Mercer Thompson

Focus on Highest Quality Client Service Attracts Additional Lawyers to Our Team

Mercer Thompson — 2011-12-20T09:59:44+01:00

Three lawyers founded our firm just over two years ago with a fundamental goal to provide the highest level of client service to companies in the electric power industry. For us, growth has been subordinate to our primary goal of exceeding our clients’ expectations with the quality and responsiveness of our legal services. Additional demand for our services and our ability to attract exceptionally talented lawyers are important measures of our performance of that mission. We now have 10 outstanding lawyers on our team with the recent addition of three talented attorneys whose skills and dedication to the firm’s core values will enhance our ability to provide clients with the highest quality of trusted advice and service.

Our Three Newest Additions

	Julie Friedberg has joined us as Of Counsel, having most recently served as General Counsel for the Northeast Region of NRG Energy, Inc., a leading independent power producer that owns over 24,000 MW of generation assets. While at NRG, Julie provided legal counsel on a full range of electric power industry issues, including in the areas of project development, regulatory proceedings, project finance and asset management. Prior to joining NRG in 2007, Julie was Special Counsel with the law firm of Thelen Reid, where she spent 13 years representing electric power companies in transactional, regulatory and litigation matters. During that time, Julie’s transactional focus included power purchase agreements, mergers and acquisitions and securitized debt financings. As an attorney with substantial experience in advising regulated and unregulated electric power companies in both regulatory and transactional contexts, and as a former top-level in-house counsel for a major IPP, Julie brings to our team both top quality expertise and the perspective of in-house counsel as a purchaser and user of outside counsel services. Julie received her law degree from Temple University (J.D. cum laude, 1993), where she was a member of the Temple Law Review.
	Jason Nelson has joined us as a Senior Associate. Hailing from Houston, Texas, Jason previously practiced with the international law firm of Hogan Lovells (formerly Hogan & Hartson), where he focused on complex project and corporate finance, securities and M&A matters. Jason earned his law degree from the University of Michigan (J.D. cum laude 2004), where he was a member of the Michigan Journal of International Law and the Michigan Journal of Gender and Law. Jason also holds Masters degrees in Sociology (2002) and Organizational Behavior (2001) from Stanford University, and an M.B.A. from Tulane University (1997). Prior to embarking on his legal career, Jason worked in banking and finance with Wachovia Securities and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. This experience has enhanced Jason’s ability to understand our clients’ objectives and strategies from a business perspective. Jason’s practice is focused on representing energy companies in all aspects of transactional and corporate work, with an emphasis on project and corporate finance and the acquisition and sale of power generation companies and projects.
	Dustin Crawford has joined us as an Associate. Dustin is a recent graduate of Emory University Law School (J.D. 2010), where he served as the Notes and Comments Editor of the school’s law review, known as the Emory Law Journal. Dustin is focusing his practice on representing energy companies in the development, finance, acquisition, sale, ownership and operation of power generation projects.

John Mercer to speak and participate on a panel discussing “Potential Impacts of Fukushima on Nuclear Power Finance” at the Nuclear Safety Post-Fukushima Conference in Washington, D.C., December 5-7, 2011.

Mercer Thompson — 2011-10-20T10:57:26+01:00

John Mercer to speak and participate on a panel discussing “Potential Impacts of Fukushima on Nuclear Power Finance” at the Nuclear Safety Post-Fukushima Conference in Washington, D.C., December 5-7, 2011. http://www.infocastinc.com/index.php/conference/582/agenda

John Mercer to speak and participate on the Keynote Panel analyzing DOE Loan Guarantees for Nuclear Power Plants, October 27, 2011 in Charlotte, NC

Mercer Thompson — 2011-10-20T10:55:32+01:00

John Mercer to speak and participate on the Keynote Panel analyzing DOE Loan Guarantees for Nuclear Power Plants, along with David Frantz, Director of the U.S. Department of Energy Loan Guarantee Program, and Earl Long, Assistant Treasurer of Southern Company, at the Financing Nuclear Power Workshop of the 3^rd Annual Nuclear Construction Summit in Charlotte, NC, October 27, 2011. Contact John for a discount code if you plan to attend.

http://www.nuclearenergyinsider.com/nuclear-construction-summit/agenda.shtml

John Lamberski to chair a panel Mock Negotiation of a Nuclear Power Plant EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) Agreement at the 3rd Annual Nuclear Construction Summit in Charlotte, NC, October 25 – 27, 2011.

Mercer Thompson — 2011-10-18T11:25:06+01:00

John Lamberski to chair a panel Mock Negotiation of a Nuclear Power Plant EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) Agreement at the 3^rd Annual Nuclear Construction Summit in Charlotte, NC, October 25 – 27, 2011. Contact John for a discount code if you are planning to attend.

http://www.nuclearenergyinsider.com/nuclear-construction-summit/

Wisconsin Energy subsidiary, represented by Mercer Thompson, sells $420 million secured senior notes for Oak Creek Unit 2 financing

Mercer Thompson — 2011-06-08T12:01:58+01:00

In January 2011, Elm Road Generating Station Supercritical, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Wisconsin Energy Corporation, successfully sold $420 million of secured senior notes to finance the costs of construction of its 83.34% undivided ownership interest in Unit 2 of the Elm Road Generating Station, an approximately 615 MW supercritical pulverized coal electric generating unit located in Oak Creek, Wisconsin ("Oak Creek Unit 2"). Elm Road's 84.34% undivided ownership interest in Oak Creek Unit 2 has been leased to Wisconsin Electric Power Company, also a wholly owned subsidiary of Wisconsin Energy, under a long-term facility lease and ground sublease. The notes are secured by a collateral assignment of Elm Road's leasehold interest in the facility lease and ground sublease with Wisconsin Electric. The notes were offered and sold to qualified institutional buyers under SEC Rule 144A. Mercer Thompson, led by Principal John Mercer, was lead outside counsel to Elm Road in the transaction.

John Mercer named Georgia “Superlawyer” for Energy & Natural Resources; Chip Thompson named Georgia “Superlawyer” for Projects

Mercer Thompson — 2011-06-08T10:50:14+01:00

John T. W. Mercer was selected as a 2011 Georgia Super Lawyer in the Energy & Natural Resources practice area. Since 1978, John Mercer has concentrated his law practice in the areas of project and corporate finance and other complex transactions, with particular emphasis on the electric power industry in the United States and internationally.

Richard "Chip" Thompson was selected as a 2011 Georgia Super Lawyer in the Projects practice area. Since 1995, Chip Thompson has represented energy companies in the development, acquisition and sale, and ownership and operation of electric power projects on a worldwide basis.

Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The selection process is multi-phased and includes independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations. Each year, Super Lawyers magazine names attorneys in each state who received the highest point totals, as chosen by their peers and through the independent research.

John Mercer and John Lamberski presented Webinar on Negotiating Power Purchase Agreements for Renewable Energy Projects (June 8, 2011)

Mercer Thompson — 2011-06-08T00:00:00+01:00

John Mercer and John Lamberski presented a live CLE with interactive Q&A via webinar/teleconference on Wednesday, June 8, 2011, on the topic of "Negotiating Power Purchase Agreements for Renewable Energy Projects: Structuring Terms to Meet State and Federal Renewable Power Standards."

For more information please click HERE.

Chip Thompson and John Mercer presented Webinar on Utility Scale Solar PV EPC Agreements (June 2, 2011)

Mercer Thompson — 2011-06-02T00:00:00+01:00

Chip Thompson and John Mercer presented a live CLE with interactive Q&A via webinar/teleconference on Thursday, June 2, 2011, from 1:00pm-2:30pm (EST) on the topic of "Renewable Energy: EPC Agreements in Solar Energy Projects"

For more information please click HERE.

Chambers USA 2011 ranks Mercer Thompson as Top Energy Law Firm; John Mercer and Chip Thompson as Top Energy Lawyers; John Mercer selected by peers for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America in practice area of Project Finance

Mercer Thompson — 2011-03-15T09:41:49+01:00

Chambers & Partners has once again selected Mercer Thompson LLC as one of the leading law firms in Georgia in the field of "Energy Law," and has selected John T. W. Mercer and Richard "Chip" Thompson as Leaders in the Field of Energy Law for the state of Georgia in 2011. Chambers is one of the most widely recognized attorney ranking systems in the world, annually undertaking thousands of in-depth interviews with lawyers and their clients in order to determine which attorneys are considered the most qualified in their fields. Since 1978, John Mercer has concentrated his law practice in the areas of project and corporate finance and other complex transactions, with particular emphasis on the electric power industry in the United States and internationally. Since 1995, Chip Thompson has represented energy companies in the development, acquisition and sale, and ownership and operation of electric power projects on a worldwide basis.

John Mercer to present Webinar on Renewable Energy Project Financing (March 15, 2011)

Mercer Thompson — 2011-02-11T14:06:39+01:00

John Mercer will be presenting a live CLE with interactive Q&A via webinar/teleconference on Tuesday, March 15, 2011, from 1:00pm-2:30pm (EST) on the topic of "Renewable Energy Project Financing: Legal Strategies for Structuring the Deal."

For more information and/or to register please click here: http://www.straffordpub.com/products/renewable-energy-project-financing-legal-strategies-for-structuring-the-deal-2011-03-15.

Chip Thompson to present at EPRI Conference on Key Legal Issues in Procuring or Retrofitting Steam Turbine-Generators (January 21, 2011)

Mercer Thompson — 2011-01-17T00:00:00+01:00

On January 21, 2011, at the invitation of Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), Chip Thompson will be presenting to their turbine user’s group a seminar on “Key Legal Issues in Procuring or Retrofitting Steam Turbine-Generators.” The presentation will be in Houston, Texas. For more information, please contact Mr. Thompson at rethompson@mercerthompson.com.

John Lamberski to moderate panel on Negotiating Turnkey EPC Contracts at Nuclear Investment and Project Finance Conference on November 16-17 in Washington, DC

Mercer Thompson — 2010-10-18T13:20:31+01:00

Mr. Lamberski will serve as the moderator of the panel on Negotiating Turnkey EPC Contracts at the upcoming Nuclear Investment and Project Finance Conference on November 16-17 at the L’Enfant Plaza Hotel in Washington, DC.

Click here to learn more about the Nuclear Investment and Project Finance Conference: http://www.nuclearenergyinsider.com/finance/

John Mercer and Earl Long, Southern Company, to present a case study of Dept. of Energy Loan Guarantee for Plant Vogtle at Nuclear Investment and Project Finance Conference on November 16-17 in Washington, DC

Mercer Thompson — 2010-10-18T13:19:22+01:00

Mr. Mercer will be presenting, along with Mr. Long of Southern Company, a case study of the Plan Vogtle Units 3 and 4 DOE Loan Guarantee at the upcoming Nuclear Investment and Project Finance Conference on November 16-17 at the L’Enfant Plaza Hotel in Washington, DC.

Click here to learn more about the Nuclear Investment and Project Finance Conference: http://www.nuclearenergyinsider.com/finance/

John Lamberski to chair Contract Structuring and Risk Allocation Panel at Nuclear Construction Summit on October 25-26 in Charlotte, NC

Mercer Thompson — 2010-10-18T13:18:05+01:00

Mr. Lamberski will be chairing the Contract Structuring and Risk Allocation Panel at the upcoming Nuclear Construction Summit on October 25-26 at the Hilton Center City Hotel in Charlotte, NC.

Click here to learn more about the Nuclear Construction Summit: http://www.nuclearenergyinsider.com/nuclear-construction-summit/agenda.shtml

John Mercer to present Webinar on Negotiating Renewable PPA's

Mercer Thompson — 2010-07-28T13:53:26+01:00

John Mercer will be presenting a live CLE with interactive Q&A via webinar/teleconference on Wednesday, August 4, 2010, from 1:00pm-2:30pm on the topic of "Renewable Energy Projects: Negotiating Power Purchase Agreements - Structuring Terms To Meet State and Federal Renewable Power Standards."

For more information and/or to register please click here: http://www.straffordpub.com/products/renewable-energy-projects-negotiating-power-purchase-agreements-2010-08-04

Chambers USA 2010 ranks Mercer Thompson as Top Energy Law Firm; John Mercer and Chip Thompson as Top Energy Lawyers; John Mercer selected by peers for inclusion in Best Lawyers in America in practice area of Project Finance

Mercer Thompson — 2010-05-03T19:25:59+01:00

Chambers & Partners has selected Mercer Thompson LLC as one of the leading law firms in Georgia in the field of "Energy Law," and has selected John T. W. Mercer and Richard "Chip" Thompson as Leaders in the Field of Energy Law for the state of Georgia in 2010. Chambers is one of the most widely recognized attorney ranking systems in the world, annually undertaking thousands of in-depth interviews with lawyers and their clients in order to determine which attorneys are considered the most qualified in their fields. Since 1978, John Mercer has concentrated his law practice in the areas of project and corporate finance and other complex transactions, with particular emphasis on the electric power industry in the United States and internatioanlly. Since 1995, Chip Thompson has represented energy companies in the development, acquisition and sale, and ownership and operation of electric power projects on a worldwide basis.

Georgia Power, represented by Mercer Thompson, receives $3.4 billion Dept. of Energy conditional loan guarantee commitment for new nuclear units

Mercer Thompson — 2010-05-02T00:00:00+01:00

On February 16, 2010, President Obama and DOE Secretary Chu announced that DOE has awarded Georgia Power Company a conditional commitment for a DOE loan guarantee of up to $3.4 billion to fund in part Georgia Power's 45.7 percent share of construction costs for two new nuclear units, Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4, to be constructed at the Plant Vogtle site near Waynesboro, Ga. The award of the conditional commitment was the first ever for a nuclear power plant and is intended to help spur a renaissance in America's nuclear power industry. Vogtle Units 3 and 4 are expected to be the first new nuclear power units constructed in the United States in more than 30 years. Along with Georgia Power's portion of the two, 1,100-megawatt reactors, the remaining ownership is split among Oglethorpe Power Corporation, the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia and the City of Dalton Utilities. Mercer Thompson Principal, John Mercer, has acted as lead outside counsel for Georgia Power in its application to and negotiations with DOE for the loan guarantee commitment. Mercer Thompson Principal, John Lamberski, a former nuclear licensing engineer, has acted as the lead lawyer for drafting and negotiating a turnkey EPC agreement for the two Westinghouse AP1000 generating units -- the first engineering, procurement and construction agreement for new nuclear units in the United States in more than 30 years.

Wisconsin Energy subsidiary, represented by Mercer Thompson, sells $530 million secured senior notes for Oak Creek Unit 1 financing

Mercer Thompson — 2010-02-28T00:00:00+01:00

In February 2010, Elm Road Generating Station Supercritical, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Wisconsin Energy Corporation, successfully sold $530 million of secured senior notes to finance the costs of construction of its 83.34% undivided ownership interest in Unit 1 of the Elm Road Generating Station, an approximately 615 MW supercritical pulverized coal electric generating unit located in Oak Creek, Wisconsin ("Oak Creek Unit 1"). Elm Road's 84.34% undivided ownership interest in Oak Creek Unit 1 has been leased to Wisconsin Electric Power Company, also a wholly owned subsidiary of Wisconsin Energy, under a long-term facility lease and ground sublease. The notes are secured by a collateral assignment of Elm Road's leasehold interest in the facility lease and ground sublease with Wisconsin Electric. The notes were offered and sold to qualified institutional buyers under SEC Rule 144A -- the first time a transaction utilizing this structure has been sold in a Rule 144A transaction. Mercer Thompson, led by Principal John Mercer, was lead outside counsel to Elm Road in the transaction.

John Mercer presented on Renewable Energy Project Financing: Legal Strategies for Structuring the Deal at webinar

Mercer Thompson — 2010-02-24T00:00:00+01:00

John Mercer presented a live CLE with interactive Q&A via webinar/teleconference on Wednesday, February 24, 2010, on the topic of "Renewable Energy Project Financing: Legal Strategies for Structuring the Deal."

For more information and/or to register please click here:

http://www.straffordpub.com/products/tluyba?trk=VSTEZ1&utm_source=MagnetMail&utm_medium=email&utm_content=01-07-10%20TLUYBA%20-%20E1

John Mercer presented on Negotiating Power Purchase Agreements for Renewable Energy Projects at webinar

Mercer Thompson — 2009-12-10T10:00:00+01:00

John Mercer presented a live CLE with interactive Q&A via webinar/teleconference on Thursday, December 10, 2009, n the topic of "Renewable Energy Projects: Negotiating Power Purchase Agreements."

John Lamberski and John Mercer to speak at upcoming Nuclear Construction Summit

Mercer Thompson — 2009-10-26T00:00:00+01:00

John Lamberski and John Mercer will be panelists at the upcoming Nuclear Construction Summit, to be held in Washington, DC, on October 26 and 27, 2009, at the Dupont Hotel. Mr. Lamberski will address risk allocation issues associated with the negotiation of turnkey engineering, procurement and construction agreement for the development of new advanced-design nuclear power plants. Mr. Mercer will address issues relating to securing of Department of Energy guarantees in relation to new nuclear energy development projects.

Click here to learn more:
http://www.eyeforenergy.com/nnb/speakers.shtml

John Mercer will also be discussing Governmental Incentives for Renewable Energy at the Renewable Energy Markets 2009 Conference

Mercer Thompson — 2009-09-13T00:00:00+01:00

John Mercer will also be discussing Governmental Incentives for Renewable Energy at the Renewable Energy Markets 2009 Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, September 13-17, 2009 at the Omni Hotel at the CNN Center.

Click here to learn more:
http://www.renewableenergymarkets.com/agenda.shtml

Troutman Group Sets Up Own Shop

Mercer Thompson — 2009-08-12T00:00:00+01:00

By Meredith Hobbs, Fulton County Daily Report Article

Troutman Sanders’ power industry finance group has broken away to form a six-lawyer boutique, Mercer Thompson. John T.W. Mercer, the former head of Troutman's project development and finance group, leads the new firm with Richard E. "Chip" Thompson II, a younger partner from the group. Both had spent their careers at Troutman. "Troutman is like an aircraft carrier. We've decided to climb in a PT boat and go buzzing around," said Mercer. Mercer Thompson, like Troutman, handles financing, M&A and development deals for both big electric and gas utilities and renewable power developers. Mercer, 60, said the new firm is a return to the more intimate culture of Troutman when he joined 31 years ago. "I started practicing at Troutman when it was a relatively small firm in one city. There was more collegiality and personal relationships. We missed that."

"This is not an indictment of Troutman," Mercer hastened to add. "Of the big, multicity firms, they've done a better job of preserving some of the old law firm values than many other firms. It's inevitable that when you get to a certain size you lose some of the personal values and camaraderie." Former Troutman partners Jason B. Yost and John Lamberski are partners in the new boutique. Tracey H. Thompson and Lori Jones join as of counsel, and Anne Robotham is the firm's "super paralegal." Robotham has a U.K. law degree and is not yet licensed to practice law in the United States.

Mercer said Mercer Thompson can offer clients more innovative billing arrangements than is possible at a big firm. But the boutique is charging the same hourly rates as its lawyers did at Troutman, he said. "We're doing best-of-class legal services." Clients will benefit from increased efficiency instead of lower hourly rates, Mercer said, since only experienced lawyers will handle their matters. Mercer added that the firm's competition is in New York. "So comparatively our rates are probably 33 percent lower than the competition," he said.
The majority of the firm's lawyers have 10 to 15 years of legal experience, he said, giving the boutique a diamond-shaped organizational structure, with a couple of highly experienced lawyers: Mercer and Lamberski at the upper tip, and a few associates -- to be added -- at the bottom. That compares to the pyramidal structure of a large firm, where a broad base of associates make up the largest group of attorneys, with a smaller number of partners at the top.
Mercer said project finance work is not highly leveraged, with lots of associates on a matter. "It's the kind of thing that requires enough original thinking on each transaction that lawyers really have to be senior. There is not a whole lot of need for junior associates."
Mercer Thompson launched quietly in mid-June, securing space at 191 Peachtree St., and still is adding personnel. "There is still work to be done by people with lower billing rates," said Mercer, adding that a third-year associate will join the firm after Labor Day.

Mercer and Thompson do not plan to expand the firm's capabilities beyond project finance. "We do not intend to have regulatory lawyers, litigators or environmental lawyers," said Mercer. Instead the boutique will partner with other firms offering those capabilities, including Troutman. For example, Mercer said one large power client will continue to use Troutman for its regulatory work. "In-house counsel have become very selective in hiring different lawyers from different firms to fulfill different roles in different projects. We have been running into that an awful lot," Mercer said. "We certainly intend to work with Troutman but we also intend to work with others."

Mercer Thompson's clients are a mix of big utilities and independent power producers, but Mercer declined to name them. At Troutman, some of the clients he worked with were Southern Co. and its subsidiaries, Georgia Power and Mirant Corp., as well as PNM Resources, an electric power supplier in New Mexico.

He said there is still activity around power plant construction, even though the credit crunch of mid-2008 shut down the project finance markets. For example, one longtime client, Wisconsin Electric Power Co., which owns a wind farm, is seeking approval to build another from the Wisconsin Public Service Commission. Mercer pointed out that 22 states now mandate that renewable power must be part of the state's power mix. "Even though the project finance markets are closed, they still have to build the plants," he said. The federal government is becoming an important source of financing assistance for renewable projects, Mercer said. The Department of Energy is authorized to issue hundreds of billions of dollars in loan guarantees for such projects, he said, but that backing has been held up by legal issues over how the financing will work -- for example, how the DOE will partner with private lenders.
Mercer added that he's been working with the DOE to resolve the legal impediments.
Some renewable clients are forming joint ventures with big companies that still have access to capital markets, said Mercer, and traditional utility clients require the firm's services for projects under construction.

Mercer expects Mercer Thompson to have 10 or 15 lawyers by early fall, but he and Thompson do not have a target size. "When things are less congenial and personal than they are now, that's when Chip and I will want to put the brakes on," he said.