April 1, 2022
Virginia Lawyers Weekly honored Vishwa Link, chair of McGuireWoods’ Regulatory & Compliance Department, as one of its 2022 “Go To Lawyers in Business Law.” Honorees are selected for their longstanding track records of notable client successes and innovative legal strategies.
For more than 25 years, Link has represented electric and gas utility clients in rate, energy conservation and integrated planning proceedings, and helped electric utility clients secure permits for generating plants and transmission lines. Most recently, she has focused on renewable energy projects, many which are so cutting-edge that regulations were still being finalized when she first sought approval.
In 2021, Link led a team representing Dominion Energy seeking state approval for an approximately $9.8 billion project to construct a 2.6-gigawatt coastal Virginia offshore wind commercial project that will be the largest offshore wind-generating facility in the United States. She represents the utility in its application to the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) and she will soon litigate the matter before the SCC, with a ruling expected by August 2022. Link also won approval from the SCC for Phase II of Dominion Energy’s 10-year plan to transform the electric distribution grid.
“It is an honor to receive the ‘Go To Lawyer’ recognition along with exceptional attorneys throughout the state,” Link said. “I am privileged to be part of a firm that has helped blaze new trails for renewable energy in Virginia.”
Among her many recognitions, in 2021 Link was named to The National Law Journal’s “Energy/Environmental Law Trailblazers” list and Lawdragon’s “500 Leading U.S. Environmental & Energy Lawyers” list.
Link is a member of the advisory board for McGuireWoods’ pro bono medical-legal partnership with VCU Health and Dominion Energy. She also served on the firm’s Diversity Action Council and co-chaired the firm’s Richmond Women Lawyers Network.