Renewable Energy & Green Business

We face a new era in renewable energy and green technologies as consumers, businesses and policy makers focus on how to improve our environment while preserving and promoting a robust business climate.  At Coblentz, Patch, Duffy & Bass, we see great opportunity for existing businesses who seek to incorporate green principles and technologies into their ventures and products, and for entrepreneurs breaking new ground in this area.  We are focused on helping our clients take advantage of these opportunities, and on advising them about how to comply with the often complex regulatory environment that governs many aspects of renewable energy and green businesses.
 
The Coblentz, Patch, Duffy & Bass Renewable Energy and Green Business Group brings together experienced attorneys from the construction, corporate and business transactions, intellectual property, litigation, real estate and land use, and tax practices who advise companies in this fast-evolving area.  We share our clients' belief that successful business depends on a healthy environment.  The firm is certified as a "green business" by the Bay Area Green Business Program and our attorneys and staff are committed to incorporating environmental stewardship into our business practices.

Practice Area Specialties
 

Green Building:  Our green building practice focuses on advising clients on how to mitigate compliance risks associated with green building laws and sustainable construction and design criteria in real estate transactions, construction, architectural and design contracts and development projects, including:

  • Laws governing green building (such as San Francisco's Green Building Ordinance);
  • Construction, architectural and design contracting;
  • Green building considerations in purchase and sale, leasing and real estate finance agreements; and
  • Construction claims dispute resolution and litigation. 

Green Businesses:  The attorneys in our green business practice have a wide-ranging practice representing primarily entrepreneurs and private "middle market" companies.  They are accustomed to serving as trusted counsel to businesses charting new frontiers, including in green technologies, and advising on a range of business topics, including:

  • Joint ventures and business alliances;
  • Loans and secured financings;
  • Private equity and venture capital transactions;
  • Securities transactions;
  • Technology licensing and transfer;
  • Intellectual property--trade name, trademark and copyright, advertising and labeling claims;
  • Entity selection and formation;
  • Executive recruitment and compensation;
  • Founders and shareholders agreements;
  • Labor and employment issues, including employment agreements;
  • Dispute resolution and litigation; and
  • Business succession planning. 

Land Use and California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Compliance:  A host of recently enacted legislation (including AB 32 and SB 375) ensures that land use regulation will be central to regulators and other decisionmakers grappling with climate change and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.  CEQA has become a focal point in this effort, with environmental review documents increasingly at risk in the absence of adequate regulatory guidance about how developers and municipalities should analyze project-related and cumulative greenhouse gas emissions.  Our state and nationally acclaimed development practice is at the forefront in this area, including: 

  • Monitoring and advising regarding draft land use regulations and guidelines;
  • Developing strategies for analysis of greenhouse gas emissions and energy use in environmental documents;
  • Drafting and incorporating climate change language into CEQA documents;
  • Using our CEQA litigation expertise to help identify and address potential climate change-related challenges in the administrative record; and
  • Litigating CEQA compliance challenges. 

Policy Formation and Advocacy:  Our attorneys are active participants in policy issues before both federal and state policy makers related to wide-ranging aspects of climate change and renewable energy.  The attorneys in this practice understand the nexus between energy policy and clean technology and can help you identify opportunities for your business.  For example, our attorneys are engaged in strategic and advocacy work on Smart Grid issues.  This work ranges from opportunities associated with the $4.5 billion in stimulus money for Smart Grid being administered by the Department of Energy, to interoperability standards currently pending at the National Institute of Standards and Technology of the Department of Commerce, to issues before the Legislature, California Public Utilities Commission and Energy Commission.  This work continues the firm's long history of policy advocacy and includes:

  • Forming public policy strategy and messages to further our clients' businesses goals; filing comments and other advocacy on pending regulations;
  • Working to create tax policy and administration that encourages investment and lowers costs;
  • Providing legal support for lobbying legislation, including drafting and negotiating legislation; and
  • Appearing on behalf of business and trade associations at forums and conferences to ensure that policy and business messages are incorporated into the public dialogue.

Project Financing and Tax:  With the recent enactment of tax credit extensions, expansions and the creation of new credits and grants included in the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, tax credits will play an increasingly important role in the stimulation of green business and investment.  The tax and project financing practice is involved in structuring tax credit projects and advising clients on how their green business practices can be used to generate a tax savings.  For example, our attorneys monitor and advise clients in the areas of:

  • Production Tax Credits, particularly their recent application to wind energy;
  • Investment Tax Credits, such as advising clients on incorporating the fuel cell property credit into their equipment sale and leasing business;
  • Carbon Credits, including monitoring pending cap-and-trade legislation to advise clients on how to increase profitability while improving the environment; and
  • New Markets Tax Credits, including obtaining credit allocations, creating subsidiary credit allocates, and advising on qualifying investments. 

Renewable Energy and Conservation Projects:  The firm has represented various clients on  renewable energy and conservation projects.  It is one of a handful of firms in the country to represent property owners in complex conservation easement transactions, which are increasingly being used to facilitate development projects, including renewable energy projects.  This expertise includes:

  • Obtaining development entitlements;
  • Environmental review compliance;
  • Conservation easement transactions;
  • Leasehold and other financing agreements;
  • Tax credits transactions; and
  • Real estate, land use and tax-related litigation. 

Representative Renewable Energy and Green Business Transactions
   

  • Represented Trans Bay Cable (Babcock and Brown) on the CEQA analysis and land use entitlements for a $450 million, 400 megawatt energy transmission project that will provide a dedicated connection under the San Francisco Bay between the East Bay, which has excess electrical generation capacity, and electrical transmission and distribution facilities serving San Francisco.  The project includes the transmission of both conventional and renewable power, and creates a new conduit for renewable energy, including wind energy. 
  • Served as legal counsel for Solazyme, Inc., a renewable oil production company and the leader in algal synthetic biology, in its $57 million Series C round of financing, which included investors Braemar Energy Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, The Roda Group, Harris & Harris Group LLC, VantagePoint Venture Partners and strategic investors from key target markets. 
  • Represented the Tejon Ranch Co., in a complex conservation easement transaction, the largest landmark agreement to protect 240,000 acres of ranch land in exchange for certain development rights on remaining land.  The transaction was selected as a 2008 California Real Estate Journal Deal of the Year; Coblentz land use attorneys, Harry O'Brien and Matthew Bove were selected as 2009 California Lawyers of the Year (CLAY award), and Mr. O'Brien was named a 2008 California Real Estate Journal Dealmaker of the Year. 
  • Acted as lead counsel for the California Academy of Sciences for the development of its internationally acclaimed LEED Platinum building in Golden Gate Park, including all aspects of land use approvals, CEQA compliance, financing and construction, architectural and design contracts. 
  • Act as real estate counsel to PG&E on various matters, including in connection with a series of major conservation easement matters which in the aggregate form the second largest conservation transaction in the state, as well as with the acquisition of sites for solar installations. 
  • Served as lead counsel with respect to equipment acquisition and land use approvals from the County of Marin for a wind conversion system (turbine) on behalf of Nan Tucker McEvoy andthe McEvoy Ranch.  The wind turbine will generate electricity for all of the agricultural operations at the ranch.
  • Represent Darling International, Inc. in lease negotiations, CEQA compliance and land use entitlements for the addition of biodiesel production to its existing San Francisco rendering facility.  
  • Represented Pasteurization Technology Group, a patented wastewater treatment technology company, in connection with angel round financing and intellectual property transfer matters. 
  • Represent the leading completely green commercial printer in intellectual property, advertising and claims matters. 
  • Serve as counsel to several natural food products companies in intellectual property, advertising and claims matters. 
  • Represent numerous advertising companies in intellectual property issues relating to marketing and advertising of green products. 

Publications and Press