Professionals Photo of David S. Samford

Practice Areas

Industries

Energy and Utilities

Bar memberships

Kentucky, 2000

Courts

U.S. District Court for the Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
U.S. Supreme Court

Clerkships

U.S. District Court Eastern District of Kentucky, Judge Willhoit

Education

University of Kentucky College of Law, J.D., 2000
Associate Editor, Kentucky Law Journal
University of Kentucky, B.A., 1996, College of Arts & Sciences, magna cum laude

David S. Samford

Counsel

Lexington

T 859.244.3230

F 859.231.0011

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Lexington Financial Center, 250 West Main Street

Suite 2800

Lexington, Kentucky 40507-1749

David currently serves as Counsel in the business combinations group at Frost Brown Todd. He concentrates his practice on energy and utility law. Prior to joining the firm, David held the position of Deputy Executive Director and Policy Advisor of the Kentucky Public Service Commission. Before that he spent two years as General Counsel for the Commission. David also served as the Executive Director of the Transportation Cabinet's Office of Legal Services in Frankfort, Kentucky and as a Special Advisor to and chief speechwriter for the Governor of Kentucky.

During his tenure at the Commission, David personally and successfully defended the agency in several cases before the Kentucky Court of Appeals and Kentucky Supreme Court. In 2010, he successfully argued three separate and important cases relating to the nature and scope of the Commission’s statutory authority before the Supreme Court – including two on the same morning.

In his role as General Counsel, David supervised a staff of twelve utility law attorneys and three support staff. David participated in virtually every category of case brought before the Commission, including rate cases, certificates of public convenience and necessity (CPCN), utility financing applications, telecommunications and cell tower siting, utility mergers and acquisitions, establishing regulatory assets, rate surcharges, demand side management and energy efficiency incentives, environmental surcharges, accelerated replacement of utility infrastructure, fuel adjustments and gas cost adjustments, abandonments, territorial disputes and customer complaints. David also was involved in cases brought before the Kentucky State Board on Electric Generation and Transmission Siting which considers all applications to construct major merchant power plants and transmission lines in the Commonwealth.

As Policy Advisor for the Commission, David was heavily involved in issues relating to utility rates and services, emerging clean coal technologies, development of legal issues relating to carbon capture and storage, and the thoughtful deployment of smart grid technology. He frequently appeared before legislative committees and provided technical counsel on legislation ranging from telecommunications deregulation to low-income home energy assistance programs to Kentucky’s moratorium on nuclear facilities. David also generally advised the Commission on matters of energy policy, utility law, agency jurisdiction, administrative procedures, litigation, regulatory enforcement and compliance, personnel law, open records and document retention law and utility audits. When called upon to do so, David personally briefed two Governors, several members of Kentucky’s Congressional delegation, and all of the legislative leaders and energy committee chairmen of the General Assembly – and their staffs – on important utility matters and policies affecting the Commonwealth.

In his role as Deputy Executive Director of the Commission, David helped manage a staff of approximately 100, including many professionals in the fields of finance and accounting, engineering and law. He also helped manage and supervise the Commission’s docket, budget performance and personnel processes. In addition, David would routinely work with leaders in other agencies of state government on issues and matters of mutual interest to their respective agencies.