Energy Industry Spotlight

Energy Is in Our DNA

For over 25 years, Bailey Glasser has been a trusted partner for energy companies navigating the legal complexities of the modern energy landscape. With decades of experience in litigation, regulatory compliance, corporate transactions, and environmental matters, we provide strategic, results-driven legal solutions to clients across the energy sector—including oil and gas, renewables, utilities, and mining.

Our team has a proven track record of representing clients in high-stakes disputes, regulatory challenges, and multimillion-dollar transactions. We understand the unique operational, financial, and legal risks that energy companies face and take a proactive approach to resolving complex issues efficiently and effectively. Whether defending clients in court, structuring innovative business deals, or guiding companies through evolving regulatory frameworks, we bring deep industry knowledge and aggressive advocacy to every matter.

Award-Winning Leadership

Our Energy Team is led by award-winning lawyers with deep experience in this ecosystem, including founding partner Brian A. Glasser, who helped the Cline Group become a billion-dollar mining organization; equity partner and Practice Area Leader Nicholas Johnson, who prior to joining Bailey Glasser was trusted in-house lawyer for some of the country’s largest publicly traded mining and energy companies; and Corporate Practice Group Leader Jonathan Deem who is on the cutting edge of deals involving the development of renewable energy projects on former coal mining sites. The team leadership also includes Practice Group Leader Becky Pomeroy who has deep experience in the utilities sector and partner Brian Swiger, who has been trusted counsel to companies in the electric utility, oil and gas, motor carrier, compressed gas, and several other industries for over 30 years.

With a national reputation for excellence, our team includes top-ranked litigators, corporate advisors, and regulatory specialists who collaborate to protect our clients’ interests and drive business success. Whether you are an energy producer, operator, investor, or landowner, we provide the legal insight and advocacy needed to thrive in an evolving energy market.

Our energy lawyers have received top rankings and accolades across the country, and we are recognized nationally and regionally by Chambers & Partners,  Benchmark Litigation, Best Law Firms, Best Lawyers, National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyers, Super Lawyers, and more. Founding partner Brian Glasser was named by Forbes as one of "America's Top 200 Lawyers" in its first-ever list in 2024, and one of Lawdragon's 500 Leading Litigators in America, along with Cary Joshi, the firm's Commercial & Environmental Practice Group Leader in 2025. Mr. Glasser was also named by Best Lawyers a "Lawyer of the Year" in Energy Law in 2023.

BG Energy Law Capabilities

• Litigation & Dispute Resolution – Representing clients in state and federal courts on contract disputes, royalty claims, lease disagreements, joint venture conflicts, title disputes, bankruptcy-related issues, and environmental litigation.  To learn about all our energy industry litigation capabilities visit this link.
• Corporate & Transactional Support – Drafting and negotiating critical agreements, including joint operating agreements, power purchase agreements, production sharing contracts, and energy infrastructure contracts.  We handle all elements of corporate energy deals, learn more at this link.
• Mergers, Acquisitions & Investment – Structuring and negotiating private equity investments, asset acquisitions, joint ventures, and financing transactions in the energy sector.
• Environmental, Health & Safety – Providing strategic guidance on environmental regulations, workplace safety, and compliance with industry-specific standards.
• Regulatory & Compliance Counsel – Advising on federal, state, and local energy laws, assisting with permitting and enforcement matters, and mitigating regulatory risks.
• e-Discovery & Digital Compliance – Managing electronically stored information (ESI) and regulatory data, leveraging cutting-edge technology to support litigation and compliance efforts. ESI can make or break a case, and we are pioneers in this arena. Learn more about the group here. 

For more information about our lawyers' rankings and accomplishments, please visit here.

         

Related Practices

Learn More About Our Successes +

Key Contacts

Our Team

Experience Overview

High-Stakes Energy Litigation

• Representing oil and gas operator in a multi-party dispute over intricate and high-dollar lease acquisition, development, and Joint Operating Agreements (JOAs) for shale gas reserves in West Virginia.
• Settled dispute over a $320 million coal royalty agreement in bet-the-company litigation involving allegations of breach of a complex sale-leaseback transaction and veil piercing of multiple layers of a Master Limited Partnership.
• Represented Petco Petroleum in a series of cases relating to hydraulic fracturing and the migration of NGPL’s storage gas into Petco’s oil and gas reservoirs in a 48-square-mile former Exxon oil field; the firm reduced NGPL’s $3.4 million damages claim to $420,000 in one case and vindicated Petco’s development rights to a substantial shale gas formation in the other case on summary judgment.
• Represented a group of heirs and successors to a partnership that proved up a 200-million-ton coal reserve, resulting in a $6.5 million judgment for breach of a royalty agreement.
• Represented a senior secured lender in a billion-dollar coal mining bankruptcy facing emergency motions for priming loans; work involved a detailed review of future business plans and the value of collateral as a component of an ongoing business.
• Representing pipeline operators in cases related to allegations that they are responsible for property damage occurring as a result of pipeline leaks or explosions.
• Representing major oil and gas operators in litigation alleging trespass to minerals in Central Appalachia.
• Represented roughly 50 independent oil and gas producers in complex commercial litigation regarding firm-price transportation agreements; after our position survived a motion to dismiss, we successfully concluded multilateral negotiations regarding those agreements.
• Represented a large landowning company in a lease dispute centered on intentional breaches of an anti-assignment provision in an oil and gas lease, including investigating and litigating the potential of an Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) operation to impinge upon a reserve area; used innovative damages theories, which were approved by the trial court, to force a favorable settlement.
• Represented coal sales company in a $30 million breach of contract claim arising from failure to deliver coal under a transportation agreement.

Strategic Litigation & Arbitration Successes

• Represented a large landowning company in arbitration, where our strategy yielded a recovery of hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages, including attorneys’ fees, within a year of initiating the action.
• Represented clients sued by a plaintiff in state court for control of an oil and gas company; the firm caused the case to be transferred to arbitration in Florida, resulting in the arbitrator’s denial of relief for the plaintiff and an award in favor of the defendant in excess of $300,000, including attorneys’ fees.
• Represented state permitting agency in multiple billion-dollar bankruptcy proceedings in which we sought to protect West Virginia taxpayers from funding reclamation projects of bankrupt mining companies.
• Settled multimillion-dollar arbitration over a breach of a mineral development agreement, involving an in-depth analysis of coal markets and mineability and merchantability.

Regulatory, Permitting, and Utility Litigation

• Defended an electric utility company against a rural electric cooperative’s attempt to take over electric service to a large oil field formerly known as the Texaco Salem Unit; the case involved testimony from expert petroleum and electrical engineers retained by Bailey Glasser.
• Litigated dozens of appeals of permits necessary to operate mining businesses, including Surface Mine and Reclamation Control Act (SMCRA) Permits, National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permits, and Clean Water Act Section 404 Dredge and Fill Permits.
• Negotiated reclamation and other cleanup agreements for multiple multimillion-dollar projects.
• Advising limited partnership interest holders through multiple in- and out-of-court restructurings of mining limited partnerships.
• Advised on over $800 million in coal reserve sale-leaseback transactions.
• Obtained an over $2 million verdict in breach of a coal sales agreement governed by the Uniform Commercial Code.

Case Studies

News & Insights

Energy: Corporate

Driving Growth in the Energy Sector

Bailey Glasser’s Energy Corporate Law team provides strategic counsel to energy companies, investors, and stakeholders on the complex transactions and corporate matters that shape the industry. From M&A and private equity deals to contract structuring, project financing, and regulatory compliance, we help clients navigate the legal and business challenges that come with operating in a highly regulated and evolving market.

With deep experience in oil and gas, renewables, power generation, utilities, and mining, we work with companies of all sizes—from startups and independent operators to multinational corporations. Whether negotiating a high-value acquisition, structuring an energy infrastructure project, or ensuring compliance with corporate governance requirements, we deliver solutions that align with our clients’ strategic goals.

Our Corporate Law & Transactional Services

• Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) – Structuring, negotiating, and executing energy industry mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, and joint ventures.
• Private Equity & Investment Transactions – Advising investors, funds, and companies on financing, venture capital, and private equity transactions in the energy sector.
• Contract Negotiation & Structuring – Drafting and negotiating energy contracts, including supply agreements, power purchase agreements (PPAs), joint operating agreements (JOAs), production sharing contracts, and asset purchase agreements.
• Corporate Governance & Compliance – Advising boards, executives, and stakeholders on governance, regulatory obligations, and risk management.
• Project Development & Infrastructure – Providing counsel on the financing, permitting, and structuring of energy infrastructure projects, including pipelines, transmission lines, and power generation facilities.
• Regulatory & Environmental Compliance – Ensuring companies meet federal, state, and local energy laws, environmental regulations, and reporting requirements.
• Restructuring & Insolvency – Guiding energy companies through restructuring, workouts, and bankruptcy-related transactions.

Sophisticated Legal Counsel for Energy Business Growth

Our corporate lawyers combine deep industry experience with a business-minded approach, helping clients structure deals that protect their interests, optimize their investments, and drive long-term success. We understand the capital-intensive, risk-sensitive nature of the energy industry and work proactively to structure transactions that maximize value while ensuring regulatory and contractual compliance.

Whether your company is expanding, restructuring, or securing new investments, Bailey Glasser is the trusted legal partner to help you navigate every stage of growth in the energy sector.

Energy: Litigation

Fierce Advocacy in High-Stakes Disputes

Bailey Glasser’s Energy Litigation team is a powerhouse in resolving complex disputes across the energy sector. Whether defending clients in state and federal courts, arbitration, or regulatory enforcement actions, we bring deep industry knowledge, aggressive advocacy, and strategic problem-solving to every case.

With a track record of success in high-stakes energy disputes, we represent clients in oil and gas, power generation, renewables, utilities, and mining in matters ranging from contract breaches to environmental enforcement. Our litigators have handled multi-million-dollar claims, bet-the-company litigation, and precedent-setting cases, ensuring that our clients’ rights and business interests are fiercely protected.

Our Energy Litigation Experience

• Royalty & Lease Disputes – Defending and prosecuting claims over royalty payments, lease interpretations, and leasehold interests.
• Contract & Joint Venture Disputes – Resolving conflicts arising from joint operating agreements (JOAs), drilling contracts, and partnership arrangements.
• Environmental & Regulatory Litigation – Representing clients in enforcement actions, contamination claims, and compliance disputes.
• Title & Property Rights Disputes – Litigating conflicts over mineral rights, surface access, and ownership claims.
• Surface Damage & Landowner Claims – Defending operators and advocating for landowners in disputes over land use and property impacts.
• Eminent Domain & Infrastructure Disputes – Representing energy companies in right-of-way acquisitions and challenges to pipeline and transmission line projects.
• Bankruptcy & Insolvency Litigation – Advising energy clients on creditor claims, asset protection, and contract disputes in bankruptcy proceedings.
• Energy Market & Pricing Disputes – Handling litigation over production sharing, pricing contracts, and revenue distribution.

A Proven Track Record in Energy Disputes

Our trial-ready litigation team includes some of the nation’s top-ranked litigators, including founding partner Brian Glasser, recognized as a Forbes 2024 Top 200 Lawyer and a Lawdragon 500 Top Litigator in America in 2024 and 2025. We have successfully represented operators, investors, landowners, service providers, and government entities in some of the industry’s most challenging cases.

With cutting-edge e-Discovery capabilities and a relentless commitment to our clients, we ensure that energy companies can focus on their business while we handle the legal battles. Whether facing a dispute over contracts, property rights, environmental compliance, or regulatory enforcement, Bailey Glasser is the firm you want on your side.