Retail Energy Advancement League v. Anthony Brown

── Retail Energy Advancement League v. Anthony Brown ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit Date: May 15, 2026 Category: General USCA4 Appeal: 25-1012 Doc: 43 Filed: 05/15/2026 Pg: 1 of 26 PUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 25-1012 RETAIL ENERGY ADVANCEMENT LEAGUE; GREEN MOUNTAIN ENERGY COMPANY, Plaintiffs - Appellants, v. ANTHONY G. BROWN, in his official capacity as Attorney General of Maryland; FREDERICK H. HOOVER, in his official capacity as Chair of the Maryland Public Service Commission; MICHAEL T. RICHARD, in his official capacity as member of the Maryland Public Service Commission; KUMAR P. BARVE, in his official capacity as member of the Maryland Public Service Commission; BONNIE A. SUCHMAN, in her official capacity as member of the Maryland Public Service Commission, Defendants - Appellees. ----------------------- STATE OF NORTH DAKOTA; STATE OF ALABAMA; STATE OF IDAHO; STATE OF IOWA; STATE OF LOUISIANA; STATE OF MONTANA; STATE OF NEBRASKA, Amici Supporting Appellant. Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, at Baltimore. Julie R. Rubin, District Judge. (1:24-cv-2820-JRR) Argued: October 24, 2025 Decided: May 15, 2026 USCA4 Appeal: 25-1012 Doc: 43 Filed: 05/15/2026 Pg: 2 of 26 Before DIAZ, Chief Circuit Judge, FLOYD, Senior Circuit Judge, and GILES, Patricia Tolliver, United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Virginia, sitting by designation. Reversed in part and remanded with instructions by published opinion. Judge Floyd wrote the opinion in which Chief Judge Diaz and Judge Giles joined. ARGUED: Thomas M. Johnson, Jr., WILEY REIN, LLP, Washington, D.C., for Appellants. James David Handley, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MARYLAND, Baltimore, Maryland, for Appellees. ON BRIEF: Stephen J. Obermeier, Jeremy J. Broggi, Krystal B. Swendsboe, Boyd Garriott, Joel S. Nolette, WILEY REIN, LLP, Washington, D.C., for Appellants. Anthony G. Brown, Attorney General, Howard R. Feldman, Assistant Attorney General, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MARYLAND, Baltimore, Maryland, for Appellee Anthony G. Brown. Miles H. Mitchell, General Counsel, Colin Glynn, Associate General Counsel, MARYLAND PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION, Baltimore, Maryland, for Appellees Frederick H. Hoover, Michael T. Richard, Kumar P. Barve, and Bonnie A. Suchman. Drew H. Wrigley, Attorney General, Philip Axt, Solicitor General, Joseph S. St. John, Special Assistant Attorney General, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF NORTH DAKOTA, Bismarck, North Dakota, for Amicus State of North Dakota. Steve Marshall, Attorney General, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF ALABAMA, Montgomery, Alabama, for Amicus State of Alabama. Brenna Bird, Attorney General, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF IOWA, Des Moines, Iowa, for Amicus State of Iowa. Austin Knudsen, Attorney General, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MONTANA, Helena, Montana, for Amicus State of Montana. Raúl Labrador, Attorney General, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF IDAHO, Boise, Idaho, for Amicus State of Idaho. Liz Murrill, Attorney General, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF LOUISIANA, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for Amicus State of Louisiana. Michael T. Hilgers, Attorney General, OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF NEBRASKA, Lincoln, Nebraska, for Amicus State of Nebraska.