Life as a Summer Associate at Crowe & Dunlevy

Our clients often face governmental, legislative, and regulatory challenges that require strategic advice at the local, state, and federal government level. To meet our clients' needs, Crowe & Dunlevy launched the Government Relations, Legislative & Regulatory Affairs Practice Group to provide businesses and non-profits with guidance on a variety of governmental and political issues. In this episode of Briefly Legal, Practice Group Co-chairs Glen D. Johnson and Will Hoch discuss the decades of experience the team has interacting with the legislature, congress, and various administrative bodies, and the importance of engaging a trusted partner that offers substantive knowledge and real-world experience to ensure your voice is heard.

About Glen D. Johnson and Will Hoch

Additional Information Crowe & Dunlevy Launches Comprehensive Government Relations, Legislative & Regulatory Affairs Practice

Connect with Crowe & Dunlevy:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

Chris Davis was born to an average blue-collar family in central Illinois. Growing up, he enjoyed playing sports, going hunting, attending Boy Scout meetings – the things a typical midwestern kid would be interested in. His life changed, however, when he was 17 years old, and doctors had discovered that an astrocytoma had developed on his spinal cord. After undergoing successful surgery to remove the tumor, Chris returned home as a permanent paraplegic. Still confident that he could lead a successful life, Chris knew that he needed to choose a career that was more cerebral than physical and decided to give law school a shot. Fast forward nearly 40 years later and Chris was not only accepting his membership into the American College of Trial Lawyers, but he was also asked to provide the commencement speech at the induction ceremony.  

In this episode of Briefly Legal, litigator Chris Davis discusses the series of life events that led him to become the only paraplegic trial attorney in the state of Oklahoma and why mindfulness and being extremely well-prepared help quell people’s perception of him on both sides of the courtroom. He also discusses the legacy of litigators at Crowe & Dunlevy, how their leadership and involvement in the ABA has led him to become a better mentor to young attorneys, and the emphasis and recognition the firm places on the value of diversity in the workplace.

About J. Christopher Davis

Connect with Crowe & Dunlevy:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

On August 16, 2022, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law. The IRA provides tax incentives and grants for solar, wind, hydrogen, nuclear, oil and gas, and carbon capture, utilization and storage projects (CCUS). Specifically the IRA amends section 45Q of the tax code to provide credits for the capture and storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) in underground geologic formations. In the second environmental and energy law spin off episode of Briefly Legal, join attorneys Tim Sowecke and Alyssa Sloan as they discuss the growth of CCUS projects and the monetization of CO2 under the IRA, with a specific focus on the management of CO2 as a waste product in industrial and oil and gas operations under the Safe Drinking Water Act’s (SDWA) Underground Injection Control (UIC) program. They’ll highlight important jurisdictional distinctions between UIC Class VI wells used to collect CO2 emissions from large point sources like power generation or industrial facilities, and Class II wells used to dispose of CO2 as a waste product in oil and gas operations. They’ll also touch on environmental justice considerations in the siting of CCUS projects. Whether you’re an oil and gas operator trying to manage CO2 emissions, an entrepreneur looking at opportunities in the nascent carbon market, or just someone wanting to know more about carbon capture and storage, this episode will shed light on some of the latest efforts to capture and commoditize CO2 in the United States.

About Tim Sowecke and Alyssa Sloan

Connect with Crowe & Dunlevy:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has added addressing exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as a new regulatory priority in its National Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives for 2024-2027. With this announcement, the number of PFAS-related regulations and enforcement issues is expected to rise over the next several years. Briefly Legal is launching its first spin-off podcast focusing on environmental and energy law issues. In the inaugural episode, energy and environmental attorneys Tim Sowecke and Alyssa Sloan summarize EPA’s enforcement and compliance priorities for 2024-2027 and do a deep-dive on upcoming PFAS regulations, including drinking water standards and increased reporting requirements for manufacturers and processors of PFAS.

About Tim Sowecke and Alyssa Sloan

Addition Resources: EPA Regulations - PFAS as Far as the Eye Can See

Connect with Crowe & Dunlevy:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

In a decision applicable to both unionized and non-union employers, on August 2, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) overturned a prior 2017 decision that afforded employers flexibility in the policies and procedures they use to govern the workplace and changed its standard for assessing whether certain categories of work rules are lawful to maintain. The NLRB’s new standard outlined in its Stericycle, Inc. decision requires employers to articulate a legitimate business interest in the particular policy and ensure the policy is narrowly tailored. Labor & Employment Practice Group member Jaycee Booth discusses the history of the NLRB’s standard for assessing neutral work rules and explains the new balancing test the NLRB will use to assess whether an employer’s policies will violate the National Labor Relations Act.

About Jaycee Booth

Connect with Crowe & Dunlevy:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

On May 30, 2023, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued a memorandum advising NLRB regional directors that most non-compete agreements infringe on an employee’s Section 7 rights under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The memo follows on the heels of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) January 5, 2023, proposed rule prohibiting employers from imposing non-compete clauses on employees—a rule that the FTC has now delayed implementation of until April 2024. Labor & Employment Practice Group member Allen L. Hutson joins the podcast to discuss why the NLRB has begun to aggressively pursue the use of non-compete agreements, who will be affected by the new rules, and the impact they could have on other confidentiality and non-solicitation agreements.

About Allen L. Hutson

Addition Resources: The Federal Government Takes Another Shot at Non-Compete Agreements

Connect with Crowe & Dunlevy:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

Since the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma in which the court found that Congress had never disestablished the Muscogee Nation’s reservation, several more criminal cases have materialized involving the interpretation of Tribal jurisdiction on reservations outside of the Five Tribes (Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Muscogee, and Seminole). One case in particular, Oklahoma v. Brester, involved crimes committed on the Peoria and Ottawa reservations and therefore should be tried in federal court given that the Tribe’s 1867 Treaty boundaries remain intact. Indian Law & Gaming Practice Group Chair Mike McBride represents the Peoria Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma before the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals and the district court. Mike discusses the history of the Peoria Tribe’s terminated, but later restored, federal relationship, and how the decision in Brester affirmed that the reservations had never been disestablished and the Peoria Tribe’s significant powers over the reservation remain intact.

About Mike McBride

Connect with Crowe & Dunlevy:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to move forward with the regulation of certain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as “forever chemicals.” Join Energy, Environmental and Natural Resources Practice Group member and shareholder, Tim Sowecke, for this special Earth Day Episode, in which he discusses the history and chemistry of PFAS and also discusses EPA’s latest proposals to regulate specific PFAS under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), also known as Superfund. He will discuss the implications of these proposals, what’s next on EPA’s PFAS rulemaking agenda (hint Resource Conservation and Recovery Act rules), and the reality that many PFAS will degrade in different environments into other more stable forms of PFAS, challenging the notion that these “forever chemicals” are forever the same.

About Tim Sowecke

Addition Resources: PFAS Regulation and Litigation

Connect with Crowe & Dunlevy:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

Oklahoma Human Resources State Council (OKHR) Director Kristi Spaethe joins the podcast for a preview of the upcoming FunHR OKHR 2023 Conference at the Oklahoma City Convention Center, April 25-27, 2023. Kristi discusses this year's breakout sessions and keynote speakers tailored specifically for HR professionals, and touches on all the fun events planned for conference attendees, including Club FunHR, an 80's themed dance party, and Pub FunHR, a pub crawl through Bricktown. As the Premier Presenting Sponsor, our Labor & Employment Practice Group members are prepared to present the latest developments in employment law. Visit us at booths 1 and 2 in the vendor hall for great prizes as well as a chance to be a part of Briefly Legal.

About Kristi Spaethe

Additional Resources 2023 OKHR Conference

Connect with Crowe & Dunlevy:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn

The Securities and Exchange Commission recently proposed new requirements for publicly traded companies, including market entities regulated by the SEC, to address their cybersecurity risks. The proposed requirements are meant to not only protect investors, but would also benefit other market participants from knowing that the publicly traded entities have the proper protections in place. Cybersecurity and Data Privacy Practice Group Chair Anthony Hendricks breaks down the main tenants of the new SEC requirements and discusses why we should expect similar rulemakings from government agencies alike in the near future.

About Anthony Hendricks

Additional Resources Nothing About You Says Computer Technology podcast

Connect with Crowe & Dunlevy:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn