Edison names new general counsel amid wildfire mass torts

Southern California Edison promoted to general counsel the lawyer overseeing its wildfire litigation defense.

Assistant General Counsel Jennifer Hasbrouck takes over the top job on May 2.

"As I prepare for taking on this role, I'm trying to better understand and be ready on Day One in those areas I haven't directly managed or practiced in myself, but know that I need to understand on a deeper level than I do right now," Hasbrouck said in an interview.

Edison supplies and delivers electricity to 15 million people across 50,000 square miles, encompassing portions of Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties.

Even though it has fared better than other utilities in California, Edison faces massive litigation and government scrutiny from wildfires. The utility is also decommissioning a nuclear power plant at San Onofre that has drawn criticism.

Electrical equipment and power lines operated by Edison were blamed by lawsuit plaintiffs for the 2018 Woolsey and Thomas fires, which resulted in a combined 621 damaged structures, 2,706 destroyed structures and five fatalities, according to data from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

In November, Edison agreed to pay $360 million to settle claims by 23 public entities impacted by the fires and subsequent debris flows. The utility still faces mass tort cases filed by thousands of plaintiffs affected by the fires.

"It is a significant litigation facing the company and as general counsel I will be deeply focused on it," Hasbrouck said.

As of Dec. 31, 2019, Edison had $46.4 billion in liabilities, including $15.1 billion in long-term debt, $8.4 billion in regulatory liabilities and $4.6 billion in wildfire-related claims, according to Securities and Exchange Commission documents filed last month. The bulk of the company's long-term debt consists of $14.3 billion in mortgage bonds.

"We intend for the net proceeds of the offered securities to be used to redeem, repay or retire outstanding debt or other securities, to finance construction expenditures, for other general corporate purposes, or to reduce short-term debt incurred to finance such activities," read the filing describing how funds from the bond offering would be spent.

Hasbrouck said there is a "vast difference" between Edison's pending litigation and the magnitude of losses that led investor-owned utility Pacific Gas & Electric to file for bankruptcy last year.

"We have taken an accounting reserve for our estimated losses associated with litigation concerning the 2017 and 2018 wildfire and mudslide events," Hasbrouck said. "We do believe that we will be financially viable."

Projections of risks and uncertainties listed in the filing that could cause actual results to "differ materially from those anticipated" include Edison's ability to implement its Wildfire Mitigation Plan, decommission the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station and decisions made by regulatory bodies.

The Wildfire Mitigation Plan will be rolled out annually and identify where critical fire suppression activities are needed. Hasbrouck said internal resources and outside experts will assess the highest risk zones for fires and prioritize rolling out mitigation efforts there first.

Hasbrouck will continue to work on the San Onofre decommissioning, although her responsibilities will differ. She will provide oversight on permitting applications, environmental reviews, report filing and maintenance plans in her new role.

In total, the decommissioning process will last eight to 10 years. Hasbrouck and her team will need to extend Edison's lease with the U.S. Navy, the owner of the land where the station is located, through the project's completion.