mineral estate limited the mineral estate owner's right to...
Court Rules That Patent Infringement Can Violate Antitrust Laws
Patent infringement can be considered anticompetitive conduct under federal antitrust law, according to a recent ruling issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. This ruling arose out of a dispute between Retractable Technologies, Inc. (Retractable)...
Bad Faith Patent Litigation Is Bad News For Plaintiffs
Affirming a $1.6 million dollar award for attorney fees against a non-practicing entity (NPE) for pursuing and maintaining patent litigation in bad faith, the Federal Circuit has served notice that patent litigants "must continually assess the soundness of pending infringement...
FERC Assesses Record Civil Penalty But the Story Is Just Beginning
By Order dated July 16, 2013 the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) assessed civil penalties against Barclays Bank Plc. and four of its traders "“ Daniel Brin, Scott Connelly, Karen Levine and Ryan Smith (Order). The Order is notable for...
Class Arbitration: Arbitrator's Interpretation Subject to Limited Review
Reflecting the limited judicial review of an arbitrator’s decision, on June 10, 2013, the United States Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in Oxford Health Plans LLC v. Sutter affirming an arbitrator’s interpretation of a contract to allow class action...
Beyond Trolling the Trolls: White House Acts to Curb Abuse by Patent Assertion Entities
Earlier this year, President Obama addressed frivolous patent suits in a Google+ hangout session, commenting that Patent Assertion Entities (PAEs) "don't actually produce anything themselves" and assert patents "to essentially leverage and hijack somebody else's idea and see if they...
Texas Puts its Lone-Star Spin on Trade Secret Protection
Effective on September 1, 2013, trade secret owners in Texas will have a statutory framework for litigation in an actual or threatened misappropriation of trade secrets. 1 Texas recently joined the other forty-seven states 2 in implementing a version of...
OFCCP Requiring Contractors to Use Latest Census Data for AAPs
On May 15, 2013, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) posted a Notice on its website informing covered federal contractors that they will be required to use the 2006-2010 EEO Tabulation, released by the U.S. Census Bureau in...