READ AND LANIADO - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Indian Community, Office of General Counsel, Legal Internship
David B. Johnson graduated from Albany Law School of Union University in 1994 and was a managing editor of the Albany Law Journal of Science and Technology, in which he published an article relating to First Amendment rights. He began working at Read and Laniado while in law school and became a partner in 2001. Mr. Johnson is engaged in the firm's practice involving utility, energy, and environmental law. He has represented owners and operators of wholesale electric generating facilities, power marketers, distributed energy resources, community distributed generators, energy service companies, and trade associations before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ("FERC"), New York State Public Service Commission ("NYPSC"), New York State Department of Environmental Conservation ("DEC"), New York Independent System Operator, Inc. ("NYISO"), New York State Reliability Council ("NYSRC), and New York State and federal courts.
Mr. Johnson has represented clients in administrative proceedings, including matters involving new generation interconnection, competitive power and renewable energy credit procurement, cost- and market-based rate design, financing, power purchase agreements, certificates of public convenience and necessity for new electric generating facilities, purchase and sale transactions, electric and gas utility rate cases, and regulation of competitive wholesale electricity suppliers. He is active in matters involving the wholesale competitive electricity markets, the permitting and siting of renewable and conventional energy projects, the negotiation of gas transportation agreements, power purchase contracts and interconnection agreements, and the development and implementation of, and compliance with, the NYPSC's Clean Energy Standard ("CES"), its Community Distributed Generation Program, and its Reforming the Energy Vision ("REV") initiative.
In addition to individual energy companies, Mr. Johnson represents the Independent Power Producers of New York, Inc. ("IPPNY"), a trade association comprised of independent power producers that generate a majority of the energy supply in New York State. He assists IPPNY and its members in developing and advocating industry positions on a variety of energy market and policy matters before the DEC, NYISO, FERC, NYPSC and the NYSRC. Mr. Johnson has served as a member of the NYSRC's Executive Committee, acting as the representative of the Wholesale Seller sector. He works on a daily basis with the NYISO tariffs and rules covering matters such as the wholesale energy and capacity markets, rate recovery, planning, and the interconnection process.
Practice Areas
Energy Law
Job Titles:
- Department of Justice, Office of Tribal Justice, Legal Internship
Kevin Brocks graduated from Cornell Law School in 1980. He joined the Staff of the NYSDPS in August 1980. In March 1983, Mr. Brocks entered private practice. Mr. Brocks has been actively involved in electric industry restructuring in New York State. He has worked on a wide range of matters for water, gas, and electric utilities in a variety of jurisdictions. He has represented a number of clients in water quality and service issues.
Mr. Brocks has served as the attorney for municipalities and counties, including Planning and Zoning Boards, providing advice on zoning, environmental and ethics matters. Mr. Brocks has also represented clients before the New York State Department of Health, NYSPSC, NYSDEC, as well as federal and state courts, on a range of complex environmental, public health and enforcement matters. He currently represents the Municipal Utility Electric Association and New York Municipal Power Agency.
Practice Areas
Energy
Rachel Hill is an attorney with experience in administrative law, regulatory compliance, and Federal Indian law. She previously served as a Staff Attorney with the National Indian Gaming Commission, where she provided legal counsel on regulatory compliance, gaming operations, and enforcement matters.
Ms. Hill has interned with multiple federal agencies, including the Department of Justice, the Department of the Interior, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Regional Tribal Operations Committee, focusing on environmental law, tribal governance, and public policy. She has also contributed to legislative drafting and legal advocacy for tribal governments and law firms specializing in Indian law.
Ms. Hill earned her J.D. from Arizona State University's Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, where she served as an editor for ASU Law's Jurimetrics, The Journal of Law, Science, and Technology.
Education
Arizona State University, Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, Phoenix, Arizona
J.D. - 2022
Sam Laniado graduated from New York University School of Law in 1976. He joined the Staff of the NYS Department of Public Service (NYSDPS) in September 1976. He represented Staff in environmental, transmission, and power plant siting proceedings pursuant to Articles VII and VIII of the PSL, the investigation of the extended outage at Consolidated Edison's Indian Point II Generating Station, and the development of phase-in ratemaking principles to be applied when nuclear power plants were scheduled to enter rate base.
Mr. Laniado's duties also included directly advising the NYSDPS on a wide range of legal, regulatory and environmental issues. Furthermore, he provided representation of the NYS Public Service Commission and the NY Board on Electric Generation Siting and the Environment in appellate litigation proceedings (Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules). Mr. Laniado also represented the Staff in cases involving electric rates as well as gas, telephone and water rate cases.
Mr. Laniado left the NYSDPS for private practice in December 1983. Mr. Laniado leads the Firm's power plant and transmission line siting practice and has been involved in five Article X proceedings before the Siting Board, and gas and electric transmission line proceedings before the NYSPSC under Article VII. Among other activities, he advises clients on SEQRA, municipal permitting, environmental issues, and other energy-related matters. He has advised clients on every major legislative siting initiative for the past 40 years. In the last seven years, Mr. Laniado supervised the filings in support for the siting of seven solar and wind renewable energy facilities under Article 10 and Executive Law 94-c, as well as energy storage facilities under SEQRA.
Mr. Laniado had his article, Siting Renewable and Other Electric Generation under Article 10 of the New York Public Service Law, published in the New York Environmental Lawyer, Volume 36, Number 1 (2016).
Practice Areas
Renewable Energy Siting