On December 21, 2020 Congress passed the lengthiest piece of legislation in its history—nearly 5600 pages. While most Americans are focused on the provisions of the “Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021” related to coronavirus response and recovery, it also included provisions that will directly impact pipeline operators.

The “Protecting Our Infrastructure of Pipelines and Enhancing

On October 1, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review a Texas Supreme Court’s ruling finding Noble Energy Inc. (“Noble”) liable for cleanup costs paid by ConocoPhillips Co. (“ConocoPhillips”) to settle a separate Louisiana oilfield legacy case. The Texas Supreme Court ruled that Noble inherited the indemnity obligation to ConocoPhillips from its predecessor, which