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Athena Y. Velie is a partner in the law firm of McDermott Will & Emery LLP based in the Firm's Washington, D.C. office. She is a member of the Firm's Energy and Derivatives Markets Practice Group where she focuses her practice on representing investment banks, hedge funds and energy and commodity companies, including coal mining businesses, in a variety of transactional, regulatory and risk management matters, as well as government investigations.
Athena previously was seconded in McDermott's London office where she assisted clients with respect to US emissions and carbon markets and the UK and EU emissions trading schemes, as well as regulatory issues with respect to derivatives trading in a variety of EU jurisdictions.
Athena advises clients with respect to international and domestic regulatory and documentation issues related to structured commodity transactions and both on-exchange and over-the-counter coal, renewable energy, emissions, electricity, natural gas and agricultural transactions. She has considerable experience drafting and negotiating commodity agreements, including ISDAs, EEIs and NAESBs, as well as collateral and other credit support agreements.
Athena has worked extensively with US investment bank and hedge fund clients assisting in the initiation of coal and emissions trading desks, as well as coal mining clients seeking to enter the OTC coal markets. Athena has extensive experience representing clients involved in government investigations by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), including its investigation into natural gas transaction price reporting and market manipulation. In conjunction therewith, she has advised numerous clients with respect to electricity and natural gas transaction price reporting, trading practices in futures and over-the-counter energy and agricultural markets, and internal compliance matters.
Athena is on the drafting committees of the ISDA Emissions Trading Working Group and the ISDA Coal Trading Working Group. She is a member of the Energy Bar Association, and the ABA's Committee on Regulation of Futures and Derivatives Instruments.
Athena authored "Agency Settlements May Fuel Plaintiff Suits: In re Natural Gas Commodity Litigation," Futures & Derivatives Law Report (December 2004). Athena also has co-authored "Investor Confidence Riding on New EU Carbon Dioxide Emission Allowance Allocations," International News (September 2006) with Doron Ezickson; "Emissions Trading Programs Are Evolving," Electric Light & Power (July/August 2006) with Kari S. Larsen; and "There's a New Sheriff in Town: Energy Derivatives and FERC" Futures Industry (July/August 2007) with Catherine Krupka. Athena has spoken regarding CFTC enforcement issues at the ABA's 2004 annual meeting of the Committee on Regulation of Futures and Derivatives Instruments.
Athena was executive editor of the Virginia Environmental Law Journal while attending the University of Virginia Law School. She also was a semifinalist in the Lile Moot Court Competition and was awarded regional best oralist in the Jessup International Moot Court Competition. Prior to law school, Athena worked as a United States Page for the Honorable Gerald B. Solomon, and served as an Intern for Senator John Warner on Capitol Hill.
Athena is admitted to practice in Virginia and the District of Columbia.
Education
University of Virginia School of Law, J.D., 2002
Georgetown University, B.A. (magna cum laude), 1999 | 