Phillip Casey

Practice Areas

Energy and Utilities Law

Energy and Utilities - State Regulatory

Public Utilities, Energy, and Telecommunications Litigation

Commercial Contracts

Energy and Utilities - Federal Regulatory

Career

With more than 25 years of experience, Phil Casey counsels public utilities, municipalities, large energy users and energy companies on economic regulatory matters, distributed generation, litigation, new entrant certification, merger and acquisition and asset acquisition matters.

A Partner with the firm and Co-Chair of Calfee's Energy and Utilities practice group, Phil has significant experience formulating comprehensive regulatory strategies across multiple jurisdictions, major litigation management, incident response leadership and public company merger transactions. He delivers outstanding value by providing sound advice and frequently better-than-anticipated results across a wide range of business and legal challenges.

Phil previously served as Vice President of Administration and General Counsel for Prairie State Generating Company, where he also served as a member of the senior leadership team.

He developed legal operations systems from the ground up and was responsible for establishing legal strategy and managing day-to-day legal services, resolving legacy litigation, creating the framework for game-changing environmental regulatory permitting, enhancing collaboration and transparency, creating a new board member onboarding program and leading the comprehensive revision of corporate policies and vendor agreements.

He also served as Vice President and Deputy General Counsel/Regulatory for NiSource as a member of the legal department leadership team. He provided proactive and strategic counsel to three business units in eight states at both the state and federal levels, while also breaking down silos and creating and executing on policy alignment initiatives. Notably, Phil and his team of regulatory lawyers beat “plan” in nine rate cases.

Prior to joining NiSource, Phil was a partner at Sonnenschein, Nath and Rosenthal (now Dentons) where he counseled utilities on economic regulation and reliability standards at both state and federal levels. Phil began his career first as an Administrative Law Judge, then as General Counsel of the Illinois Commerce Commission.

Phil joined Calfee in 2019. In 2023, Phil joined the firm's Practice Planning & Growth Committee.

Professional Memberships

Midwest Energy Association – Legal, Regulatory, and Governmental Affairs, Chair

Energy Bar Association, Finance, Transaction & Investment Steering Committee, Member

The Chicago Bar Association, Public Utility Section, Member

Indiana State Bar Association, Public Utility Section, Member

Franciscan Alliance Foundation, Trustee

St. Anthony Hospital, Community Board Committee, Human Relations Mission/Vision Committee

Frankfort Youth Athletic Association, Vice President, Secretary, Board Member

Bloom Township Education Foundation, President, Vice President, Trustee

Publications

“Reactive to Proactive – Changing How Inside Counsel Provides Services,” ACC (2013 & 2014)

“Reliability,” Energy Bar Association (2008)

“Implementation Group Report,” Post 2006 Rate Freeze Initiative Report (2004)

“Decoupling, the Regulators Perspective," Midwest Energy Association (2004)

”Ex Parte Communications,” Chicago Bar Association (2004)

“Implementation of 2003 State Ethics Reform,” Chicago Bar Association (2003)

Expert in these Jurisdictions

Indiana

Illinois

Experience

Served as lead regulatory litigation counsel for an independent electric transmission holding company. Calfee represented the client in contested matters regarding a Petition for a Certificate of Convenience and Necessity to operate an electric transmission system and a complaint case associated with the CPCN.

Serving as regulatory relations counsel for one of the largest home repair services plan providers in the United States. Calfee is currently working with the client to build relationships in the Midwest and South, including Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio.

Serving as Lead Regulatory Counsel for a national utility infrastructure services provider. We currently advise the client on Underground Protection matters before state regulators, and we are assisting with the development of open and transparent hearing procedures, resolution of thousands of potential causes of action, relationship development with regulators, and client customers, and we are participating in the development of corrective legislation. States have been assessing penalties for “late-locates” occurring during the pandemic. The ability to perform timely locates was impeded by absenteeism and the lack of an available workforce. This problem was experienced across the client’s national platform.

Serving as regulatory counsel for an investor-owned utility company. Calfee obtained approvals for the 2023 transfer of assets and service territory to a broad-based utility services company, and we provide guidance with local municipality service agreements.

Serving as co-counsel to public utility companies providing natural gas distribution services in relation to its request for a rate increase. We also provided guidance with Intervenor Compensation rulemaking and Thermal Energy Network policy development.

Serving as regulatory counsel for a municipal government located in the Midwest. We are helping the client develop and prosecute approval for an underground pedestrian passageway. Presently, the matter is being contested by a publicly traded, Fortune 500 transportation company.

Serving as co-counsel and local due diligence counsel to a Canadian pension investment manager, helping to provide economic and environmental regulatory due diligence for the possible acquisition of a stake in a public utility.

Developed multistate rate case strategies aligning positions between state utilities; overcame disjointed positions historically taken by different utilities within the parent.

Successfully negotiated resolution of OSHA action based on alleged lockout/tagout violations; obtained a reduction in the severity of all willful citations and a reduction in fine by 40%; responsible for legal strategy, discovery, witness preparation, and negotiation.

Resolved utility tax overcharge for incorrect assessment of municipal taxes; worked with incumbent utility and local municipality to secure repayment program that considered economic stresses faced by municipality.

Led the prosecution of a FERC interstate pipeline rate case, exceeding internal goals and obtaining a $100,000 award against an Intervenor for frivolous claims.

Obtained state regulatory commission approval allowing incumbent carrier to withdraw mandatory yet uneconomic services, saving millions of dollars annually and reducing paper waste.

Led the successful negotiation of a FERC audit penalty, achieving a 70% reduction in the amount sought by Enforcement.

Managed to conclusion the legal regulatory response to significant pipeline incidents before PHMSA; in each instance, the result bested internal goals.

Successfully negotiated resolution of OSHA regulatory action brought after work-related amputation; obtained reduction in severity level and fine; responsible for legal strategy, discovery, witness preparation, and negotiation.

Obtained Illinois’s first-ever order approving gas energy efficiency program; primarily responsible for rate design securing a substantial increase in fixed-cost recovery, and team attained the second-largest increase in company history.

Achieved reversal of $25 million rate base ruling in rate case proceeding; primarily responsible for rate design and the recovery of costs associated with securing/hardening facilities.

Created administrative rules for adversarial proceedings for a regional reliability authority.

Education