Murtha Cullina’s Energy Team and CCM’s hard fought efforts land an $8.1 million refund for Connecticut’s municipalities

After long-standing efforts to win back compensation for years of systematic overcharging by The Connecticut Light and Power Company, Connecticut cities and towns finally have a reason to celebrate. The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities' (CCM) case before the State Superior Court ended in success when the Court sided with CCM and the Connecticut Department of Public Utility Control (DPUC) on 4 of the 5 issues involved, resulting in an $8.1 million refund for cities and towns.  Murtha Cullina represented CCM in court, as it has on streetlight overcharge issues before the DPUC for the past 5 years.

The refunds, resulting from municipal street lighting services being overcharged, would be distributed either as optional lump sum payments or credits to customer bills over a 24-month period. Murtha Cullina's lead partner in the case, Paul McCary, said "This is a true victory all around. We are extraordinarily pleased with the outcome. It is both well-deserved and an exciting win for our client." Mr. McCary tackled many tough issues in the case, including whether the statute of limitations applied to cut off refunds due for overcharges dating back more than 20 years and how to calculate refunds for overcharges when the beginning of the billing error could not be documented. He states that the success in most part was due to "persistence before DPUC as the scope of the overcharges was gradually uncovered" and "supportive staff at the agency and the Office of Consumer Counsel."

Since 1984, Murtha Cullina has been among the leading law firms in Connecticut with respect to cogeneration, small power production and merchant power plant development. With the onset of electric industry restructuring in most New England states and the expansion of the firm into Massachusetts, Murtha Cullina's Energy Practice is prepared to serve the needs of merchant generators, retail suppliers, end users and other energy clients throughout the region.