Pennsylvania's Farmland and Forestland Assessment Act, more commonly known as the "Clean and Green Act," (72 Pa. C.S. § 5490.1 et seq. ) provides preferential tax treatment to property owners who agree to devote lands to agricultural, agricultural reserve, or forest reserve use under...

Today [June 21, 2011], Senator Jay Rockefeller announced that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has agreed to start an investigation into oil and gasoline markets and the impact on retail prices. In a letter to Senator Rockefeller announcing the investigation, the FTC indicated that it was attempting...

By Brad Kaplan If you thought the earth beneath your feet was solid; think again. Land owners and energy industry prospectors are busy in Eastern Ohio, West Virginia, New York and Pennsylvania looking for pockets of natural gas embedded in the Marcellus Shale buried deep beneath the surface. Named...

PITTSBURGH - A highly-regarded six-lawyer team has joined the energy and environmental practices of Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. as the global firm opened an office in Western Pennsylvania, the center of activity for Marcellus Shale natural gas production. Partner Ken Komoroski, a recognized shale...

On Friday, July 1, 2011, the New York Department of Environmental Conservation ("DEC") released its draft supplemental generic environmental impact statement ("SGEIS"), a proposal that would grant access to more than 80% of the shale formations within the state of New York. Notably...

On June 28, 2011, two business women with the assistance of the Competitive Enterprise Institute ("CEI") and Americans for Prosperity filed a lawsuit against the state of New York for participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative ("RGGI") program because the interstate compact...

On July 11, 2011, FERC Chairman Jon Wellinghoff announced that the Commission will engage in a public effort to "reassess and streamline" their federal regulations. The Commission is acting to implement President Barack Obama's July 11th executive order that asks FERC and other independent...

On Monday, July 11, 2011, Chesapeake Energy Corporation ("Chesapeake") announced its plan to spend over $1 billion over the next 10 years in order to help spur the development and demand for domestic supplies of natural gas and oil. Chesapeake stated that it hopes that its plan will help create...

On July 7, 2011, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") issued new rules requiring power plants in 27 eastern, mid-western, and southern states to cut emissions of nitrogen oxide by 54% and sulfur dioxide by 73% from 2005 levels by the time the rules take full effect in 2014. The...

On July 6, 2011, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC" or the "Commission") approved the proposed merger of NSTAR and Northeast Utilities (the "Merger"). The newly formed utility will operate under the name Northeast Utilities.Previously, the two companies announced...

HARRISBURG Pa. - (AP) A hand-picked panel on natural gas drilling gave Gov. Tom Corbett its recommendations on Friday, a report that included no surprises concerning what it sure to be a major topic of legislative debate this fall. The advisory panel recommended what it thinks will be the best ways to...

Dave and Karen Beinlich commenced an action on March 14, 2011, in the Court of Common Pleas for Sullivan County, Pennsylvania, asserting causes of action against Chief Oil & Gas LLC and others relating to the Beinlichs' oil and gas lease. The Beinlichs claim, in essence, that the developer acted...

On July 19, 2011, FERC issued an order on Smart Grid Interoperability Standards, and found insufficient consensus to institute a rulemaking proceeding to adopt the five families of standards identified by the National Institute of Standards and Technology ("NIST") as ready for review by the...

NEW YORK - (AP) Environmental groups filed a lawsuit Thursday in New York City to force federal officials to conduct an environmental review before issuing final regulations on natural gas drilling in the Delaware River Basin because of concerns over the method used to remove the gas. The lawsuit asks...

By Daniel Firger, Associate Director, Center for Climate Change, Columbia Law School Coal is the most polluting fossil fuel, releasing far higher levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) and conventional air pollutants-including sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and mercury-per unit of energy than either oil...

HOUSTON - Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP, a leading counselor to global financial institutions and corporations, has announced that it has added one of the foremost attorneys in energy finance, Michael Niebruegge, to the partnership. Niebruegge will bring his expertise in financing oil and...

Yesterday, a federal district court in West Virginia dismissed a suit against Range Resources - Appalachia, LLC, without prejudice. The suit had alleged that, in the fall of 2008, representatives from Range approached the plaintiff landowners to discuss leasing their gas reserves and that Range entered...

By Dianne Saxe, Ontario Environmental Lawyer Advisors to US Energy Secretary, Stephen Chu, have recommended major changes to improve regulation and environmental performance of shale gas fracturing (fracking) in the US. Public consultation is continuing, and the final report will be released in November...

PHILADELPHIA - Shale drilling for natural gas is big business in several states, but will it be "the next big thing" for litigators? It may be too early to tell, but the plaintiff and defense bars are gearing up. About 110 attorneys, insurance professionals and gas industry reps from 22...

By Kathy Milenkovski and Neal Pierce During the past year, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources has conducted hearings on three applications for unitized operation under Ohio Revised Code 1509.28. Additional hearings are on the schedule for January 2013. This statutory provision, part of the oil...

Last month's "fiscal cliff" deal temporarily extended several federal renewable energy incentives, such as the tax credit for producers of wind energy. But with investor confidence in renewable energy still somewhat shaky in comparison to more established energy sources like natural gas...

By Lisa McManus Pursuant to common law, no interest in land may be created in favor of a stranger to the title by means of a reservation or exception in a conveyance of the land. Patrick H. Martin and Bruce M. Kramer, Williams & Meyers, Oil and Gas Law § 310 (LexisNexis Matthew Bender 2012...

By William A. Ruskin On April 10, 2013, I participated in " Justice Speaks ," an event sponsored by the Justice Action Center at New York Law School on hydraulic fracturing. Joining me on the podium was Daniel Raichel , a Project Attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council ("...

This Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. paper is in collaboration with the global law firm Norton Rose. Trade Secrets and the Regulation of Hydraulic Fracturing provides a global view of how governments have attempted to strike a balance between the benefits of hydraulic fracturing technology innovation...

By William A. Ruskin It is the dream of many landowners in the United States to one day have both oil wells and wind turbines on their land. For this happen, however, landowners must play an active role in keeping oil and wind companies from trying to overreach each other in concurrent development...