Jeffrey Puretz

Jeffrey S. Puretz is a practice group leader in Dechert’s financial services group who has 35 years of experience. He concentrates on investment management matters for mutual funds, mutual fund boards, investment advisers, and insurance companies, and he is responsible for the group’s services in the insurance sector. Prior to joining Dechert, Mr. Puretz worked as a staff attorney with the SEC’s Division of Investment Management.

Mr. Puretz has been designated as one of a handful of leading lawyers for investment management since 2004 by Chambers USA, which recently referred to him as “the firm’s leading light for insurance companies active in the registered funds space.”

They also note that “because he came from the SEC he has a lot of insight into how regulators think, and can provide a useful perspective of business choices through a regulatory lens.” Past editions have praised “his deep expertise in the registered funds field, as well as his ‘good judgment and boardroom presence.’

He is distinguished in particular for his leadership and accomplishments in the insurance sector.” They state that he “is a thoughtful and experienced practitioner with a great deal of experience working on some of the most complex fund structures in the field.” They have recognized his ability to “structure deals in a way in which everyone wins” and his “knowledge of every possible issue out there.”

Mr. Puretz has also been included in The Best Lawyers in America in the specialty of mutual funds law since 2007 and has been recognized in The Legal 500 (US), which recently stated that he attracts strong praise for his “analysis of issues and practical guidance.” He has lectured and written extensively about mutual funds and variable annuities.

He has been widely quoted in the financial press, and his work has been cited by the SEC. He has served on drafting committees for several white papers published by the Mutual Fund Directors Forum.

Mr. Puretz was the co-founder and co-chair of the Practising Law Institute’s conference on “Understanding Securities Products of Insurance Companies,” which ran from 1995 – 2016. He has also been a regular panelist on mutual fund developments at the ALI-CLE Conference on Life Insurance Company Products.

Mr. Puretz is also a regular panelist on new developments in securities laws at conferences of the American Council of Life Insurers and the Insured Retirement Institute, among others. His written work has been cited by the SEC and by the courts.

EDUCATION :

• University of Maryland, B.A., 1976
• The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, J.D., 1981
• Georgetown University Law Center, Graduate course work in securities law

ADMISSIONS : District of Columbia

MEMBERSHIPS :

• Advisory Board, Mutual Fund Directors Forum
• Member and Former Chair, Securities Section, Association of Life Insurance Counsel
• Adjunct Professor, Catholic University Law School, Securities Institute for the course “Mutual Funds and Investment Advisers”
• Board of Visitors, Catholic University Law School
• Board of Governors, Hebrew Home of Greater Washington