“Provides excellent counsel in complex, high-impact matters based on his extensive experience.”
Chambers USA 2022
David Applebaum's practice focuses on energy industry enforcement, compliance, internal investigations, audits, litigation, regulatory, and policy matters. He regularly advises on proposed energy market transactions to mitigate enforcement risk from FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission), CFTC (Commodity Futures Trading Commission), NERC (North American Electric Reliability Corporation), state public utility commissions (PUCs), antitrust enforcers, and RTO (Regional Transmission Organization) market monitors. David has successfully represented clients on a broad range of enforcement investigations and surveillance inquiries alleging market manipulation.
David is the former head of FERC's Division of Investigations, where he managed all aspects of the Division, including decisions on opening, conducting, and resolving investigations, settlements, enforcement actions, trials, and electric reliability inquiries. He also led the Division in coordination efforts with the CFTC on market manipulation investigations. During his government service, David was a member of the Office of Enforcement senior management team and was a key advisor to Commissioners' Offices and senior staff on enforcement matters.
Before joining FERC, David was in private practice, focusing on antitrust, class action, and financial services litigation for corporate clients.
David also actively participates in providing pro bono legal services to veterans.
David has successfully handled many investigations, surveillance inquiries, audits, self-reports, internal inquiries, and other compliance matters involving power and natural gas markets. A representative sample of resolved matters includes:
Recognized for Electricity: Regulatory and Litigation by Chambers USA, 2019-2024
Listed in Chambers Global, 2022-2024
Named a "Stand-out Lawyer" by Thomson Reuters, 2022-2023
Recognized for Energy Regulatory by The Legal 500 U.S., 2020-2023