Randy Rich Participates in Panel at 2015 Energy Bar Association Annual Meeting
In a session titled, “Don’t Lose Your Day in Court”: Procedural Compliance, Pierce Atwood Energy Partner Randy Rich shared some opening remarks on “The FERC Way.”
Everyone who knows me knows that I love baseball and particularly the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals had an old coach, George Kissell, who toiled for years in the minor leagues, teaching young players how to play baseball. He wrote a handbook for players called the Cardinal Way that sets out how to play the game the right way. What does all this have to do with FERC? Maybe there is a FERC Way, passed down from lawyer to lawyer. It is the right way or the best way to practice law. I learned it from Thom Hirsch, Leslie Lawner, Eli Farrah and host of other great lawyers at FERC. In private practice, even though I may have thought I knew it all, I learned from Chuck Shoneman who in turn had learned from Justin Wolf and Dave Ward. And since Bob is on the panel, I certainly learned from observing and listening carefully to his dad, Richard Solomon.
So, what can I tell you about the FERC Way that will make sure you never lose your day in court? I'll try to keep it short and simple, so here are four rules to take back to your office.
1. Know your statute, regulations, and precedent:
Start with the basics - make sure you know when, what, and how to file to preserve your client's rights.
2. Use checklists
I'm a big proponent of checklists. Keep a list of the statutory and regulatory deadlines and filing requirements. Know what you have to plead to perfect an intervention, a late intervention, and a rehearing request. Know what you have to tell the ALJ when you appear at a preheating conference. Know the discovery rules and deadlines.
3. Use calendars and docketing systems
We have lots of great technology to help us keep track of deadlines. Enter dates on your Outlook Calendar, use Tasks with reminders. In some firms with litigation groups, there may be proprietary docketing systems that will work with administrative proceedings - consider using such a system if your firm has one.
4. Have a back-up
Every baseball player in the field has a back-up role - the catcher backs up throws to first, the pitcher backs up plays at the plate. Failure to back up costs runs and games.
Whether it is your assistant, paralegal, associate, or Siri, have someone who knows and looks at your schedule and your deadlines.
These are just a few things to think about as you start down the path toward administrative litigation and judicial review. Even the ball player with great physicals ability and skill still needs to know the interview of the gams. A few simple rules and some basic preparation will help you at crunch time and help ensure that your superior mental ability and brilliant arguments will not be undone by procedural errors.
Panel participants:
Moderator:
Sarah Norcott, Corporate Counsel, NorthWestern Energy
Panelists:
Randall S. Rich, Partner, Pierce Atwood Energy Practice Group
Robert Solomon, Solicitor, FERC
Lawrence Greenfield, Associate General Counsel, FERC
Hon. Peter Young, Administrative Law Judge, FERC