Vinson & Elkins Hires Jenny Speck, Expanding Its Energy Transition and Tax Practices

Vinson & Elkins today announced that it has added Jenny Speck as a Houston-based partner in its Energy Transition and Tax Practices. She advises clients on the qualification for and the monetization of energy transition tax incentives. Speck has worked on a range of renewable projects, including onshore and offshore wind, solar, combined heat and power, biogas property, carbon capture, hydrogen and clean fuel credit projects.

Speck has firsthand knowledge of the carbon capture industry, having served as the senior manager of tax and regulatory compliance at Navigator CO2 Ventures LLC, where she led all aspects of tax qualification, utilization and reporting compliance for federal income energy tax credits and served as Navigator’s sole liaison with the U.S. Department of Energy. She also previously worked in the National Tax practice of Deloitte Tax LLP in Washington, D.C., where she served as a technical specialist on federal credits and incentives. She advised clients on complex tax credit matters, including the evolving regulatory and legislative landscape, and formed tax-efficient solutions.

“Jenny has a commercial sensibility that our clients will value. She knows how to get deals done and is adept at calibrating tax advice to a company’s strategic objectives,” said Vinson & Elkins Partner Sean Moran, one of the leaders of the firm’s Energy Transition Practice. “She is another phenomenal addition to our Renewable Energy and Tax Practices, which are booming as the Inflation Reduction Act continues to drive unprecedented investment and development in renewable energy.”

Vinson & Elkins lawyers have been working in the tax equity and energy transition space for decades and have worked on billions of dollars of tax credit transfer transactions since the inception of the Inflation Reduction Act, in addition to working on landmark M&A and project finance transactions in the energy industry. In the energy transition tax space, Speck will be joining partners Sean Moran, Lauren Collins and Jorge Medina.

Moran and Collins joined Vinson & Elkins along with four renewable energy and tax lawyers in 2021. Medina joined the firm earlier this year, and is another leading practitioner in tax equity transactions with extensive experience with renewable energy projects.

“I have worked across from Vinson & Elkins on transactions and have seen the depth of their experience, along with the efficiency and camaraderie they bring to projects,” Speck said. “I look forward to joining my new colleagues and strengthening their tax and energy powerhouse.”

Speck joins Vinson & Elkins from Bracewell LLP.

Speck earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Northeastern State University and her Juris Doctor from the University of Tulsa College of Law. In 2024, she was ranked by Legal 500 U.S. as one of the nation’s leading lawyers in US Taxes – Non-Contentious and was included in the Lawdragon 500 Leading US Energy Lawyers guide for “Energy Transition Incentives.”