Ken’s general finance-related experience includes extensive participation in a broad range of portfolio, project and system financings and public procurement and contracting matters, as well as in federal and state legislative, administrative rulemaking and ruling, insolvency and litigation matters. He has advised clients on issues ranging from initial financing program authorization and documentation to financing program restructure and program termination.
His transactional law experience includes primary responsibility for over $11 billion of publicly marketed financings by state student loan programs in over twenty States and for the launching or relaunching of several state qualified tuition programs; for public or private conduit, direct and developer-based financings for higher education or other nonprofit facilities in eight States and the District of Columbia; substantial participation in the authorization and financing of employment-related benefit reform programs in several States; and substantial participation in financings in several States for each of resources recovery, turnpike and public power purposes.
Ken received the National Association of State Treasurers 2008 Corporate Affiliate Award for his representation of NAST as an amicus party before the United States Supreme Court in the Kentucky v. Davis case, which confirmed that a State may support the market for its public debt by exempting only such debt from its taxes upon interest while taxing interest upon similar public debt of other States. He has also assisted NAST and other industry groups in responding to certain aspects of the Dodd-Frank reforms, in the development of voluntary disclosure standards and in the development of laws and regulations to implement a number of higher education funding and other public finance programs.
Professional Memberships
- Education Finance Council
- National Association of Bond Lawyers
- National Association of State Treasurers Corporate Affiliate
- Association of the Bar of The City of New York:
- State Legislation Committee (1983-1986, 1997-2000)
- Municipal Affairs Committee (1988-1991)
- Task Force on the Constitutional Convention (1996-1998)
- Non-Profit Organizations Committee (2001-2004)
- Legal History Committee (2001-2006)
National Association of State Treasurers Certificate of Appreciation (2011)
National Association of State Treasurers Corporate Affiliate Award (2008)
Practices
- Bond Counsel
- Borrower's Counsel
- Disclosure Counsel
- Private Placements
- Securitization
- Underwriters' Counsel
Industries
Education
- Duke University, B.A.
- University of Michigan, J.D.
Bar Admission
- New York
Recent News & Publications
- Hawkins Attorneys Named to New York Metro Super Lawyers List
Hawkins attorneys comprise half of the 2020 New York Metro Super Lawyers list for Government Finance.… - Guidance from Treasury regarding USD LIBOR Phase-Out
The Hawkins Advisory discusses recently published Proposed Treasury Regulations that provide guidance as to the ability of parties to … - Hawkins Attorneys are part of NABL’s SEC Rule 15c2-12 Working Group
Brian Garzione, Carol McCoog and Kenneth Roberts were part of the National Association of Bond Lawyers working group, that released th… - Super Lawyers Names 21 Hawkins Lawyers in 2014
This year, Hawkins has more Super Lawyers in the practice of Government Finance than any other law firm in the New York Metro area.…