Nationally Recognized Energy Regulatory Partner John Decker Joins Kirkland
Kirkland & Ellis announced today that John Decker has joined the Firm as a partner in the Energy Regulatory Practice Group.
“John is among the leading energy regulatory lawyers in the country with broad experience across the industry, from electricity to oil and gas,” said Jon A. Ballis, Chairman of Kirkland’s Executive Committee. “He is a great addition to our market-leading energy and infrastructure practice and we’re excited to welcome him to the team.”
Mr. Decker advises on transactional and regulatory matters primarily in the natural gas and electric power industries. He has worked on numerous domestic and international transactions involving the production and transportation of natural gas and liquefied natural gas, the development of gas-fired power plants, and the sale or acquisition of electric power and natural gas assets.
He represents natural gas pipeline owners, liquefied natural gas importers, investor-owned utilities, owners of qualifying facilities, exempt wholesale generators, electric power marketers and municipalities before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Department of Energy, and also counsels clients on commercial and regulatory issues in the domestic wholesale and retail electricity markets. In addition, he represents sponsors of energy infrastructure projects applying for grants and loan guarantees from the U.S. Department of Energy.
Mr. Decker is one of a handful of lawyers in the U.S. ranked by Chambers USA for regulatory work in both electricity and oil and gas. Chambers Global and the Legal 500 U.S. have also featured him in various energy regulatory categories for more than a decade.
He joins Kirkland from Vinson & Elkins, where he was previously a partner, and will work in Kirkland’s Washington, D.C., office. He earned degrees from the University of Virginia School of Law and Duke University.
“I am looking forward to contributing to Kirkland’s best-in-class energy practice,” said Mr. Decker. “It’s an ideal platform for the next chapter of my career.”
Widely regarded as one of the leading energy and infrastructure practices in the world, Kirkland’s team includes 550+ dedicated lawyers covering cutting-edge energy and infrastructure deals totaling hundreds of billions of dollars annually. The Firm’s Energy Regulatory Practice Group brings decades of collective experience to bear on new and emerging regulatory challenges involving renewables, electric transmission, oil and gas, LNG, distributed resources, energy storage, biofuels, nuclear, hydroelectric power and hydrogen. The practice advises clients on matters involving energy markets, federal and state energy regulatory agencies, legislation, laws and policies.
