Infrastructure

Understanding your company’s position and potential in the infrastructure landscape is more important than ever. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, ongoing geopolitical disputes, energy shocks, rising inflation, and other domestic and global challenges, governments worldwide are focusing their attention on and allocating resources to a broad range of economic development, jobs creation and related infrastructure initiatives.

When opportunities abound, some may be tempted — and have the capacity — to seize them all. Others may find it difficult to find the right needle in a very large haystack. Crowell & Moring’s cross-disciplinary infrastructure team helps clients:

• Assess their core strengths, offerings and value propositions
• Identify high-impact, high-return projects and procurement programs
• Negotiate financing, investment and other agreements with partners and collaborators
• Navigate complex rules and compliance issues for federal, state, local and international government contractors
• Understand and influence emerging legislation and regulations
• Reduce and resolve disputes through claims management, negotiation, litigation or arbitration

Global, diverse clients

Our lawyers advise U.S. and international clients from across the spectrum, including seasoned, multinational participants in major infrastructure projects, as well as public-private partnerships, governments and other project sponsors, individual and institutional investors and lenders, contractors and subcontractors, and suppliers of critical services, products and technologies. We have represented clients in infrastructure transactions and disputes across Asia, North America, Europe, the Middle East and Latin America. 

A cross-disciplinary, multi-jurisdictional team

Although it goes without saying, we’ll say it: Infrastructure projects are complex and each has a unique lifecycle. To help clients meet the varying demands of any given engagement, our team includes, as needed, lawyers and professionals from our Corporate, Government Contracts, Government Affairs, Energy, Environmental, Litigation, International Dispute Resolution (IDR), and Transportation practices.

At every stage, we provide sophisticated counsel that emphasizes end results without losing focus on the day-to-day steps necessary to achieve our clients’ goals. Among other areas, we provide guidance on the following:

Project Development

We advise privately held and publicly traded clients as well as governmental entities on the transactional aspects of large infrastructure projects, including project finance, secondary market acquisitions, ownership and public-private partnerships engaged in the full spectrum of projects, including:

• Airport and aviation facilities
• Highways, bridges and tunnels
• Railways and rail corridors
• Electricity generation and utilities
• Energy and natural gas exploration, production and distribution
• Military housing and other facilities
• Stadiums and entertainment venues
• Health care facilities, hospitals and clinics
• Housing and mixed-use facilities
• Schools and universities 

We have particular strength in traditional and renewable energy and transportation. Our team includes a former chair of the California Electricity Oversight Board and the California Green Team; a member of the California Electric Operation and Maintenance Board and the California ISO Board of Governors; and a former senior consultant analyzing U.S. Department of Defense utility privatization programs. Our U.S., Brussels, Doha and London-based lawyers have represented clients on power-generation and distribution projects across North America, the United Kingdom, Europe and the Middle East.  

We have advised clients on greenfield manufacturing facility and energy projects involving solar- and wind-power transmission; on land use, environmental, regulatory and other issues relating to project planning and development; on the delivery and funding of renewable energy facilities, including RDF-based waste-to-energy facilities, CHP and biomass installations; and on engagements involving microgrids, federal and state demand response programs, and renewable power.

Government Contracts

Our Government Contracts group represents entities that contract with U.S. federal, state, local and/or non-U.S. governments on large-scale and prominent infrastructure projects, advising on best practices for managing these projects from inception through completion.

Our team includes several highly regarded construction, white-collar criminal defense and other litigators who have successfully handled government contracts disputes in federal trial and appellate courts; a former trial attorney at the procurement litigation division of the U.S. Air Force Headquarters for Legal Operations; a former member of the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps who worked on hydropower projects during his tenure; and the coordinator of the Construction Industry Ethics and Compliance Initiative and co-host of “Fastest 5 Minutes, the Podcast Government Contractors Can’t Do Without,” among numerous other professionals who understand the nuances of working with government entities to create or upgrade infrastructure. 

In addition to handling disputes arising out of the construction of highways, bridges, power plants, water treatment facilities, and other heavy infrastructure projects, we provide extensive counseling with respect to domestic preference aspects and on mitigation of foreign ownership, control or influence (FOCI) under the National Industrial Security Program related to classified work on infrastructure projects within the United States. We also are particularly adept at handling litigation and other disputes arising under prime contracts and subcontracts.

Environmental

We work with clients to address the full spectrum of environmental compliance matters, including cleanup and risk-mitigation issues as well as regulatory challenges, enforcement actions and citizen suits that can delay or impair project completion.

Our group includes the former deputy chief of staff for policy at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), who led EPA’s involvement in the executive branch’s infrastructure initiative, represented EPA on the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council to streamline the environmental review and permitting process for major infrastructure projects, and, as senior counsel for the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, drafted and negotiated legislation that was included in the since-enacted Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act.

Our professionals have held other top-level positions in the EPA, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), and the U.S. Department of the Interior. We are recognized leaders in international climate policy, environmental markets, climate risk management and climate finance. A number of our team members advise or are members of the boards and private-sector advisory panels of clean energy, international emission trading, and climate markets and investment organizations. 

Transportation

Transportation projects — airports, railways, highways, mass transit — are high-profile projects with significant, direct impacts on local and national economies. Jobs are created at every step and new facilities pave the way for expanded domestic and international business opportunities.

We have significant experience working with federal and state agencies, municipalities, public-private partnerships and other stakeholders in the development, financing, construction and management of large-scale transportation projects.

Public Policy and Legislative Work

With strong connections and substantive experience in Washington, D.C., London, Singapore and other capitals across Europe and Asia, our public policy and legislative affairs team helps build relationships between clients and government decision-makers. We work hand-in-hand with clients to analyze, influence and help draft federal, state and local legislation, regulations and appropriations decisions that reflect client business goals and have a high likelihood of being adopted by the relevant government bodies.

Our U.S. Government Affairs team includes former senior staff for Republican and Democratic Senate majority and minority leaders and other U.S. senators and representatives. Together with members of our London office, Crowell & Moring International (CMI) — our international trade and trade policy consultancy, led by Geralyn Ritter — routinely advises U.S., European and Asian clients and tracks the interests and interrelationship between international financing, construction, technology, and other critical elements and drivers of infrastructure projects in these regions. Our London team has strong relationships with the U.K. government and represents participants from across the European financial and corporate community seeking to participate in the U.S. and worldwide infrastructure space.

On cross-border projects, we also work closely with experienced local counsel to assess specific jurisdictional laws and regulations and their effects on proposed infrastructure initiatives.

Litigation and Dispute Resolution

Our litigation and dispute resolution team has extensive experience helping clients clear legal and regulatory hurdles and resolve conflicts involving project finance, contracts, design and construction, delivery of products or services, and other issues, with particular experience in matters involving public-private partnerships. We have represented clients in U.S. state and federal courts, administrative forums, arbitrations and independent dispute resolution (IDR) proceedings worldwide in matters involving highways, bridges, power plants, renewable projects and other heavy infrastructure projects. 

• Served as lead counsel in an arbitration in which a majority ICC tribunal awarded our client $500 million in damages, while defeating a $500 million counterclaim, in relation to a failed port project in Damietta, Egypt.
• Performed due diligence and assessment of companies’ rail systems and infrastructure in preparation for complex litigation.