Meg Keeley concentrates her practice on complex civil and criminal matters. She has tried well over a dozen cases, including jury trials, court trials, and arbitrations, for corporations, law firms, and individuals throughout the United States.
Meg has defended major law firms in legal malpractice and other professional liability matters, including malpractice suits arising in intellectual property matters. She has represented many Am Law 100 firms, including defending one in a jury trial that concluded with a unanimous verdict in favor of the law firm. Chambers USA recognized Meg among the top lawyers nationwide in Law Firm Defense, noting that clients say she “is extremely intelligent, very thoughtful and relates extremely well to the client, opposing counsel and judges,” “has a natural affinity for the issues that law firms face,” and that “her analysis of matters is not just legally correct, but also pragmatically correct.” Meg serves as Co-Chair of the Law Firm Defense practice group.
Meg also has defended issuers, underwriters, investment management firms, and corporate officers and directors in civil and criminal securities litigation, including the defense of a Bear Stearns hedge fund manager charged with securities fraud and insider trading in a trial in which the jury acquitted on all counts.
Meg’s other trial and arbitration experience includes representing clients in accounting matters, contract disputes, professional liability, and negligence claims. She also has represented numerous clients in temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction hearings. Her pro bono work has included two trials with the Montgomery County public defender’s office, as well as supervising several other trial and appellate teams in the office.
Meg grew up in Yuba City, California, just north of Sacramento. After receiving her B.A. from Georgetown University in 1991, she spent a year in the Jesuit Volunteer Corps NW in Portland, Oregon, working at the local public defender’s office. She received her J.D., with high honors, from the University of Chicago Law School, where she was a member of the Order of the Coif. Following law school, Meg clerked for Judge Alfred T. Goodwin of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, before joining Williams & Connolly in 1996. Meg currently chairs the firm’s Ethics Committee. She has been recognized in Washingtonian magazine as one of the Washington, D.C. area’s best criminal defense lawyers.
Publications
“Crossing the Line: Discovery Misconduct and Sanctions,” ALAS Loss Prevention Journal, Winter 2023, Meg Keeley
Representative Experience
- Defended an Am Law 100 law firm in a trial involving claims of legal malpractice where the plaintiff alleged damages of more than $30 million, which were reduced by two-thirds through motion practice. The jury returned a complete defense verdict
- Defended an Am Law 100 firm in opposing a motion to disqualify
- Defended a Fortune 50 company in both an SEC enforcement action and a securities class action related to a merger
- Defended an investment bank in an SEC investigation related to the creation of a Collateralized Debt Offering (“CDO”)
- Defended an Am Law 100 firm against a legal malpractice claim related to the failure to file a complaint within the applicable statute of limitations
- Defended multiple patent prosecution law firms against legal malpractice claims related to missed filing deadlines
- Defended an investment bank in a federal securities class action related to the underwriting of a stock offering by a mortgage company
- Defended an investment management company in an SEC enforcement action concerning cross-trades and other alleged conflicts of interest related to the management of hedge funds and CDOs
- Defended an Am Law 100 firm in a breach of fiduciary duty action related to a representation adverse to one of its former clients
- Defending a major, national law firm in a malpractice action arising from a missed foreign filing deadline
- Defended an Am Law 100 firm against a legal malpractice claim related to creditor protection advice
- Defended an investment bank in a federal securities class action related to the underwriting of a preferred stock offering related to an oil and gas company
- Represented British Petroleum in a fraud suit against a plaintiffs’ lawyer for allegedly inflating the number of claimants he represented, and in other related matters arising out of the Deepwater Horizon spill
- Represented a Big 4 accounting firm in an arbitration of professional liability matters related to tax shelter transactions