Maxwell Cooke, Associate

Max is an Associate with the firm's Energy & Environmental and EMERGE practice groups with experience in corporate matters.

He represents power plant developers, public utilities, and other regulated entities in administrative proceedings before the Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC). His practice includes assisting solar developer clients in navigating the process of obtaining a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN), which is required for most utility-scale solar projects larger than 2MWac. Max also focuses on Maryland’s permanent community solar program. Specifically, he helps developers interpret and comply with the regulatory requirements for subscriber organizations (SOs) and subscription coordinators in order for community solar energy systems (CSEGS) to receive necessary state approvals. Max also regularly appears at administrative hearings in front of the PSC. He also drafts opinion letters for solar financing and solar project acquisitions. 

Separately, the firm also assists with battery energy storage (BESS) development and permitting in Maryland.

Max has experience reviewing environmental site assessments (ESAs) and drafting environmental liability opinion letters for homebuilders. He has experience in administrative proceedings concerning environmental issues. Max also provides counsel to real estate developers and business owners on environmental permitting.

Recently, Max has been involved with navigating Maryland’s Climate Solutions Now Act and the corresponding Building Energy Performance Standards (BEPS), which will soon require almost all buildings over 35,000 square feet to meet reporting requirements and to retrofit in order to convert from fossil fuel to high efficiency heat pumps.

Prior to joining Gordon Feinblatt, Max was a judicial intern to the Hon. Robert E. Cahill, Jr. of the Baltimore County Circuit Court.

Before transitioning to a legal career, he worked for a Maryland-based marketing agency where he supervised contract development in the pre-sale stage as well as advanced marketing campaigns for clients.

Max received his J.D. from the University of Baltimore School of Law and received his B.A. in Strategic Communications in 2015 from Elon University in Elon, NC.