Lila Appaya
Bricker Graydon
Lila is an energy and environmental associate at Bricker Graydon. She focuses her practice on troubleshooting environmental issues related to the financing, selling, and acquisition of renewable energy projects. She also represents developers before the Ohio Power Siting Board and large energy-users before the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.
Katrina Bowers
Diversified Energy
Katrina joined Diversified Energy Company in 2024 as the Assistant General Counsel of Litigation. In this role, she is responsible for managing pre-suit claims and litigation against the company as well as providing legal support to its environmental safety and health, land, and government affairs teams across the company’s operational footprint in the Central Region and Appalachian Basin. Prior to joining Diversified, Katrina was a shareholder in Babst Calland’s Corporate and Commercial, Litigation, and Energy and Natural Resources groups representing oil and gas companies in litigation concerning a variety of matters and leading the firm’s airport practice. Katrina is a 2013 graduate of the West Virginia University College of Law and lives in Charleston, West Virginia with her husband and two small children.
Aaron Bruggeman
Bricker Graydon
Aaron Bruggeman is co-chair of Bricker Graydon’s Southeast Ohio initiative and is a member of the firm’s energy and natural resources team. He has extensive experience throughout Ohio and West Virginia in real estate and energy-specific transactional matters involved in project development. He has served as counsel for national and international energy companies and energy generation facilities on multiple projects throughout Southeast Ohio.
Stefanie Burt
EQT Corporation
Stefanie Burt is Deputy General Counsel at EQT Corporation, where she manages the company’s disputes portfolio, assists in risk and liability management, and provides counsel on a variety of topics. Prior to joining EQT in March 2020, Stefanie was an energy and natural resources litigation partner at Reed Smith where she represented upstream and midstream oil and gas companies. Stefanie is also the current Treasurer of EMLF, and has served in leadership roles for various community not for profit organizations.
Caroline Clark
LG&E KU
Caroline Clark is director of External Affairs for Louisville Gas and Electric Company and Kentucky Utilities Company (LG&E and KU). In her current role she’s worked to pass notable Kentucky energy legislation including net-metering reform, all fuels legislation, and a comprehensive underground damage prevention bill. She joined LG&E and KU in 2013 as manager of Compliance, where she led the Company’s FERC and NERC compliance efforts, as well as the company’s corporate ethics and investigations program. Prior to joining LG&E and KU, Clark was an administrative law judge with the Kentucky Department of Workers’ Claims, a commissioner with the Kentucky Public Service Commission and a federal criminal defense attorney.
Clark received her Juris Doctor in 2002 from the University of Kentucky College of Law and a bachelor’s degree from Centre College in 1999. She and her husband of 22 years, Justin, live in Louisville, Kentucky, and have two daughters Charley and Georgia. Caroline played college tennis and you can still find her on the court playing competitive tennis as often as possible. When not at work or on the court, she enjoys gardening, playing with her two dogs and binge-listening to audiobooks.
Kevin Colosimo
Frost Brown Todd
Kevin Colosimo is a Member at Frost Brown Todd whose practice spans the areas of oil and gas litigation, energy law, and business, contract and real property law. He has provided counsel to clients on a wide range of legal matters including risk management alternatives, claims assessment, and litigation strategy. Kevin was drawn to practice energy law by the entrepreneurial spirit and potential of the burgeoning oil and gas industry in Appalachia. He is formerly the Member-in-Charge of FBT’s Pittsburgh office. Kevin is a frequent author and speaker on legal issues facing the oil and gas industry, having presented at the EMLF’s Annual Institute, Kentucky Mineral Law Conference, CAIL’s Institute for Energy Law and Law of Shale Plays Conference and numerous other bar and industry sponsored conferences. He is a regular advocate for the oil and gas industry at the State Capitol in Harrisburg. He served as a Member and Committee Co-Chair of the Marcellus Shale Roundtable sponsored by the University of Pittsburgh’s Institute of Politics. He serves as an officer and trustee for the Energy and Mineral Law Foundation. Kevin is a member of the United Way of Allegheny County’s Tocqueville Society and the Advisory Board of the Salvation Army of Greater Pittsburgh, in addition to involvement with various local universities and charities. Kevin is AV rated by the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory.
Casey Coyle
Babst Calland
Casey Alan Coyle is a shareholder and co-chair of the Firm’s Litigation Group, the Managing Shareholder of the Firm’s Harrisburg Office, and past co-chair of the Appellate Practice Group. He concentrates his practice on complex commercial litigation and appellate law. Prior to joining Babst Calland, Mr. Coyle was a partner at Eckert Seamans where he served as the Chair of the firm’s Appellate Practice Working Group. Before entering private practice, he served as a law clerk for the Honorable Thomas G. Saylor, Chief Justice Emeritus of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, for nearly two and a half years.
Mr. Coyle graduated from the Temple University Beasley School of Law in 2009, where he served as Editor-in-Chief of the Temple Journal of Science, Technology & Environmental Law. He earned his B.A. in Journalism, with distinction, from the Pennsylvania State University in 2006. During his time there, he was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society and spent a semester in Washington, D.C., interning for CNN’s Capital Gang.
Keith Coyle
Babst Calland
Keith Coyle is a member of Babst Calland’s Washington, D.C. office and a shareholder in the Energy and Natural Resources, Environmental and Transportation Safety groups and Pipeline and HazMat Safety practice. Mr. Coyle advises clients throughout the United States on energy matters, but his practice focuses primarily on the regulation of pipelines and liquefied natural gas facilities and the transportation of hazardous materials. He has significant experience working on these issues for clients in the private sector, as a former government attorney, and through his participation in industry task forces and trade organizations.
Amy Cyphert
West Virginia University College of Law
Amy Beth Cyphert is a Lecturer in Law at the West Virginia University College of Law. Cyphert is a Morgantown native and a 2001 graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, where she was awarded a Truman Scholarship. Cyphert graduated cum laude from Harvard Law School in 2005, and went on to clerk for the Honorable Laura Taylor Swain in the Southern District of New York. Prior to joining WVU, Cyphert was a senior litigation associate with WilmerHale in New York City. Cyphert developed and teaches two courses on Artificial Intelligence and the Law. Her recent research has focused on generative artificial intelligence and its impact on the practice of law. She has also written about technology regulation and algorithmic decision making in the criminal justice system. In 2021, Cyphert received the Privacy Papers for Policymakers Award from the Future of Privacy Forum for her article on machine-learning algorithms and online surveillance.
Matthew Fazekas
Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease
Matthew Fazekas is an associate in the Cleveland office of Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP. Matthew has represented clients in various mineral rights disputes, including quiet title actions, royalty disputes, and trespass actions. Matthew received his J.D. from the Cleveland State University College of Law in 2020.
Flanagan Partners
Harold Flanagan’s practice includes both contracts and litigation in the areas of oil and gas production, construction, and clean & renewable energy. He drafts and negotiates contracts for oil and gas producers, including drilling contracts, master service agreements, licensing agreements, and purchase orders. He and his team investigate casualties in the oil and gas, construction, and industrial settings, and advise industrial clients on Health, Safety, and Environmental compliance. Mr. Flanagan is frequently associated by other law firms to assist in litigating the insurance aspects of large casualty claims. His team includes lawyers barred in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Colorado, and California. Mr. Flanagan graduated from Loyola University with a B.S. in Business Management in 1984, and from the Loyola School of Law in 1995, cum laude, where he was a member of the Loyola Law Review. In December 2023, he retired from Tulane Law School, where he taught the Insurance Law class for 23 years. Mr. Flanagan enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1985 and retired at the rank of colonel after 26 years of service, including overseas service in Operation Enduring Freedom.
Sharon Flanery
Steptoe & Johnson
Sharon Flanery, nationally recognized as a leader in energy and natural resources law, chairs Steptoe & Johnson’s Energy & Natural Resources Department. As a lawyer and petroleum engineer with an executive, operating, and legal background in the energy industry, she brings real-world experience to her practice. She counsels clients on major acquisitions and divestitures and other transactional and operational issues. In addition, she has substantial experience in land and legal due diligence, as well as in the legislative and regulatory arenas. Sharon’s broad legal, business and operating background extends to handling issues in the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) areas and includes extensive work on diversity, equity, and inclusion committees for the firm and two non-profit boards. She is active at West Virginia University where she serves on its Alumni Association’s Board of Directors and as Chair of the Statler School of Engineering Visiting Committee. She is involved in various other organizations, including the Institute for Energy Law, where she currently serves as Senior Vice Chair, the first such appointment from Appalachia in over forty years. Sharon earned her J.D. from Duquesne University School of Law and her B.S. in Petroleum Engineering from West Virginia University.
McGuire Woods
Drew Gann is a partner in the Richmond office of McGuireWoods LLP, a leading international law firm with more than 1,100 lawyers in 21offices worldwide. Drew is a litigator, focusing primarily on class actions, mass tort lawsuits, high-stakes litigation, and litigation arising out of catastrophic incidents. He has significant experience with multidistrict litigation (MDL) and advising clients on punitive damages in high-stakes personal injury actions. He has extensive experience representing clients in investigations by the National Transportation Safety Board (“NTSB”), Department of Transportation (“DOT”), the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (“PHMSA”), the Consumer Product Safety Commission (“CPSC”), state attorney general offices, and public utility commissions. Drew represents clients in a wide array of industries, including energy, transportation, construction, and product manufacturing. Drew has experience in all phases of litigation at the trial and appellate levels before state and federal courts, including taking and defending depositions, briefing and arguing discovery motions, motions in limine, and dispositive motions. He also has extensive experience working with medical, technical, and scientific issues as well as managing expert witnesses. Drew received his B.A. from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and earned his J.D from the University of Virginia School of Law.
Megan Haines
Reed Smith
Megan is an experienced energy and environmental litigator who helps clients meet their operational needs and manage risk. She has successfully represented energy companies in claims relating to alleged environmental contamination, permit appeals (first and third-party), and compliance orders. Megan has extensive experience with high-profile, multi-forum fights attempting to derail or declare illegal energy development projects. Megan has significant experience advising clients with respect to environmental regulatory matters. She has assisted clients with identifying and obtaining required permits, interpreting and developing compliance plans for proposed and newly-adopted statutes and regulations, negotiating audit agreements with U.S. EPA and subsequent disclosures made thereunder, and negotiating consent orders and civil penalties. As part of the firm’s global environmental, social and governance (ESG) practice, Megan assists clients with the environmental and governance aspects of ESG. Megan has also successfully resolved oil and gas lease termination and royalty claims, gas gathering agreement disputes, contractor claims, surface access disputes, joint operating agreement disputes, and joint interest billing/accounting disputes.
Kara Herrnstein
Bricker Graydon
Kara Herrnstein is an experienced energy attorney focusing on facilitating renewable generation in the Midwest and Appalachia. She provides legal assistance and problem-solving to developers at every stage of their projects, from land access to permitting to operation and financing. Her practice also includes litigation on behalf of a variety of energy companies including producers and midstream companies. In everything, she is passionate about helping her clients transform the energy market.
Chris Hunter
Jackson Kelly
Chris M. Hunter is a Member in the Energy industry group and Tax Practice group at Jackson Kelly, focusing primarily on litigation, environmental law, and state and local tax issues. He practices out of the Firm’s office in Charleston, West Virginia. Chris has worked on some of the state’s most prominent environmental issues. He routinely counsels clients on environmental matters such as permitting and surface and water pollution issues at the state and federal levels. Chris also routinely handles litigation in both state and federal courts. Additionally, Chris represents clients on a wide range of state and local tax issues before the West Virginia Office of Tax Appeals, various County Commissions sitting as Boards of Equalization and Review, and in numerous Circuit Courts. Chris advises clients on issues related to West Virginia’s ad valorem property tax, sales and use tax, severance taxes, business and occupation taxes, and state income taxes.
Whitney Kerns
Bowles Rice
Whitney Kerns is a partner with Bowles Rice LLP in Morgantown, West Virginia. Her practice focuses on coal and oil and gas law, together with real estate development. She serves as counsel for both coal and oil and gas operators in the acquisition of coal and mineral properties, and provides representation in leasing right and title disputes. Since the Fall of 2018, Whitney has also served as an adjunct professor at her alma mater, West Virginia University College of Law, where she teaches Coal, Oil and Gas Law.
Jeff Kramer
Range Resources
Jeff Kramer is a Pennsylvania Licensed attorney with over 25 years of experience. In 1996, following his graduation from the Dickinson School of Law, he started his private practice in Washington County. His practice was committed to all the phases of land work, including basic title work and closings, complex real property litigation, jury trials, and appellate work. He also focused on oil and gas law in his private practice. In 2008, he began working at Range Resources – Appalachia, LLC as a Staff landman, where he performed numerous land functions, with a primary area of focus in land lease acquisition. In 2013, Jeff was promoted to District Land Manager, and subsequently Land Director, where his responsibilities include overseeing the acquisition of all leasing for the Southern Marcellus Shale Division
Jeff continues to be a member of the Pennsylvania and Washington County Bar Associations and is licensed by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, The Third Circuit Court of Appeals, Western District, and continue to participate in bar functions as a representative of Range Resources within the community. Jeff is a frequent speaker at both industry and legal seminars and panels. He currently resides in Avella, PA with his wife and four sons.
Tom Lane
Bowles Rice
Tom Lane is a partner with Bowles Rice LLP in Charleston, West Virginia. He practices primarily in the areas of natural resources, coal, oil and gas, commercial real estate, zoning and land development, with his work ranging from mineral property transactions to complex litigation of natural resources issues. He also engages in lobbying and government relations emphasizing in issues affecting the mineral industry. Additionally, served as the former Robert T. Donley Adjunct Professor of Law at the West Virginia University College of Law teaching Coal, Oil and Gas Law from 1986 to 2005. An owner of a land development company himself, he is involved in land development, construction and rental, and is a veteran of the United States Army.
Justin Leonelli
K&L Gates
Justin Leonelli is a senior associate at K&L Gates. Justin’s practice focuses on construction and infrastructure litigation, with a particular emphasis on conventional and renewable (wind, solar, and battery) energy projects. He represents developers, contractors, and suppliers through all project phases, including procurement and contract negotiation, project execution, change management, project closeout, and dispute resolution.
John Meadows
Steptoe & Johnson
John Meadows is a member in The Woodlands office of Steptoe & Johnson PLLC. A seasoned energy litigator, he leads the Firm’s Energy Litigation Practice Group and he has litigated disputes involving landowner complaints, environmental and nuisance claims, supplier and producer contracts, tax disputes, well-pad construction and development cases, and has experience in production and mid-stream project development and litigation emanating from construction and development activities. He has worked on bet-the-company cases for a major oil company and has litigated wind farm and nuisance-related renewables cases. John has significant experience as a litigator in cases in many federal trial courts, federal appellate courts, and specialty business courts, and has served as lead counsel in state court cases in Texas, Georgia, Kentucky, and West Virginia. John earned his J.D. from the University of Richmond School of Law, a B.A. and M.P.A. from Augusta University, and a B.A. from Hampden-Sydney College.
Tim Miller
Babst Calland
Tim Miller is a shareholder in the Energy and Natural Resources and Litigation groups of Babst Calland. Mr. Miller is primarily involved in general civil litigation and has tried more than 30 significant cases to jury trial conclusion in the federal courts in both the Northern and Southern Districts of West Virginia, and numerous state courts. Mr. Miller maintains an emphasis on oil and gas, as well as natural resources and energy-related litigation. He has represented electric utilities, natural gas utilities, exploration and production companies, as well as land and timber owners and operators. Mr. Miller graduated from West Virginia University in 1977 with a B.S. in Management. He received his J.D. from West Virginia University College of Law in 1980.
Leslie Miller-Stover
EQT
McGuire Woods
John Moran is a partner in the Washington, DC office of McGuireWoods LLP, a leading international law firm with more than 1,100 lawyers in 21 offices worldwide. John is a former senior official at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the White House and an experienced litigator and counselor, John draws on his broad experience from private practice and government service to advise and represent clients in government enforcement, congressional investigations, high-stakes civil disputes, and regulatory litigation. He also serves as co-chair of the firm’s congressional investigations practice, representing both companies and individuals in congressional investigations and hearings and is a member of the firm’s Appeals & Issues group. John represents clients before state and federal courts at the trial and appellate levels, including before the U.S. Supreme Court. Among other things, he has defended clients in class actions, False Claims Act suits, trade-secret litigation, confidential arbitration, and litigation that required coordination of numerous cases in different jurisdictions. John has experience representing plaintiffs and petitioners as well, including seeking emergency or other injunctive relief to protect clients’ interests and challenging agency action under the Administrative Procedure Act. John received his B.A. from the University of Virginia and his J.D from the University of Virginia School of Law. John also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Antonin Scalia, Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, and to the Honorable Jeffrey S. Sutton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
Stephanie Noble
Vinson & Elkins
Stephanie Noble is a trial partner in the Houston office of Vinson & Elkins. Her trial practice includes plaintiff and defense-side work, litigating civil cases in state and federal courts across the country. She regularly represents clients in high-stakes energy litigation, including disputes concerning joint operating agreements, production facilities, and royalty payments. She is also currently defending an E&P company in ongoing climate-change lawsuits brought in multiple jurisdictions. She serves as Co-chair of the Gender Fairness Committee for the Houston Bar Association and as a board member of the Houston Bar Foundation.
Mitchell J. Rhein
Spilman, Thomas & Battle, PLLC
Mitch Rhein is a member in the Labor and Employment practice of Spilman and is based in the firm’s Charleston, West Virginia office. Mitch represents employers—of all sizes—in wrongful discharge, traditional labor, wage and hour, and unfair competition matters. He also regularly counsels employers on day-to-day employment issues, including investigations, performance management, policies, and training. Mitch is the Associate Editor of “Age Discrimination in Employment Act,” and a Contributing Editor for “Trade Secrets: A State-by-State Survey,” “Covenants Not to Compete: A State-by-State Survey,” “Tortious Interference in the Employment Context: A State-by-State Survey,” and “Employee Duty of Loyalty: A State-by-State Survey.”
Nicholas Shum
Vinson & Elkins
Nick Shum is a trial partner in the Houston office of Vinson & Elkins. With first-chair jury trial experience, he regularly represents and advises clients in high-stakes litigation and arbitration matters. Nick’s practice focuses on handling disputes in the energy industry, including disputes concerning a variety of M&A and PSA matters, joint operating and joint venture arrangements, and royalty payments. Nick currently serves as the Hiring Partner for V&E’s Houston office, a board member of the Briarwood School in Houston, and an advisory board member of the Asia Society.
Beveridge & Diamond
Timothy J. Sullivan is Of Counsel Beveridge & Diamond. Tim advises clients on regulations under the Clean Air Act and state and local air pollution statutes and regulations. Last year, Tim joined the firm after 18 years at the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the Office of Civil Enforcement. At the EPA, Tim counseled on Clean Air Act and multimedia judicial and administrative enforcement cases and compliance investigations. Tim has extensive experience with the oil and natural gas industry. From 2011 – 2023, he helped implement the EPA’s National Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives focused on upstream and midstream oil and gas facilities as both a staff and supervisory attorney. He developed and implemented the EPA’s Clean Air Act Oil and Gas Audit Programs for New and Existing Owners. Tim also served as a federal government litigation team member on several Clean Air Act oil and gas enforcement cases in Colorado. Tim associates with Beveridge & Diamond’s Washington, DC office, and he is based in Denver, Colorado.
Marty Truss
Steptoe & Johnson
Marty Truss is a member in the San Antonio office of Steptoe & Johnson PLLC. With 28 years of experience as a trial lawyer working principally in the energy industry, Marty has represented clients in complex business disputes in courtrooms and arbitration tribunals in most oil-producing states from California to New York. He has represented major and independent energy producers, operators and other mineral interest owners, as well as pipelines and refiners, oilfield service companies and drilling companies in a wide variety of business litigation. Marty frequently handles litigation involving mineral title, joint operating agreements, farmout agreements, IADC contracts, trade secrets and business fraud. Marty is a AAA Panel arbitrator. Marty earned his J.D. from St. Mary’s University School of Law and his B.A. from the University of Texas San Antonio.
Lauren Varnado
Michelman & Robinson
Lauren Varnado is the Managing Partner of Michelman &Robinson’s Houston office and member of the firm’s Commercial Litigation Practice Group. Lauren is an experienced trial lawyer, representing oil, gas and petrochemical clients in high-stakes, “bet the company” lawsuits in state and federal courts, including contract cases, fraud and tort actions, lawsuits alleging environmental contamination, international and domestic arbitrations between energy producers, class action royalty litigation, and market manipulation disputes related to trading in energy and commodity markets. Lauren received her B.A. from Texas A&M University and her J.D. from South Texas College of Law.
Emma Wolfe
K&L Gates
Emma Wolfe is a partner with K&L Gates. She assists clients in a variety of construction and infrastructure disputes including claims related to design and construction defect, warranty, termination, delay, and payment. Emma handles issues for clients developing projects in the energy and renewables industries. Most recently, she has found that a lot of her work is related to solar and wind projects. As a part of this work, Emma has significant dispute and arbitration experience and has handled all phases of litigation in a number of state and federal courts, including jury and bench trial.
Lester Zitkus
Gulfport Energy
Lester Zitkus currently serves as Senior Vice President of Land for Gulfport Energy Corporation. Prior to joining Gulfport, Mr. Zitkus served as Vice President of Land – Eastern Region for Chesapeake Energy Corporation from May 2007 to October 2013. Upon graduating college, Mr. Zitkus was hired by Equitable Resources Inc. (now EQT Corp.), where he worked for approximately 20 years and held various positions, including Senior Vice President of Land and Vice President of Operations from 1987 until May 2007. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Mineral Land Management with a minor in Business Administration from the University of Evansville. Mr. Zitkus is a past president and board member of the American Association of Professional Landmen and a former president of the Virginia Oil and Gas Association. He has also served on the board of directors of the Kentucky Oil and Gas Association and as a regional director of the Independent Petroleum Association of America.