Ron Kilgard
New York/Phoenix
1140 6th Avenue, 9th Floor
New York, NY 10036
3101 North Central Avenue, Suite 1400
Phoenix, AZ 85012
Ron Kilgard is a 45-year civil litigation lawyer.Over a long career, he has handled all manner of civil cases, from routine automobile accidents and two-party contract disputes of no interest to anyone but the parties, to multi-million-dollar class actions covered in The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. For the last 20 years, Ron has mostly litigated pension plan class actions. Ron helped Keller Rohrback pioneer company stock ERISA litigation in the late 1990s and early 2000s; he was part of the team that obtained settlements of over $265 million in the Enron 401(k) litigation. In 2017, after six years of litigation, Ron prevailed in an action challenging as unconstitutional the cutbacks to the pensions of Arizona state court judges. That same year, Ron began representing pro bono, and is still representing, a client fleeing gang-related violence in El Salvador. More recently is he part of the firm’s team in the national opioid litigation.
Ron clerked for the Hon. Mary M. Schroeder, U. S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in 1979-80. He was one of the lawyers who formed the Phoenix office of Keller Rohrback L.L.P. in November 2002. In 2023 he moved to New York, where he continues to practice for the firm.
Professional & Civic Involvement
National Immigrant Justice Center, Pro Bono Counsel
Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project, Pro Bono Counsel
Articles & Presentations
Speaker, New Developments in Church Plan Litigation, ACI National Forum on ERISA Litigation (2015-2017).
Speaker, Fiduciary Implications of Company Stock Lawsuits, National Center for Employee Ownership (2012 and 2013).
Speaker, West LegalWorks ERISA Litigation Conference (2007).
Speaker, Company Stock Litigation, Chicago Bar Association (2006).
Speaker, After Enron, ABA Seminar (2006).
Honors & Awards
Best Lawyers in America®, Phoenix, Arizona, 2025 (Recognized since 2013):
• Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law
• Litigation - ERISA
• Litigation - Labor and Employment
Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project, 2018 Pro Bono Attorney of the Year (adult cases)
Practice Emphasis
Education
Harvard CollegeB.A., cum laude, 1973, History
Harvard Divinity SchoolM.T.S., 1975, Old Testament
Arizona State University College of LawJ.D., magna cum laude, 1979, Editor-in Chief, Arizona State Law Journal, Armstrong Award (outstanding graduate)
Bar and Court Admissions
1979, Arizona Supreme Court
1979, U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona
1982, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
1995, U.S. Supreme Court
2005, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
2005, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
2007, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
2009, District of Columbia Court of Appeals
2010, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
2010, U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota
2011, New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division
2012, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
2013, U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado
2013, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
2014, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
2014, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
2015, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
2015, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
2016, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
2016, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma
2016, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri
2016, U.S. District Court for the Central District of Illinois
2016, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana
2017, Executive Office for Immigration Review
2019, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York
