The seeds of FaegreBD Consulting were planted in 1976 when Indiana law firm Baker & Daniels established an office in Washington, D.C. They were watered in 1985 when David Gogol founded Gogol & Associates after serving as legislative director for Indiana Senator Richard Lugar.
In 1989, FaegreBD Consulting sprouted after David Gogol and colleague Mike Kraft joined two Baker & Daniels lawyers, Jim Heffernan and Dave McCarthy, to open the new office of Sagamore Associates at 1701 K Street in Washington, D.C. A subsidiary company of Baker & Daniels at the time, Sagamore Associates helped clients with issues involving federal government relations.
Firm Represents Organizing Committees at World Events
In the early going, one of the areas where Sagamore Associates thrived was as an emerging expert in the multitude of international, regulatory, security and spending issues that usually swirl around amateur athletic competition. At one point, the firm had represented the organizing committees for eight major events, including the 1987 Pan American Games in Indianapolis, the 1993 World University Games in Buffalo, N.Y., and the 1996 Paralympic Games in Atlanta.
Gogol & Associates' successful representation of Indianapolis in its bid to host the 1987 Pan American Games put the city on track for much more. Indianapolis has carved out a niche as the host site for a number of amateur athletic competitions, including more than 400 national and international athletic events and 16 U.S. Olympic team trials.
Also, the NCAA headquarters are now located in Indianapolis, and a Memorandum of Understanding with the NCAA calls for the NCAA to host the Final Four men’s basketball tournament, Final Four women's basketball tournament, men's regional basketball tournament, women's regional basketball tournament and national basketball coaches meeting in Indianapolis on an average of once every five years through 2039. And, the NFL's 2012 Super Bowl was played in Lucas Oil Stadium in downtown Indianapolis.
Expansion in Public Affairs and Global Medical Technology
Growth in the firm’s consulting division continued when Baker & Daniels added a second subsidiary — Capitol Direct/B&D Quorum — in the 1990s to provide public affairs services. Furthermore, Aventor — a joint venture global medical technology consulting firm — was launched in 2000.
In 2006, the people and practices of Aventor, Quorum and Sagamore merged into one company — B&D Consulting — to assure an integrated, comprehensive approach to meeting the challenges and goals of clients in the 21st Century. In 2007, B&D Consulting expanded its national services to the property tax industry with the addition of the B&D Equity Property Tax Group in Chicago.
Law Merger Provides FaegreBD Consulting With Current Name
At the start of 2012, B&D Consulting and Baker & Daniels combined with Faegre & Benson to give the consulting division its current name, FaegreBD Consulting. By developing best-in-class federal advocacy and government consulting services over the years, FaegreBD Consulting now advises top-tier clients on sophisticated federal policy, regulatory and program matters. The firm’s consulting professionals serve clients across key sectors of the U.S. economy, including health and biosciences, energy and environment, financial services, food and agriculture, information technology and privacy, and media and entertainment.
Today, David Gogol, founder of Gogol & Associates, continues to provide expertise as a vice chair with FaegreBD Consulting and a consultant in the firm’s federal lobbying practice. In addition to Gogol, two of the other anchors on the firm's early sports-lobbying team — Ted Bristol and Dave Zook — remain leaders at FaegreBD Consulting.