FERC Compliance and Enforcement for Electric Utilities

Mr. Scanlon is a Shareholder at Duncan, Weinberg, Genzer & Pembroke, with over three decades of experience in commercial litigation and administrative law, including rate proceedings involving electric and natural gas utilities.  Mr. Scanlon’s practice involves advising clients on organized market rules, rate case litigation, regulatory compliance, enforcement matters, standards of conduct, power plant acquisitions and construction issues, hydroelectric license issues, municipal law, communications law, and energy contracts.  Mr. Scanlon has extensive experience advising clients on regulatory compliance, enforcement, standards of conduct, and transactional matters.  Mr. Scanlon presents regularly on energy law topics including climate policies effecting natural gas policies and usage, FERC's market manipulation authority and enforcement, federal power marketing administrations, energy contracting issues, and FERC practice and procedures.  Mr. Scanlon provides annual updates to a treatise on natural gas practice and procedures and rates issues. Mr. Scanlon previously served as in-house counsel for a natural gas public utility holding company involved in natural gas exploration, interstate pipelines, storage, local distribution, and energy production and marketing. 

Sean is a Shareholder with Duncan, Weinberg, Genzer and Pembroke, P.C., practicing from the firm’s Sacramento, California office.  For over two decades, Sean's practice has focused on utility regulation, both federal and state.  He has appeared in and litigated cases involving utility regulation and contractual disputes before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, California State Court, Federal Appellate and District Courts and the American Arbitration Association.  His advice has helped client navigate and transact in independent system operator and regional electricity markets. 

An additional hallmark of Sean’s practice is assisting clients with their compliance obligations, including under the mandatory Reliability Standards regime enforced by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation and Western Electricity Coordinating Council.  He has assisted clients prepare for audits, negotiate compliance agreements, and act as part of client’s reliability compliance team.  Sean similarly has advised clients as to compliance with federal market behavior rules. When clients have been faced with enforcement action by compliance enforcement authorities, Sean has worked with clients to reach mutually acceptable resolutions with those authorities.

Ms. Diamond is an Associate Attorney at DWGP, where her practice focuses on federal energy law and regulation.  She assists DWGP’s attorneys and clients in practice areas relating to energy, environmental, hydropower, regulatory, and administrative law. Within these practice areas, Ms. Diamond closely monitors federal legislation, such as the Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, to provide analyses of potential impacts on clients. Ms. Diamond also closely monitors federal departments and agencies’ implementation of federal legislation and grant programs and drafts application materials for clients, such as concept papers and community benefits plans. In addition, Ms. Diamond participates in various rate and rulemaking proceedings before FERC, including on issues such as open access transmission service, generator interconnection procedures, and electric reliability standards. Ms. Diamond participates in organized market stakeholder processes, such as the California Independent System Operator Corporation’s Western Energy Imbalance Market and Extended Day-Ahead Market proposals. Ms. Diamond also has litigation experience in state utility commission rate cases, including drafting discovery, motions, and pre-filed testimony.

During law school, Ms. Diamond interned with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, where she conducted legal research and drafted memoranda and pleadings on various takings issues and on the National Environmental Policy Act.  Prior to attending law school, Ms. Diamond interned at the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Legislative Affairs during her undergraduate education. In this capacity, Ms. Diamond attended Congressional hearings and drafted memoranda regarding the policies discussed at such hearings.

An Associate Attorney with DWGP, Ms. Wu provides assistance to clients in the practice areas of energy, environmental, regulatory, and administrative law.  Ms. Wu advises public power clients on wholesale power and transmission issues, including rates, terms and conditions of service, and the requirements of state and federal regulations.  Ms. Wu participates regularly in rate cases and settlement proceedings before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.  Ms. Wu also assists clients with transactional matters, including drafting, reviewing, and negotiating various energy-related contracts.

During law school, Ms. Wu served as a judicial extern to the Honorable Todd W. Eddins of the Hawaii Supreme Court, conducting research and drafting memoranda on questions of constitutional, administrative, environmental, and energy law. Ms. Wu worked as a research assistant at the George Washington University Law School, conducting research on takings law related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Further, Ms. Wu served as the Student Board Member of the Energy Bar Association for the 2021-2022 term and participated in the George Washington University’s Journal of Energy and Environmental Law as a student member.  Prior to law school, Ms. Wu worked as a summer intern at Baker Botts, L.L.P., focusing on client relations and marketing matters for the firm.  Ms. Wu also worked as a summer marketing intern at Microvast, Inc., a battery technology company.  

Mr. Kurzeja began his career with the Firm as a Summer Associate in 2022. Mr. Kurzeja provides assistance to clients in the practice areas of energy, environmental, regulatory, and administrative law. During law school, Mr. Kurzeja served as a legal intern for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Office of Administrative Litigation where he drafted memoranda relevant to ongoing hearings and aided in litigation preparation. Additionally, Mr. Kurzeja interned with the U.S. Department of Energy General Counsel in their Offices of Enforcement and Litigation, drafting enforcement orders and expanding upon his experience with regulatory and administrative law. Mr. Kurzeja also served as a legal policy intern for the Defend Them All Foundation, where he conducted legal research on wildlife welfare and environmental compliance. Further, Mr. Kurzeja served as a Notes Editor on the George Washington University’s Journal of Energy and Environmental Law.  

Prior to attending law school, Mr. Kurzeja interned for the Chair of the New Jersey Assembly Telecommunications and Utilities Committee, State Assemblyman Wayne DeAngelo. In this capacity, Mr. Kurzeja researched discrete energy issues and performed public outreach.