O'Keefe is a 1975 graduate of Loyola University School of Law in New Orleans. He was captain of the National Championship Moot Court Team in 1974 and he was selected Best Oralist in the national competition. Upon graduation, O’Keefe practiced in New Orleans where he specialized in admiralty and maritime practice. In 1989, he served as the chair of the Southeastern Admiralty Law Institute. A partner at Montgomery, Barnett, Brown, Read, Hammond & Mintz, O’Keefe’s principle practice concerns administrative law and representation of stevedores, terminal operators, shipyards, and oilfield enterprises, as well as the representation of defense contractors for risks under the Defense Base Act and the War Hazards Act. On Oct. 24, 2008, Governor Bobby Jindal appointed O’Keefe to the Louisiana Judicial Compensation Commission, the appointed body in the State of Louisiana which addresses judicial pay and emoluments for state court judges. He was elected to the Board of Directors of the New Orleans Chapter in 1993 and served as chair of the Local Rules Committee until 2001, at which time he became the chapter membership chair. Thereafter, he served as secretary, treasurer, and president-elect. In 2005, he became chapter president and held that office through the first year of the New Orleans Chapter recovery from Hurricane Katrina. In 2006, he was appointed by FBA President Bill LaForge to the Bench/Bar Committee and to the Governmental Relations Committee. He served as a member of the Sarah T. Hughes Award Committee in 2008, and currently serves on the Governmental Relations Committee. O’Keefe is a member of the New Orleans Bar Association, the Louisiana Bar Association, the American Bar Association, the Maritime Law Association of the United States, the Southeastern Admiralty Law Institute, and is a lifetime honorary member of the Dublin Solicitors Bar Association.