Eric Fjelstad was quoted in the Law360 article, “State Objections May Mean Rough Seas For DOI Drilling Plan,” regarding the U.S. Department of the Interior's recently announced plan to open nearly all federal waters to oil and gas drilling.

Eric Fjelstad said there is still a chance the administration could succeed with the Florida exemption because it has a lot of discretion in terms of putting together the five-year plan, giving challengers who say the Florida decision was reached arbitrarily and capriciously a tough case to prove.

"The administration is now on notice of what the argument will be, they've got smart lawyers and time to create a record — if they want to head in that direction — that would provide a defensible rationale for excluding Florida and not other areas," Fjelstad said.

"Each one of those lease sales will have an accompanying environmental impact statement. So that's another opportunity for the public to get involved and challenge the process," he said.