John represents energy suppliers, utilities, and other electric power and natural gas market participants in complex regulatory and litigation matters. With more than 20 years of experience in the energy industry, John represents public utility energy suppliers and transmission owners, regional transmission organizations, large industrial concerns, and other electric power and natural gas market participants in a wide variety of regulatory litigation, certification, and enforcement matters before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and federal courts. Prior to joining Hunton Andrews Kurth, John served as Director of Legal Policy at FERC, where he was responsible for advising three Chairmen and several Commissioners on the implementation of energy policy through adjudication, rulemaking, and judicial review. His responsibilities included drafting orders and facilitating negotiations among commissioners, managing external litigation and coordinating positions with other federal agencies, and drafting briefs and arguing cases in matters before the Supreme Court, appellate courts, district courts and bankruptcy courts. Following his return to private practice, John’s work continues to emphasize energy and capacity market design, transmission incentives and cost allocation, pipeline certification and abandonment, hydroelectric licensing, Mobile-Sierra issues, waivers, civil enforcement matters before FERC and reviewing courts. In addition to his work at the firm, John is an Adjunct Professor of Energy Law and Appellate Advocacy at The George Washington University Law School.

Prior to joining FERC, John served in private practice focusing on energy litigation, following his clerkship with D.C. Circuit Judge A. Raymond Randolph.

Between college and law school, John served as a legislative aide in the Alaska state senate while teaching at the University of Alaska and training for the U.S. Army. Over the course of his 20-year career as an Infantry and Special Forces Officer in the Army, John achieved the rank of Major and was deployed four times, including during Operation Noble Eagle, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Bar Admissions

Education
JD and LLM, International Trade and Comparative Law, Duke University School of Law, summa cum laude, Order of the Coif, 1999

MA and BA, Soviet and East European Studies, Yale University, summa cum laude, 1991

• The New FERC Enforcement: Due Process Issues in the Post-EPAct 2005 Enforcement Cases, 31 ENERGY L.J. 55