WASHINGTON, DC – April 22, 2025: Expanding its investment management and financial markets capabilities and its roster of former government officials, Morgan Lewis is pleased to welcome Robert A. Schwartz, who has spent more than a decade with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), including as general counsel. Rob joins the firm as a partner in the investment management practice, resident in Washington, DC.
“Amid significant regulatory change across derivatives and alternatives markets, Rob’s CFTC service will bring timely and highly sought-after insight that will be invaluable to our clients,” said Firm Chair Jami McKeon. “Rob’s deep CFTC experience will enhance our ability to provide comprehensive counsel across disciplines spanning regulation, policy and rulemakings, investigations, enforcement, and litigation.”
Rob led the agency’s Office of the General Counsel and served as its chief legal advisor. He has a deep understanding of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and the rules and regulations implemented by the CFTC and National Futures Association. He represented the CFTC in significant cases, including several lawsuits challenging the agency’s implementation of the Dodd-Frank Act and appeals in enforcement actions. Rob’s experience covers the full range of CFTC-regulated products and markets, from traditional derivatives to innovative products like digital assets.
“Rob will fortify our deep bench of multidisciplinary derivatives and commodities lawyers at a time of systemic change in the energy, digital assets, and traditional derivatives sectors,” said Tim Levin, leader of the firm’s investment management practice. “As investor demand for new products and services grows, and regulation and market structures evolve, Rob’s understanding of the CEA and CFTC rules and regulations will greatly benefit asset managers, futures commission merchants, proprietary trading firms, digital asset platforms, financial exchanges, and others navigating this complex and competitive landscape.”
Rob’s arrival has natural and strong synergies with the firm’s Chambers-ranked CFTC practice; financial services litigator Stacie Hartman in Chicago/New York; and former SEC enforcement official Carolyn Welshhans in Washington, DC.
Morgan Lewis’s investment management and financial markets practices are evolving to meet client needs globally, building capabilities to assist them in all markets where they operate. Recent additions include partners Hugues Bouchetemble, Nicolas Capelli, Hubert de Vauplane, and Gilles Saint Marc, who joined on January 1 as part of a 54-lawyer, multipractice team in Paris; secondaries partner Ted Craig in London; private funds partner Leonora Shalet in New York; partner trio Mark Parise, Todd Zerega, and Betselot Zeleke to multiple East Coast offices; and former SEC private funds branch head Christine Ayako Schleppegrell in Washington, DC.