Crowell & Moring Expands West Coast Energy And Regulatory Platform With Prominent Attorney Duo

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Mar 03, 2014, 01:00 ET

WASHINGTON, March 3, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Significantly boosting its footprint in California, Crowell & Moring LLP is pleased to announce the addition of two partners to the firm's Energy Group. The two, based in San Francisco, are Nancy Saracino, former vice president, general counsel, and chief administrative officer for the California Independent System Operator Corporation (CAISO) since 2007 where she oversaw all of CAISO's legal, compliance, governance, and control functions, and Frank Lindh, former general counsel of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) who for the last six years oversaw that organization's legal division.

"California, the nation's most populace state and the eighth largest economy in the world, has a complex and far-reaching energy policy that is often the blueprint for other states. Having served as the chief legal officers of the two entities in California most responsible for implementing the state's energy regime, Nancy and Frank will be able to provide our clients unparalleled service capabilities in the energy and other regulated utility markets," said Larry F. Eisenstat, partner and chair of Crowell & Moring's Energy Group. "Together with Mike Kahn, and our other colleagues, we think the addition of Nancy and Frank makes us a firm to see for challenging energy and water matters in California. We enthusiastically welcome our new partners whose arrival reflects our strategy to recruit the very best in this field, both in California and nationally."

Recognized as a substantive leader on a wide array of energy concerns, Saracino will head Crowell & Moring's Western Energy Practice and will advise clients on a broad spectrum of matters including: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and state regulatory and litigation matters; infrastructure development, interconnection and siting, including electric generation, transmission, natural gas and water projects; regional transmission organization and independent system operator markets and how best to do business with such entities; and on compliance, investigations, and enforcement proceedings. With her deep experience and understanding of how electricity markets work, Saracino will assist clients in navigating the ever-growing and complex regulatory and commercial issues facing companies in California and throughout the West. Her experience at the CAISO, at a time when incorporating renewables into California's grid has required new thinking and focus on alternative technologies, more flexibility and demand response, also positions her to assist clients interested in finding economic ways to develop low-carbon alternatives embraced by California policy. Having previously served as chief counsel and chief deputy director of the California Department of Water Resources (2004-2007) and as a supervisor in the California Department of Justice's Energy Task Force (2001-2004) during and after the California energy crisis, Saracino also is well-positioned for matters related to California's water resources, particularly in the water-energy nexus. Saracino will draw on her extensive experience working with a broad range of industry stakeholders, including independent energy producers, traditional utilities, transmission developers, demand response providers, environmental organizations, and state and federal regulators.

"State and federal energy law and environmental policy are changing at a rapid rate, which means practitioners must constantly adapt to meet client needs. The changes are coming from every which way – from California's new energy imbalance market, providing the first West-wide market, to state environmental mandates, to regulatory changes and challenges at both the state and federal levels. Crowell & Moring's appreciation for the ever-evolving nature of the energy industry and of energy law, combined with its culture and premier reputation and capabilities in the regulatory, litigation, and transactional arenas, makes my move to the firm very exciting," said Saracino.

Lindh has been a lawyer in the energy field for 25 years. Prior to his role as the CPUC's general counsel, Lindh served for 15 years in the law department of Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E), including as general counsel of Pacific Gas Transmission Company, a PG&E affiliate. He has extensive experience in the areas of conventional and renewable energy, water utilities, telecommunications policy, infrastructure development and safety, electric system reliability, and enforcement. Lindh will draw on his considerable work in the public and private sectors, in both the electric and gas industries at both the state and federal levels, to advise a wide range of clients. Highly respected for his dynamic negotiation skills, Lindh played a key role in resolving the substantial challenges posed by the California energy crisis. Lindh has handled numerous complex lawsuits and FERC proceedings. He also has significant experience with all aspects of water, electricity, and natural gas infrastructure permitting and development.

Lindh also has notable experience working in Washington, D.C., where he served in the Office of the Solicitor at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and was a law clerk to the solicitor general of the United States during the U.S. Supreme Court's 1984-1985 term. His career-long experience in the federal and state appellate courts, and in administrative hearings, enhances Crowell & Moring's already formidable bench of litigation and trial lawyers.

"I am thrilled to join Crowell & Moring's top-notch Energy Group with Nancy. The firm works with many of America's leading businesses on high-stakes litigation and regulatory matters that promise to make our work as gratifying as it is challenging. As California forges ahead toward its goal of drawing 33% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020, we look forward to working with existing and emerging companies to address and resolve their most significant environmental, energy, and business concerns, while growing the firm's national preeminence in energy law, particularly in California," said Lindh.

A current member of the board of directors for the Association of Women in Water, Energy, and Environment, Saracino earned her B.A. from the University of California, Davis, and her J.D. from the University of California, Davis School of Law. Lindh is an adjunct law professor at the University of California Hastings College of the law, and at the University of San Francisco School of Law, where he teaches courses on energy law. Lindh earned his B.A. from Penn State University and received his J.D., with honors, from the Georgetown University Law Center. He also holds a Master of Social Work degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Lindh is also a past member of the board of directors of the Energy Bar Association (EBA), where he served as president of the EBA's Western Chapter for two years, and a current member of the board of directors of the Conference of California Public Utility Counsel (CCPUC).

The team arrives during the continued national growth of the firm's Energy Group. In July 2013, Crowell & Moring welcomed a nine-member energy team from Dickstein Shapiro to the firm's Washington, D.C. office, including partners Larry F. Eisenstat, Patrick W. Lynch, Jonathan C. Odell, and Richard Lehfeldt.

Crowell & Moring LLP is an international law firm with more than 500 lawyers representing clients in litigation and arbitration, regulatory, and transactional matters. The firm is internationally recognized for its representation of Fortune 500 companies in high-stakes litigation, as well as its ongoing commitment to pro bono service and diversity. The firm has offices in Washington, DC, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Orange County, Anchorage, London, and Brussels. Visit Crowell & Moring online at www.crowell.com.

Contact: Kathryn Holmes Johnson
(202) 508-8916
[email protected]

SOURCE Crowell & Moring LLP