The 2025 Game Changers Summit has become known as a large-scale celebration of the accomplishments of the nation’s top law firm owners.

For the third consecutive year, Michael and Jessica Mogill took the stage throughout the two-day Summit to recognize the most committed Crisp Coach members for their incredible transformations and contributions this year.

Winners of these carefully vetted, highly prestigious Crisp Game Changer Awards at each level (ELITE, PREMIER, SELECT, and CrispX) were determined based on the factors that impact a successful business, an influential leader, and a true Firm of the Year: Visionary Leadership, Client Experience, Community Impact, and Firm Culture.

Congratulations to David Meyer, Matthew Wilson, and Courtney Werning of Meyer Wilson Werning for winning the prestigious 2025 CrispX Firm of the Year Award!

Meet David Meyer

For David Meyer, the pride and purpose to practice law run in his blood.

While growing up in Charleston, West Virginia, David watched his father regularly walk Capitol Street, the city’s bustling downtown thoroughfare. Everyone in town knew and loved him.

“Trial lawyers have a stressful job, but he always came home with a smile on his face and just a great attitude. [He was a] very positive person,” David remembers.

David’s father was a trial lawyer in the truest sense, the kind who would get a new client on Monday and be in trial by Friday. Over the course of his 65 years in practice, he tried 500 jury trials before retiring at 88 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I just saw how proud he was to be a lawyer, how he helped people in their time of need,” David recalls. “I just respected him. I knew he was proud to do the work.”

Though David knew he wanted to practice law, he also wanted to forge his own path. He moved to Columbus, Ohio, for law school, and at his father’s urging, earned a master’s degree in tax law to stand out from Ohio’s thousands of new lawyers each year.

After graduating, he was hired as a tax attorney at a small firm. But after about six weeks, he realized this line of law wasn’t for him.

“It’s a really big book with really small words, and it really wasn’t for me,” he says with a laugh. “Turns out, I hated tax law, but once I got my foot in the door, I took any case they had that was in litigation and tried several jury and bench trials in my first three years.”

David taught himself trial work by watching videotapes of Irving Younger doing cross-examinations and going to the library. As a third-year lawyer trying jury and bench trials in commercial litigation, his experience helped him realize he wanted to put out a shingle and open his own firm as a contingency fee plaintiff’s lawyer. However, he didn’t want to practice personal injury law.

“I was a law clerk all through law school to a really fantastic personal injury firm,” David explains. “It was just incredibly competitive. And I just wanted to do something else.”

He investigated mobile home litigation and many other types of law. Then fate intervened via a chance encounter in a hallway.

An elderly man walked into David’s office building to meet with David’s boss. Unfortunately, the boss turned him away because stockbroker fraud cases weren’t his area. As David headed to the copy room, he and the gentleman literally ran into each other. Once David introduced himself, the man explained he’d been to three lawyers and no one could help him.

“I didn’t know anything about stockbroker cases. This was when the internet was just starting,” David remembers. “So I got online. I learned about stockbroker cases, and I said, I’d like to help you. It sounds interesting. It sounded like it might be a contingent fee practice area.”

The man agreed. Then he mentioned something that would change David’s life forever.

“He said, ‘That’s great, Mr. Meyer, but I’ve got some other friends who this happened to as well. Would you come up with me?’ So I got in my Honda Civic and I drove about an hour north. I walked in and there were like 80 people there.”

It turned out to be a case against Prudential Securities. David was 28 years old. He put together a team, filed it as a class action, and a few years later, they won a $262 million verdict. It was the largest verdict of its kind in Ohio at the time.

“That’s what I built my firm on,” David said.

With the support of his bosses at the time, David started Meyer Wilson in late 1999. He’s been an investment fraud lawyer for 30 years now, and represents individual investors with claims against their financial advisors, consumer class actions, and recently added mass torts to the firm’s practice areas.

The firm now operates nationwide from offices across the country, recovering over $350 million for clients and earning the highest peer ratings by all three major attorney rating services.

But for 15 years, David ran Meyer Wilson as what he calls a “founder-driven firm.”

“I had no idea how to run a business. I had no idea about operations and systems and processes,” he admits. “We just stumbled forward. I think we succeeded just based on grit, energy, and a positive attitude. Not really the best way to grow a business.”

Despite the lack of scalable systems, the firm saw success with plenty of satisfied clients and a growing nationwide referral network. But something was missing. David knew there had to be a better way.

Meyer Wilson Werning: A Year in Review

As founding members of the CrispX group, David and his partners Matthew Wilson and Courtney Werning have implemented countless tools and strategies that fundamentally transformed their firm.

In 2025, Meyer Wilson Werning had a record year, strengthened leadership structures, enhanced client experience protocols, expanded community impact, and built a culture that attracts and retains top talent.

Let’s take a look at the highlights that contributed to these accomplishments and earned Meyer Wilson Werning the CrispX Firm of the Year Award.

Visionary Leadership at Meyer Wilson Werning

When David first attended the inaugural Game Changers Summit back in 2018, he knew exactly what he wanted. He wanted to grow the impact of his practice, enable the success of people around him, and create a better culture and better systems.

He just had no idea how to do it — and that’s why he partnered with Crisp.

“I think 100% of the items I wanted to do, I’ve done,” David reflects. “All the goals and objectives that I’ve set out over the last six years with Crisp, I’ve either done it or I’m well on my way to doing it.”

One of the most significant transformations came in how David approached leadership itself. For years, he operated as the hub of every decision, every case, every client relationship. This was unsustainable, and he knew it.

Through CrispX, David learned true leadership means empowering others to lead alongside him. He brought on partners Matthew Wilson and Courtney Werning, who each brought unique strengths to the firm. Together, they’ve built a leadership structure that allows the firm to operate without David being the bottleneck for every decision.

“The [Crisp] coaching team and trainers are really good at getting past the superficial level,” David says. “There is very little superficial discussion. When we get together, these discussions are intense. They’re thoughtful. What do you really want to do? What is the purpose of this? What do you ultimately want to get at? What’s important to you?”

This depth of questioning forced David to confront what he actually wanted his legacy to be, not just what he thought it should be.

“I want the legacy of Dave Meyer to be that he cared deeply about the success of those around him,” he says. “And you can’t just walk around saying that without meaning it. The Crisp team is going to hold you accountable. They’re going to call out the bullshit. If you say it and you don’t actually act toward it, they’re going to call you on it. And that’s just fantastic.”

The firm now operates with a clear vision, defined roles, and accountability structures that David never thought possible in those early founder-driven days. He’s built a leadership team that doesn’t just execute his vision but actively shapes it alongside him.

“If you’ve got a team around you who makes you stop and think and work on those really, really deep-level commitments, what’s important to you, what are you doing today, tomorrow, and next week to work on your legacy — and by the way, let’s put those into monthly goals, quarterly goals, and annual goals, and we’re going to talk about them next week, next month — that’s powerful,” David says.

The transformation in leadership has allowed Meyer Wilson Werning to scale in ways that would have been impossible under the old model. Instead of being the bottleneck of his practice, David is now the leader of a firm that can grow far beyond what one person could build alone.

Client Experience at Meyer Wilson Werning

In the world of investment fraud and class action litigation, clients often feel lost in a system designed to intimidate and confuse them. They’re the victims of financial misconduct, and navigating FINRA arbitrations or complex class actions can feel overwhelming.

Meyer Wilson Werning has always been committed to guiding clients through these complex processes, but through their partnership with Crisp, they’ve elevated that commitment to a new level.

“Our clients don’t just need legal expertise,” David explains. “They need someone who actually cares about them as people, not just as cases.”

The firm implemented structured touchpoints throughout the client journey, ensuring that every client feels informed, valued, and supported from the moment they reach out through final resolution and beyond. These aren’t generic check-ins but personalized communications that address each client’s specific concerns and questions.

David and his team have also invested heavily in client education. Investment fraud cases involve complex financial instruments and regulatory frameworks that are difficult for clients to understand. Rather than talking over their clients’ heads, Meyer Wilson Werning has developed resources and communication strategies that demystify the process.

“We want our clients to understand what’s happening in their case,” David says. “An informed client is an empowered client, and an empowered client trusts us to fight for them.”

The firm has also implemented feedback loops to continuously improve the client experience. After case resolutions, they gather detailed feedback about what worked well and what could be better. This commitment to continuous improvement ensures that each client benefits from the lessons learned from previous cases.

These enhanced client experience protocols have resulted in deeper client relationships, more referrals, and a reputation as a firm that truly cares about the people they represent. Clients consistently express how valued and appreciated they feel throughout the process, something that sets Meyer Wilson Werning apart in a practice area that can often feel impersonal.

Community Impact at Meyer Wilson Werning

David Meyer’s father showed him what it means to be a lawyer who serves the community. Walking down Capitol Street where everyone knew him, helping people in their time of need, coming home with a smile because he was proud of the work he did — that image has stayed with David throughout his entire career.

Now, David is building that same legacy of community impact, but on a much larger scale.

Through their work representing investors and consumers in class actions and mass torts, Meyer Wilson Werning is holding powerful corporations accountable and driving systemic change. Every case they win doesn’t just help their individual clients. It sends a message to the financial industry and corporate America that misconduct has consequences.

“We’re not just recovering money for our clients,” David says. “We’re fighting for justice. We’re making sure that the people who were wronged get to see the wrongdoers held accountable.”

The firm’s work in TCPA violations and data breach cases has been particularly impactful. As privacy concerns continue to grow in our increasingly digital world, Meyer Wilson Werning is on the front lines protecting consumers’ rights. These cases lead to better business practices, improved data security measures, and compensation for victims of privacy violations.

Beyond the courtroom, the firm has also expanded its direct community involvement since joining Crisp. While David has always believed in giving back, the CrispX community challenged him to think bigger about his potential impact.

The firm now actively supports causes aligned with its mission of protecting people who have been wronged. They’ve established scholarship programs for students pursuing careers in law and justice, and they participate in community legal education initiatives to help everyday people understand their rights and how to protect themselves from financial fraud.

“Crisp inspired us to think bigger,” says David. “We were always doing good work for our clients, but we realized we could have an even greater impact in our community if we were more intentional about it.”

This expanded vision of community impact has become central to how Meyer Wilson Werning operates. They’re not just a law firm that serves the community; they’re active leaders in creating positive change.

Firm Culture at Meyer Wilson Werning

For 15 years, David ran Meyer Wilson as a founder-driven firm that succeeded on grit, energy, and a positive attitude. But to build a firm that could truly fulfill the mission he envisioned, he needed to create a culture that would attract and retain the best people.

“Everyone in our office, plus [Crisp’s] Michael, Jessica, Chloe, Edgar, Mariko, and the other CrispX members, all have been very critical ingredients to my happiness and my success,” David says.

This acknowledgment represents a fundamental shift in how David thinks about his firm. It’s no longer just about him and his capabilities. It’s about creating an environment where talented people can thrive and grow together.

His Crisp coaches nudged him toward self-awareness. For example, David learned through the PRINT assessment that his primary motivation is to be happy and enjoy life. But he didn’t truly understand what that meant for building a firm culture until he went through the assessments and coaching provided through CrispX.

“That is totally me,” he says. “Anyone who knows me knows that my primary goal is happiness and fulfillment. And it’s cool to know that because it helps us understand why we do what we do and how I can build the infrastructure and the support and the team around me to fulfill what I want to do.”

This self-awareness has allowed David to be intentional about the culture he’s building — a culture aligned with who he actually is and what he values.

As a result, Meyer Wilson Werning is a firm where people genuinely enjoy coming to work, team members support each other’s growth, and success is celebrated collectively.

“It’s so much fun to do great work for your clients, to have people you work with who you love, to have a strong family unit, to have such strong friends in the community,” David reflects. “It’s just really wonderful, and I don’t take it for granted. I appreciate it all the time.”

Meyer Wilson Werning has implemented a structured hiring process to bring in people who align with the firm’s values and culture. They’ve developed a comprehensive onboarding program that immerses new team members in the firm’s mission from day one, and they’ve created professional development opportunities to help the team continue contributing at higher levels.

David has also learned the importance of transparency and communication in building culture. Regular firmwide meetings keep everyone aligned on goals and progress. Open-door policies ensure that team members feel heard and valued. Additionally, collectively celebrating wins reinforces the culture of mutual support and success.

“We’re cruising now. Everything’s going really, really well,” David says. “So why can’t we just keep going? Let’s just help more people. Let’s educate more people. Let’s see further growth and success for my partners and everyone on my team. Let’s just keep doing this. Let’s do it for another 30 years.”

This long-term vision for the firm’s culture represents the ultimate evolution from a founder-driven firm to a sustainably built business. David is creating something that will last far beyond his own tenure, including a culture that will continue attracting great people and doing great work long into the future.

Final Thoughts from Meyer Wilson Werning

Looking back on his journey with Crisp, David Meyer is characteristically humble about his accomplishments.

“I am extremely happy because I’m proud,” he says. “I think positively, as happy as I’ve ever been professionally because I’m so proud of what we’ve done.”

But he’s quick to emphasize that he didn’t do this alone. His partners, Matthew Wilson and Courtney Werning, have been essential to the firm’s growth. His entire team stepped up to execute the broader vision. And the Crisp community — from Michael and Jessica Mogill to his coaches and his fellow CrispX members — has been instrumental in his transformation as a leader.

“I haven’t done this alone by any means,” David emphasizes. “That has all been very critical ingredients to my happiness and my success.”

When David first called Crisp to inquire about creating a brand video, he had no idea he was beginning a journey that would transform not just his firm but his entire approach to leadership and life. That initial decision led him to join what was then the first CrispX group, and he stayed committed through every challenge and breakthrough.

“I’m so grateful that I had the opportunity to get that call from Crisp, to do the brand video at the time, and then I took the leap to join,” he reflects. “And I have the love and support of my partners and my team and my wife and my kids and everyone in Crisp. And it’s just going to continue to get better and better.”

What’s even more remarkable than Meyer Wilson Werning’s transformation is David’s vision for what comes next.

“I want to be 80 years old like my father and say that I’m still proud and happy and fulfilled,” David says. “We’re lucky to be in a position where we can do this. And I’m just grateful to be in this position.”