Josh Adrian, Matt Rudolphi join Thompson Coburn’s national energy practice

Thompson Coburn is pleased to announce that two experienced energy partners have joined the Firm’s national energy practice. Josh Adrian and Matt Rudolphi previously served as shareholders with Duncan Weinberg Genzer & Pembroke.

Josh Adrian, based in Thompson Coburn’s D.C. office, represents a variety of electric industry participants, helping clients navigate state and federal regulatory processes and resolve complex transactional and ratemaking issues before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and appellate courts. For clients operating hydropower facilities, Josh provides in-depth guidance on the FERC licensing and relicensing processes under the Federal Power Act (FPA) and the corresponding review processes of various state and federal resource agencies.

Matt Rudolphi, co-located in the Firm’s Chicago and D.C. offices, assists cooperative and municipal electric utilities and regulated pipeline clients across the country with federal and state regulatory matters, market structure issues and appeals of regulatory decisions to the U.S. Courts of Appeals. Matt also advises non-profit organizations and trade associations and represents telecommunications clients on a range of regulatory and transactional issues. He is a past president and board member of the 2,000-member Energy Bar Association (EBA).

“Josh and Matt bring incredible strength and variety to our energy practice, particularly with their regulatory and transactional experience on behalf of municipal and cooperative utility systems and their experience in hydroelectric project development and licensing,” said Jesse Halpern, co-chair of Thompson Coburn’s Energy practice. “Through regulatory guidance, transactions, litigation and appeals, Josh and Matt have achieved remarkable outcomes for clients,” added Energy practice co-chair Meg McNaul. “We’re thrilled they are joining our growing Energy team.”

Thompson Coburn’s Energy attorneys have decades of combined experience in the highly specialized areas of energy law and regulation. The group, which provides comprehensive interdisciplinary legal services to a variety of energy suppliers and purchasers, received a nationwide ranking for Energy: Electricity (Regulatory & Litigation) in the 2020 edition of Chambers USA (by Chambers & Partners).

“We couldn’t be more pleased to join Thompson Coburn,” said Matt. “Josh and I have such great respect for the skill and passion of these practitioners, having worked closely with them over the years in FERC proceedings and in the energy bar at large. We’re excited to hit the ground running with this dynamic team.”

“As a practice group and as a Firm, Thompson Coburn shares our commitment to serving clients on every front, from initial incorporation and project development to regulatory approval and conflict resolution,” said Josh. “We’re excited to be able to offer Thompson Coburn’s full spectrum of legal services to our energy clients across the country.”

Josh earned his law degree from Washington College of Law, where he was the editor in chief of the law school’s Administrative Law Review. He earned a B.A. in History from Northwestern University. Before attending law school, Josh worked in nonprofit development for educational institutions serving Chicago’s Mexican-American neighborhood of Pilsen.

Matt earned his law degree from Rutgers University School of Law. He obtained a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and is currently completing coursework in an MBA from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In addition to his leadership of the EBA, Matt has served on the board of EBA’s Charitable Foundation, which funds small-scale charitable energy projects in the U.S. and abroad and assists disadvantaged individuals with their utility bills. Matt is also a past board member of the LGBT Lawyers of Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia.