Contact: Nicole Houston, 703.328.6242 or nhouston@baretzbrunelle.com
SEATTLE – FEBRUARY 5, 2020 – How does an Am Law 100 firm celebrate six straight years of record financial results, capped by a 10% jump in revenue in 2019? For Davis Wright Tremaine, the answer was simple: start fast in 2020. Today, DWT announced that a nationally recognized, six-lawyer energy group has joined its Washington, D.C. office. They provide a geographic bookend to the firm's market-leading West Coast practice.
"Adding a broad-based energy team in D.C. with a strong FERC practice has been a strategic priority for us and is a great new benefit for our clients," said Vid Prabhakaran, chair of Davis Wright Tremaine's energy practice group. "The geographic and substantive scope, scale and depth we now have position us to serve clients at the highest levels."
The group comes to DWT from Alston & Bird and is led by partners Sean Atkins and Michael Kunselman. It includes former senior Federal Energy Regulatory Commission executive Andrea Wolfman, who spent 24 years at the commission and led its Enforcement Office. In addition, the group provides significant depth with the additions of counsel Jamil Nasir and Bradley Miliauskas, associate Michael Kellermann, and several staff. They bring extensive experience before FERC, as well as transactional and litigation strength, to complement DWT's broad energy regulatory and transactional practice in California, New York and the Pacific Northwest. With the addition of the new team, DWT's energy group numbers nearly 40 lawyers.
"We are thrilled to join DWT's exceptional energy practice, and we share its vision of helping clients navigate the opportunities and challenges of the future," said Atkins. "We were attracted to DWT's open, entrepreneurial and supportive culture, commitment to excellence, and focus on building market-leading, multi-practice, national industry teams that deliver results. The firm's success in recent years validates this approach."
This is the firm's third significant lateral addition of 2020. David Gossett, the former deputy general counsel of the Federal Communications Commission, joined the D.C. office and the newly created products counseling team in its technology industry practice. Matt Diggs, a veteran federal prosecutor, joined DWT in Seattle from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Washington, bringing depth to the firm's white-collar litigation team and its healthcare industry practice.
DWT's strategic focus on building national industry teams has contributed to its recent run of success. Since 2014, the firm has outperformed the vast majority of the Am Law 100 on key performance metrics. In 2019, the firm saw growth of nearly 10% in revenue, 9% in revenue per lawyer, and 7% in profits per partner, significantly exceeding industry averages.
Biographical details:
Sean Atkins
- Represents investor-owned utilities and independent system operators on a wide range of FERC and other regulatory matters.
- Extensive experience on transmission and wholesale electric market issues.
- Acts as counsel to developers of wind and solar generation projects nationwide.
- Served as law clerk in the FERC Office of Administrative Law Judges.
- Holds two degrees from the University of Virginia (B.A. and J.D.)
- Ranked by the Best Lawyers in America in Energy Law.
Michael Kunselman
- Represents investor-owned electric utilities, transmission owners, generation owners, end-use customers, and independent system operators.
- Has been involved in most key issues touching the electricity industry over the last 20 years, including transmission access and planning and wholesale market design.
- Represents renewable developers on a variety of issues, including the first wind generator in the U.S. to obtain regulatory approval to receive compensation for reactive power service.
- Holds two degrees from the University of Maryland (B.A. and J.D.)
Andrea Wolfman
- Advises clients in the electric, natural gas, and oil pipeline industries on regulation by FERC and other agencies.
- Spent 24 years at FERC as senior executive focused on policymaking in natural gas and electric industries.
- Led FERC's enforcement office.
- Graduated from the University of Michigan Law School and Smith College.
Jamil Nasir
- Focuses on litigation before FERC and state regulators on energy markets, transmission, industry restructuring, and large renewables procurements.
- Advocated in FERC hearings that led to creation of the new Forward Capacity Market design for the New England region.
- Holds two degrees from the University of Michigan (B.A. and J.D.)
Bradley Miliauskas
- Represents clients in a variety of matters before FERC.
- Former chair of Energy Bar Association FERC Practice & Administrative Law Judges Committee.
- Clerked in FERC's Office of Administrative Law Judges.
- Graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law and William & Mary.
Michael Kellermann
- Assists an investor-owned electric utility in ongoing return on equity proceedings before FERC.
- Served as a law clerk in FERC's Office of Administrative Law Judges.
- Holds two degrees from the University of Maryland (B.A. and J.D.)
About Davis Wright Tremaine
Davis Wright Tremaine LLP is a national law firm with more than 550 lawyers representing clients based throughout the United States and around the world. For more information, visit www.dwt.com.