Overview
Energy Policy Attorney
Laura focuses on regulatory and legal policy issues involving the state and federal energy sectors. She has more than 25 years of experience in state, wholesale and regional energy issues. Laura previously served as a regulatory policy advisor for both the Michigan House and Senate, assistant counsel for former Speaker of the House Paul Hillegonds, deputy legal counsel for former Governor John Engler, and was appointed by Gov. John Engler as the chairman of the Michigan Public Service Commission in 2001, where she served as commissioner from 2003 until 2007. Laura was a key advisor in the drafting and implementation of Michigan's retail electric choice law, as well as Michigan's nationally-recognized "Broadband" telecommunications law that, in part, coordinated and streamlined local and state right-of-way regulations for telecommunications and Internet providers.
Laura previously served as a regulatory policy advisor for both the Michigan House and Senate and was appointed by Gov. John Engler as the chairman of the Michigan Public Service Commission in 2001, where she served as commissioner from 2003 until 2007. Laura was a key advisor in the drafting and implementation of Michigan's retail electric choice law, as well as Michigan's nationally-recognized "Broadband" law that, in part, coordinated and streamlined local and state right-of-way regulations for telecommunications and Internet providers.
For more information, please contact Laura Chappelle at 616/336-6920 or lachappelle@varnumlaw.com
Experience
Leadership
Honors & Recognitions
Best Lawyers in America®, Energy Regulatory Law, since 2017
Best Lawyers in America®, Women in the Law Spring Business Edition, Energy Regulatory Law, 2017
Professional Affiliations
Energy Bar Association, 2009 - present
Governor Rick Snyder - Legal Transition Team, 2011
Michigan Public Service Commission: chairman, 2000 - 2003; commissioner, 2003 - 2007
National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners: Electricity Committee,
vice chair, 2004 - 2007; Broadband over Power Line Task Force, chair
Organization of MISO States (OMS): president, January - June 2007; treasurer, 2003
Organization of PJM States (OPSI), vice president, 2006 - 2007
State Bar of Illinois
State Bar of Michigan, commissioner-at-large, 2007 - 2010
State Bar of Michigan
Working Group of the Consumer Energy Council of America (CECA), co-chair, 2004 - 2005
Community Involvement
Advancing Women in Energy (AWE), co-founder, 2016
News & Publications
News
Practice Areas
Industries
Education
Western Michigan University
Thomas M. Cooley Law School
Lansing, Michigan
J.D., 1988
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan
B.A., 1985
Bar Admissions
- Michigan
- Illinois
Court Admissions
- All Michigan state courts
- Supreme Court of the United States