The National Law Journal (NLJ) has recognized David Ogden and Kelly Dunbar, both Washington, DC-based partners, as 2019 Litigation Trailblazers in their sixth annual list. This accolade recognizes lawyers who have had significant impact on legal practice, policy or technological advancements.

“We are proud to spotlight a handful of individuals from each practice area that are truly agents of change,” noted Vice President and General Manager of Legal Media, Richard Caruso.

Besides highlighting their previous work at the Department of Justice, Mr. Ogden and Mr. Dunbar’s NLJ profile features their success as leaders of the legal team that persuaded the Fifth Circuit to vacate the US Department of Labor’s Fiduciary Rule. The partners and others, representing the American Council of Life Insurers, Nationwide Agents and Financial Advisors (NAFA) and some NAFA affiliates, arrived at a legal strategy that effectively argued that the agency had exceeded its mandate by promulgating the rule which imposed requirements on advisors working with retirement accounts to be more transparent and to avoid conflicts between their own financial interests and those of consumers.

“What we’re witnessing is the Supreme Court and new judges’ willingness to interpret agency regulations more harshly,” Mr. Ogden said in the article.