On December 14, 2023, Judge Jennifer Rochon of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed claims brought against Wilson Sonsini client RWE, a renewable energy company, following a five-day bench trial.

RWE and its predecessor, Innogy, were sued in a contract dispute arising out of RWE’s acquisition of renewable energy projects, including a wind farm in western New York known as the Cassadaga Project. The plaintiffs sought approximately $70 million in damages.

Since the litigation commenced in 2020, the plaintiffs asserted a myriad of claims; however, only two remained at the time of trial. First, the plaintiffs claimed that Innogy breached the covenant of good faith and fair dealing implied in the parties’ contract by failing to complete construction of the Cassadaga project until after December 31, 2020, in order to avoid its obligation to make a $69.7 million milestone payment to the plaintiffs. Second, the plaintiffs claimed that Innogy breached the contract by failing to timely provide them with certain information regarding the development of the Cassadaga Project.

In a well-reasoned, 53-page opinion, Judge Jennifer Rochon dismissed each of the plaintiffs’ claims, securing a complete victory for RWE. The opinion is notable for describing the difficulties of wind farm construction work in New York during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, and concluding that RWE endeavored to use its best efforts to complete construction, with any delays during that period understandable and not indicative of bad faith.

The Wilson Sonsini trial team that represented RWE in the matter included partner Eli Richlin and associate Sara Bricker, who worked with co-counsel Susan Leader and Paul Gross at Paul Hastings.

For more information, please see the court’s opinion.