Keith Higgins

Keith Higgins rejoined Ropes & Gray LLP in 2017 as the chair of the firm’s securities and governance practice, a role which he held until his retirement in early 2021. As chair, he served as a special advisor to clients on high-stakes securities, governance and disclosure matters and served as a resource to the firm’s government enforcement and business and securities litigation practices.

Prior to rejoining Ropes & Gray, where he had previously worked for more than 30 years, Keith served as the Director of Corporation Finance at the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) from 2013 through 2016.

At the SEC, Keith drove numerous initiatives to make the country’s disclosure system more effective. During his tenure he also spearheaded the Division’s implementation of significant rulemaking and other responsibilities under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act) and the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act). He also guided the Division’s efforts to provide interpretive advice to market participants about their obligations under the federal securities laws.

Keith holds a B.A. from Florida State University, Phi Beta Kappa, and received his M.A. from the University of Virginia. He graduated summa cum laude from Boston University School of Law and clerked for the Hon. Herbert P. Wilkins in the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts.

As an Access to Justice Fellow, Keith will start by partnering with the Nonprofit Assistance Program at Lawyers Clearinghouse, where he will work on legal cases on behalf of local nonprofits in coordination with associates at Ropes & Gray and will assist with additional programming needs. Lawyers Clearinghouse seeks to improve the lives of people facing social and economic hardship by engaging the legal community in pro bono service to nonprofit organizations and their homeless and low-income clients.