Practice Strengths

Energy
Baker Hostetler speaks the language and understands the business of the energy industry. Lawyers on our team have technical degrees and have worked in-house with major energy and oilfield service companies like ExxonMobil. We have the insight to advise international and domestic energy companies on exploration, distribution and sale matters, regulatory issues, project finance and transactional matters, dealer terminations, antitrust questions, trade and customs concerns, and maritime issues.

We represent numerous major energy and oilfield service companies in a wide variety of litigation arising from contractual disputes involving oil and gas leases, joint operating agreements, joint development agreements, exploration and development agreements, drilling contracts, licensing agreements, patent infringement, offshore environmental compliance and oil spill issues. Our work has included lease disputes involving over $1 billion in claims, and defense of an antitrust lawsuit over a shipper's access to a pipeline in which we obtained summary judgment dismissing claims of more than $160 million in damages. Our team is made up of experienced trial lawyers who know the energy business and what it takes to win.

Environmental
We also have significant experience to help our clients successfully manage environmental challenges, including regulatory enforcement and permitting; Superfund clean ups; Toxic Substances Control Act compliance; Clean Air Act compliance; Clean Water Act and wetlands issues; NPDES permits; environment audits; underground tanks; soil and groundwater contamination; and labeling compliance. Our lawyers try to clearly identify our clients' objectives and collaborate with our clients to develop strategies that are result-oriented, effective and cost efficient.

In environmental matters, dispute resolution arises in many contexts, including agency enforcement actions; white collar crime; class action toxic torts; private cost recovery and contribution; business transaction litigation and ancillary areas of OSHA enforcement; wrongful death; workers’ compensation; and others. Baker Hostetler has a proven track record securing the best possible outcomes for our clients in all aspects of dispute resolution in the environmental field, including mediation, arbitration, administrative hearings, federal and state court litigation and creative negotiated solutions.

We understand the urgency of many environmental situations and have an Emergency Response Team serving clients nationwide, with attorneys on call 24 hours a day and available to be dispatched to an incident site immediately following notification of a problem. Our Emergency Response Team responds to chemical plant explosions, industrial accidents, release of chemicals to the environment and similar emergencies. These situations often involve environmental reporting, enforcement and cleanup requirements and sensitive public relations issues, and can result in class action and toxic tort litigation, OSHA investigations, white collar criminal investigations and wrongful death and workers’ compensation claims. Our lawyers have hands on experience counseling clients in all aspects of emergency response. 
 

24-Hour Emergency Response Hotline (ask to be connected to the Emergency Response Team):

1.216.621.0200

Business transactions and real estate development are also part of our lawyers' experience. We look for ways to accomplish our clients' goals by developing a full understanding of each party's objectives and motivations and then creating innovative solutions to solve problems and complete transactions. Issues we resolve often center on contract language, Brownfields development, environmental assessments, environmental insurance, risk management, dispute resolution, audits and compliance.

Our depth of experience in the environmental and energy fields, as well as our innovation, efficiency and effectiveness in solving problems for our clients set us apart in the industry.

Environmental and Energy Experience

Energy

• Represented a fully integrated energy company in a dispute with the owner of numerous service stations. The owner alleged that the energy company had promised to give him certain concessions on the price he was paying for gasoline. The owner claimed damages for fraud and breach of contract in excess of $30 million. The jury found in favor of the energy company on all issues.
• Represented the world's largest integrated energy company in federal litigation involving a dispute over development rights and ownership of offshore oil and gas reserves in California, establishing such a strong case that the client was able to acquire the rights at minimal cost in a pretrial settlement.
• Represented a publicly held drilling company in its $3 billion merger with another publicly held drilling company.
• Represented a large oilfield and refinery equipment construction company in a dispute involving the sale of new technology developed by a subcontractor. The subcontractor claimed it was not bound by the prime contract with the customer. We were able to obtain a favorable ruling in federal and state courts for the client.
• Represented a large drilling company in a patent infringement lawsuit that resulted in acknowledgment of the validity of the subject patents and the payment of royalties.
• Defended a fully integrated energy company in a lawsuit involving claims of oil and gas lease termination and bad faith trespass. The plaintiffs sought $2 billion in damages. We secured a take-nothing judgment for the client.
• Represented exploration and production companies and numerous oilfield services companies in cases involving downhole failures, resulting in successful outcomes.
• Provided representation to one of the largest drilling contractors in the United States in a dispute concerning the drilling of a deep over-pressured well on the Gulf Coast. The lawsuit resulted in the client obtaining a favorable judgment.
• Served as general counsel and special counsel to electric cooperatives.
• Assisted oil and gas exploration and production clients in negotiating ownership interests and raising investment capital, including legal advice for compliance with securities laws.
• Counseled major energy companies on the state and local tax aspects of facility acquisitions and divestitures.
• Represented major industrial consumers and electric distribution companies in state and local tax reform as a result of the deregulation of the electric market.
• Represented the natural gas industry on the state and local tax aspects of the deregulation of the natural gas market and drafted related tax legislation.

Environmental

• Responded to major chemical plant explosions for two different major petrochemical companies and provided frontline emergency response legal advice followed by representation in toxic tort class actions, OSHA investigations, environmental cleanup and enforcement, wrongful death, early settlement of claims for property damage and personal injury, white collar crime implications and other issues.
• Served as common counsel to a group of potentially responsible parties at a Superfund site located adjacent to a municipal and local college drinking water supply. In that capacity, we managed the group's activities from inception of the case, through design, construction and operation of the groundwater remediation system. Through aggressive management and positive relationship building with federal, state and local authorities, we were able to complete cleanup of the contaminated groundwater plume 15 years ahead of schedule, saving the Group members millions of dollars.
• Assisted barge owners in locating barges dispersed by floodwaters of Hurricane Katrina and in dealing with environmental issues relating to their cargo.
• Represented a major chemical manufacturer in negotiations with state environmental authorities with respect to obtaining regulatory approval to allow a regulated hazardous waste stream to be burned in an onsite industrial boiler as a "comparable fuel."
• Represented a national solid waste disposal company before the Environmental Review Appeals Commission related to appeals filed by a citizen's group and local political entities. The appellants challenged the validity of the company's expansion permit-to-install, which was critical to the company's Ohio operations. The representation involved 18 days of hearing, including complex testimony on engineering, environmental and other technical issues. In addition to the hearing, the firm regularly provides advice to the company on daily solid waste compliance issues.
• Assisted developer in a $43 million project in obtaining necessary wetlands permits by appealing a proposed permit denial and obtaining a negotiated settlement to allow construction to proceed. The case involved complex issues arising from the scientific basis for the agency's wetland evaluation system, and a Daubert-type analysis of the facts used by the agency to support its decision and citizen opposition. The shopping center was successfully completed.
• Represented a regional solid waste authority with respect to operating, environmental permitting and construction of a solid waste landfill serving multiple metropolitan counties.
• Represented real estate buyers, sellers, lenders and investors in a wide variety of issues concerning risk assessment and mitigation, cleanup strategies, wetlands, Brownfields, private cost recovery and contribution actions, and enforcement actions.
• Assisted a large chemical manufacturer with an RCRA corrective measures order and several operations matters, including chemical releases and management of waste streams.
• Negotiated a creative M&A contract solution to environmental liability risk for client's $600 million purchase of 125 manufacturing plants in more than 40 countries through a combination of due diligence, post-closing cost sharing and environmental insurance. Potential liability was a major barrier to the transaction proceeding.
• Developed a comprehensive EHS audit program for FORTUNE 500 company and personally conducted more than 50 two to four-day audits at facilities throughout the Eastern half of the United States.

About Baker Hostetler's Litigation Team

Baker Hostetler has a proven track record in representing clients in all types of environmental litigation. The experience of Baker Hostetler’s environmental team ranges from litigation involving environmental permits and entitlements, challenging regulations, defending enforcement and penalty actions, and prosecuting and defending private party statutory, contractual and common law environmental claims.

When the stakes are "bet-the-company" monetary damages, potential criminal sentences and intense scrutiny in the court of public opinion, the more than 325 litigators of Baker Hostetler are a team to depend on. We have the kind of credentials you expect from a leading national litigation firm and a client base we have protected in and out of court for decades.

What really sets us apart is our practical experience as trial lawyers. The Baker Hostetler team includes former top prosecutors of the U.S. Justice Department (four of whom received the Attorney General's Distinguished Services Award), former prosecutors for major municipalities, veteran civil trial attorneys and enforcement officials from various federal agencies from the Department of Energy to the SEC and NASD (now FINRA).