Awards & Rankings
Source: Financial Times
Awards & Rankings
Press Contacts: Erik Cummins, Matt Hyams, Olivia Thomas
12.06.23
As a part of its Innovative Lawyers North America Awards for 2023, Financial Times has named Pillsbury the Most Innovative Law Firm in North America in Energy Transition. The firm was honored based on the firm’s advocacy for the Fusion Industry Association’s (FIA) efforts to develop a regulatory framework for fusion.
Energy practice leader Jeff Merrifield, counsel Sid Fowler and associate Ashley Meredith led the efforts on behalf of the FIA. As a result of Pillsbury and the FIA’s two-year-long public advocacy, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission unanimously voted to regulate fusion energy under existing rules for use of byproduct materials in April 2023. This specific approach split the regulation of fusion energy from the framework used for nuclear fission, which allowed the NRC to tailor its approach to the fusion sector and give developers regulatory certainty to revolutionize fusion into a viable energy source.
In a recent interview with Financial Times, Merrifield stated, “We had a tall mountain to climb to basically disentangle fusion technologies from the regulatory process for fission and really convince the NRC commissioners that the right way to go was to differentiate it. Fusion has its own issues, but it doesn’t have the risk or complications of a fission-based reactor.”
According to Financial Times, the decision should make the development of prototype fusion devices faster and should also eliminate the need for costly regulatory approvals, insurance and safety provisions.
Merrifield also noted that the fusion industry hopes to learn from mistakes made in the international regulation of fission as the difference in regulation in other countries has restricted its growth.
“It is powerful that the U.S., the UK and Canada have aligned on an approach that is really quite similar to how they would go ahead and regulate fusion,” he added. “[So] I think that provides an important foundational opportunity to use that as something for which the rest of the international community could potentially harmonize.”
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Pillsbury’s energy insights inform companies around the world and across industries as they evolve and adapt to the challenges of the energy transition. From advancing new zero-carbon technologies to developing strategies for established companies to meet decarbonization goals, Pillsbury provides energy stakeholders with comprehensive guidance based on vast industry experience and a track record of innovation and success.
Click here and here to see Pillsbury’s previous Most Innovative Law Firms recognitions.