The Energy practice group at Leonard, Street and Deinard provides full-service legal counsel to electric energy, natural gas, railroad and transportation companies in federal regulatory and restructuring proceedings, as well as in transactional and litigated matters to clients nationwide. Our practice numbers nearly 30 attorneys, many of whom have either held positions at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Minnesota Attorney General’s office, or served as general counsel or in-house counsel at large energy companies.

In recent years, our attorneys have represented clients in a wide variety of energy transactions, ranging from the acquisition of new transmission or generation facilities (sometimes through utility mergers) to natural gas and power sales agreements. Experienced with market power and affiliate issues that often form the underpinnings of energy transactions, our energy attorneys work closely with the firm’s corporate attorneys to provide complete representation in utility transactions.

Many of these energy transactions require regulatory approval. Since many of our attorneys worked at FERC and even helped draft certain regulations, we understand firsthand what is required to file and obtain necessary approval for either a mundane or a unique request. In fact, energy regulation is the primary focus of our energy practice.  

• Electric transmission. Electric transmission is a key component of our practice. Leonard, Street and Deinard’s energy attorneys draft and revise open-access transmission tariffs for vertically integrated electric utilities, prepare and prosecute electric transmission rate cases, represent transmission owners in Regional Transmission Organizations (RTOs), and help interconnecting generators and marketers obtain and maintain service.
• Electric generation and marketing. Our attorneys help clients build electric generation facilities and obtain market-based rate authorization. We counsel clients on market power, market manipulation and energy trading issues. Additionally, we help electric generators comply with and obtain certifications under PUHCA and PURPA.
• Natural gas transportation and storage. Our attorneys regularly work with interstate and intrastate natural gas pipelines. We help pipelines acquire or sell facilities, draft tariffs, comply with FERC regulations, and prepare and prosecute rate cases. Our attorneys also represent natural gas producers and marketers on transportation and import/export matters. Additionally, we have helped clients develop storage and LNG facilities and in so doing conduct open seasons to attract new customers and obtain the necessary authorizations from the FERC and other federal and state regulators.
• Administrative and court litigation. We have extensive experience representing energy clients in administrative and court litigation. Whether the litigation involves a complex case with hundreds of parties addressing issues worth hundreds of millions of dollars or a straightforward dispute between two parties, our seasoned energy lawyers provide clients with thorough and dependable representation. Having worked at the administrative agencies, our attorneys know which arguments will likely prove successful and which should be avoided. We routinely work with economists and engineers to help them provide expert testimony that makes the highly abstruse easily understood.
• FERC enforcement and compliance. More than 20 years ago, our attorneys helped the FERC draft regulations on affiliate relations and have since counseled clients’ compliance. We represent clients in enforcement investigations and "hotline" dispute calls, regularly perform internal audits of our clients' regulatory compliance, and help them design a regulatory compliance program. To help clients create compliance culture, the firm's energy lawyers craft client-specific training materials and conduct internal regulatory compliance seminars in corporate boardrooms, operations conference rooms, and over the telephone. We also help clients comply with reliability requirements imposed by regional reliability organizations.
• Energy legislation and agency rulemakings. Leonard, Street and Deinard’s attorneys have substantial experience with legislative and rulemaking proceedings. We have represented electric and gas utilities and subsidiaries in energy restructuring proceedings in more than 20 states and the federal government. In this regard, our attorneys have provided full-service legislative representation. Once legislation is enacted, our lawyers work with technical experts in agency rulemaking proceedings that shape the impacting regulations.
• Wind energy. We are actively involved in representing wind energy developers throughout the country. Working closely with our real estate and corporate law teams, our attorneys help wind developers on all aspects of the project—from site assessment and permitting to power sale agreements to financing. Our attorneys have also helped clients develop biomass facilities, as well as obtain and maintain regulatory authorization to construct and operate hydroelectric facilities.

• Biofuels. Our firm has played a lead role in the growing field of biofuels. We work with all segments of the ethanol industry—from farmer-owned cooperatives to project coordinators and builders—in the development of new projects. In fact, our attorneys have helped ethanol and biodiesel projects achieve more than two billion gallons of production capability that is under contract, in construction or in operation.
• Environmental representation. Our attorneys represent energy companies in all aspects of federal and state environmental law. Whether the need is to obtain all of the permits for the development of a major electric engineering plant or to provide a vigorous defense in an agency enforcement proceeding, we are able to help meet the challenge.

Leonard, Street and Deinard represents a variety of energy clients, including:

• A.O.G. Corporation
• American Transmission Co., LLC
• Atlantic Path 15, LLC
• Atlantic Power Corporation
• Avant Energy
• BrightSource Energy
• Buena Vista Biomass
• Burns and Roe Enterprises, Inc.
• Calpine Corp.
• Chugach Electric
• Cogentrix Energy, Inc.
• Connexus Energy
• Dayton Power & Light, Inc.
• Dominion Energy Marketing
• Dominion Resources Services, Inc.
• Dominion Virginia Power
• Ecologic Analytics, LLC
• Edison Electric Institute
• Electric Power Supply Association
• Energy Investors Fund II
• Entegra Power Group, LLC
• Excelsior Energy, Inc.
• Fagen, Inc.
• Gila River Power, L.P.
• Great Plains Natural Gas, a division of MDU Resources
• Great River Energy
• Guardian Energy LLC
• High Sierra Power Marketing, LLC
• Horizon Wind Energy LLC
• Industrial Power Generating Company, LLC
• Invenergy LLC
• LaIssez Faire Enterprises, LLC
• LS Power
• Merjent, Inc.
• MIECO, Inc.
• The Natural Gas Supply Association
• New Jersey Natural Gas Company
• NJR Energy Services, Inc.
• Noble Environmental Power
• NorthWestern Energy
• NRG Energy, Inc.
• Otter Tail Power Corporation
• Penobscot Energy Recovery Company
• Renewable Products Marketing Group LLC
• RES Americas, Inc.
• Sierra Rock & Dirt, Inc.
• South Central Power Project
• TransCanada Northern Border Inc.
• TransCanada Pipeline USA Ltd.
• Trans-Union Interstate Pipeline, L.P.
• Twin Cities Power, LLC
• Tyr Energy, Inc.
• United Energy Corporation
• United Gasco LLC
• Veolia Energy North America
• Verso Paper Corp.
• Wayzata Investment Partners, LLC
• Western Power Trading Forum
• The Williams Companies, Inc.