Sherry Quirk Named TVA Executive Vice President And General Counsel

  • Thursday, January 8, 2015

President and CEO Bill Johnson announced he has named Sherry Quirk as Tennessee Valley Authority’s executive vice president and general counsel, effective Feb. 2. Ralph Rodgers, who held this role since 2010, is retiring from TVA after 34 years of service.

Ms. Quirk will be responsible for directing TVA's legal affairs and serving as corporate secretary to the TVA board of directors. She will also serve as the designated agency ethics official, responsible for the administration of TVA’s ethics program.

“I’m confident that Sherry has the legal background, public power experience and leadership attributes to serve TVA well as our general counsel,” Mr. Johnson said. “We've been fortunate to have Ralph Rodgers leading the TVA legal team for many years, and now to have found an able successor who can immediately relate to our public power mission of service here in the Tennessee Valley.”

Ms. Quirk joins TVA with extensive experience as legal counsel to the energy sector. She most recently served as an equity partner in the law firm of Schiff Hardin LLP, which specializes in federal energy regulation, legislation and power supply transactions, and has had responsibility for 40 lawyers in her role as the coordinating partner for the firm’s Washington, D.C., office. Headquartered in Chicago, the firm has approximately 400 lawyers serving both domestic and international clients.

Ron Safer, Schiff Hardin’s managing partner, said, “We are proud and extremely happy for our partner, Sherry Quirk, on her appointment to general counsel of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). Sherry is one of the most prominent and respected energy lawyers in the country who has developed a reputation for successfully handling some of the most complex and innovative energy cases and transactions. She’ll be a tremendous asset to the TVA and we wish her all the best.”

As head of the firm’s Energy and Public Utilities practice group, Ms. Quirk has led a staff of over 20 attorneys in counseling energy companies on a variety of complex matters. She works regularly with public power entities, investor-owned utilities, rural electric cooperatives, alternative energy developers and large consumer groups. She also has significant experience in matters involving Independent System Operators and large energy transactions.

Ms. Quirk’s practice includes representing clients before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the U.S. Department of Energy, Congress, regional power marketing administrations and various state agencies.

Prior to joining Schiff Hardin, Ms. Quirk worked as  a partner in the Energy Group of Sullivan & Worcester LLP, a 200-attorney, Boston-based law firm exclusively focused on public utility industry work and as a partner in the Energy Group of Verner, Liipfert, Bernhard, McPherson and Hand, specializing in federal energy regulation, legislation, power supply transactions and state proceedings.

Ms. Quirk holds a law degree from American University’s Washington College of Law and a bachelor’s degree from Mount Holyoke College. She has previously served on the board of directors for the Energy Bar Association and has been recognized as a Best Lawyer in America by Energy Law; a Washington D.C., Super Lawyer by the Journal of Energy and Natural Resources Law; and a Washington, D.C., Super Lawyer by the Top 50 Women Lawyers Group. She is co-founder and vice chair of First Star, a national non-profit that advocates for child abuse victims and those in the foster care system, strengthening their rights and promoting necessary reforms.

 

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