Shane P. Early

Shane Early devotes his practice to counseling clients on energy matters, including public utilities and renewable energy projects.

Prior to joining the Firm, he was General Counsel for the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities where he oversaw all aspects of public utility regulation for electric, gas and water companies, such as the procurement and approval of long-term power purchase agreements for renewable energy, base rate reviews, energy efficiency plans and the issuance of hundreds of orders per year.

Shane's experience includes:

• Participated in meetings with other states, NESCOE and ISO-NE regarding the future of the region’s energy policy and its electric grid
• Managed the Department’s grid modernization order, which authorized $220 million dollars of investments in technologies to update and improve the efficiency and reliability of the state’s electric grid
• Oversaw the adjudication of solar rights concerning ISO-NE’s forward capacity market and the use of energy storage systems by net metering customers
• Oversaw the Department’s implementation of the SMART Plan for the state’s solar program
• Finalized orders on zoning exemptions for the siting of energy facilities
• Engaged and managed outside counsel in an appeal to the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court regarding the Department’s approval of a long-term contract for hydroelectric generation
• Oversaw the adjudication to apply the new federal corporate tax rate to regulated utilities
• Directed the legal analysis, policy analysis and drafting for numerous base rate cases involving electric, gas, and water utilities
• Drafted special orders under M.G.L. c. 25, § 4B to facilitate the Merrimack Valley restoration and address the effects of COVID-19, marking the first times this statute was used
• Served as the point person for the Department’s selection and oversight of the independent evaluator examining the state’s natural gas infrastructure
• Coordinated the imposition and regulation of moratoriums on pipeline work that the Department put on certain investor owned utilities
• Facilitated numerous meetings with the presidents of a gas company’s locked out unions to discuss their safety concerns and other issues
• Handled media issues and helped address demands from both local and national press after the Merrimack Valley disaster
• Oversaw the City of Boston Law Department attorneys involved with the U.S. Attorney’s investigation of the Boston Latin School. Coordinated discovery, witness preparation and witness interviews
• Defended court challenges to administrative decisions by the City of Boston
• Defended the City of Boston against discrimination and negligence claims