MEMBER FEATURE: PRIMMER PIPER EGGLESTON & CRAMER PC

Member Feature:  a conversation with Eli Emerson, Primmer Piper Eggleston & Cramer PC

For those of us who grew up in the 1980’s there is a deep affinity for the music and movies of that decade—Flashdance, Footloose and Purple Rain toname a few. Beyond these cultural references there were other things underway, including small businesses that were started to help the communities in which they were based.  We spoke with Elijah Emerson, Shareholder of Primmer Piper Eggleston & Cramer PC, recently to learn about the firm’s history and where they are heading looking forward. Eli is an attorney in the firm’s Littleton office and whose focus is energy, an area that is growing as things evolve in that field.  He focuses on helping clients develop locally-sited renewable energy projects that also help reduce client and New Hampshire’s energy footprint.

Primmer itself has roots that go back to 1982, when it began as a boutique corporate/regulatory law firm by John Primmer, Bill Piper and Denise Deschenes in St. Johnsbury, VT. They primarily provided corporate, securities and regulatory legal services to insurance companies, financial institutions and public utilities.

In response to client’s increased legal needs the firm continued to grow in both their team and expertise, merging with Eggleston & Cramer in 2006 which expanded their presence into NH with an office in Littleton. This merger brought a whole new complement of expertise to the firm including state-wide corporate, tax, estate planning, bankruptcy, commercial, regulatory and health care practice. Primmer Piper Eggleston & Cramer PC continued its growth through the addition of notable lawyers from the Wiggin & Nourie law firm, creating a Manchester and Portsmouth presence, and most recently expanding their geographic presence with offices in Camden, Maine and Washington, DC.

They now find themselves in 7 geographic areas in New England with over 24 practice areas, which gives them the ability to draw on diverse experience and expertise depending on a client’s needs. Eli shares that  the firm is in a unique position to address clients’ needs from a holistic perspective, drawing on the knowledge and resources within their diverse firm versus the need to outsource. There are practice areas that will always be important to their clients—corporate, wills and estate planning for example. What has been interesting to the team are the new areas that are evolving around energy, new technologies and cyber security.  

When we asked Primmer Piper Eggleston & Cramer why they joined our organization, Eli shared that given the firm’s growing work in the environmental and energy arenas they are looking forward to connecting with other  like-minded businesses who are working with some of the same issues.  They hope to learn about the challenges that fellow members are facing and how they may help with finding a solution. While we try and keep politics out of the conversation, the upcoming change of administration is having an impact on the number and types of filings they saw at the end of 2016 and will certainly influence their work moving forward.  Eli’s representation of the New Hampshire Sustainable Energy Association in front of the Public Utilities Commission in the net metering restructuring docket is a great example of this.  Given the change in administration, there is heightened attention to revisions to the program that will emerge in this docket.  Renewable energy and net metering are strong but young industries in New Hampshire. The outcome of this docket will determine if they continue to grow at the same pace.

Primmer Piper Eggleston & Cramer’s work in the community goes beyond their legal expertise. They have deep roots in the communities they work and live and feel a deep sense of commitment to giving back, which they do through sponsorships and financial donations to organizations.

Please help us welcome Eli and the rest of the Primmer team. We hope that you’ll have a chance to meet him and others at Primmer Piper Eggleston & Cramer in the coming year.

Eli welcomes the chance to meet and get to know fellow members and answer any questions you may have about their work.

You may reach him at---

Eli Emerson, eemerson@primmer.com, (802) 223-2102 x1109

Please help us welcome Eli and his team at Primmer Piper Eggleston & Cramer PC.