Margaret E McNaul

Practice Areas

A sought-after legal counsel on Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) matters, Meg McNaul advises and represents municipally owned utilities across the nation, guiding them through a broad range of regulatory energy sector issues.

Meg is active in policy development matters arising from the California Independent System Operator Corporation’s wholesale market rules for the Western Energy Markets, with a focus on energy market policy and design and on transmission access and rates. Drawing upon her in-depth experience, she guides clients through this complex landscape of markets, resource policy and procurement, transmission and interconnection, and regulatory compliance, helping to identify, evaluate and resolve new and emerging issues.

Meg stays abreast of emerging market developments related to distributed energy resources, the changing resource mix and the integration of energy storage. As the California markets expand to include participants from other states in the West in the Western Energy Imbalance Market and the Extended Day Ahead Market, she helps her clients to assess, adjust and achieve better outcomes through active stakeholder and regional participation. Meg also advocates for clients in matters relating to compliance with federally mandated electric reliability standards overseen by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation and other aspects of the Federal Power Act and the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978.

In addition to her work with utility clients, Meg works with large power consumers, providing advice concerning power supply transactions, including long-term power purchase arrangements.

Unlike energy sector practitioners who may focus solely on one area, Meg enjoys offering her clients a mix of services—regulatory advice, counseling on commercial issues and administrative litigation—delivered in a pragmatic and solution-oriented style. More than 20 years into her practice, she continues to find its many dimensions–including accounting, economics, and considerations of equity and fairness—challenging and personally rewarding.