Curt Moffatt (Photo: Diego M. Radzinschi/ALM)

The general counsel of energy infrastructure company Kinder Morgan Inc. died of cardiac arrest on Dec. 28, according to a news release put out by the company on Monday.

James Curtis “Curt” Moffatt died while spending the holidays with his family.  He was 67 years old, according to the company.

KMI Chief Executive Officer Steve Kean said in a statement that Moffatt was a great contributor to the company.

“Curt was a leading figure in the energy bar, and his contributions to the energy sector and to federal law and policy are legion,” Kean said in the  news release. “Curt served KMI well for decades, both as an outside adviser and, for the last five years, as a full-time employee. More importantly, he was a dear friend and a mentor to many.”

According to his biography on the KMI website, Moffatt's first legal job was as a legal adviser to the chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. He then spent 30 years working at Van Ness Feldman in Washington, D.C., where he  made partner. Before joining KMI, Moffatt represented the company in several matters while working at Van Ness Feldman. He joined KMI in January 2014 as general counsel, according to a KMI spokesperson. He received his  J.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received his bachelor's degree from Duke University.

Moffatt announced earlier this year that he planned on retiring, effective August 2019.The company said it had already begun a search for his replacement and has a list of qualified candidates that it will continue to vet. In the meantime, Vice President, Deputy General Counsel and Corporate Secretary Adam Forman is serving as interim general counsel while the company continues its search for a permanent general counsel. Background information on Forman was not available.

According to its website, KMI owns an interest in or operates 84,000 miles of pipelines and 152 terminals. The company's pipelines transports natural gas, refined petroleum produces carbon dioxide and crude oil. Its terminals store, transfer and handle products including gasoline, ethanol, coal, petroleum coke and steel.