Shawn Stephens

About Shawn Stephens

Shawn is past Chair of the Houston Ballet Board where she co-chaired Covid and Hurricane relief campaigns which raised over 10 million dollars. Also past president of the HB Board, past ball chair, past Nutcracker Market chair, and past HB Guild president. She has raised more than 15 million dollars for HB in those capacities. She also chaired HB’s campaign to fund its new Nutcracker production. She sits, or has sat, on various other charitable boards and has chaired fundraisers/galas for other non-profit entities. She served as a Commissioner and as Vice Chair of the Texas Commission on the Arts for over 15 years. The TCA awards all State funds and all NEA funds allocated to arts in Texas. She retired as a partner from the King & Spalding law firm. She is certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in civil appellate law and was among the first four people to be nationally certified in appellate law. In fact, she was the first woman and the first Texan to attain national certification. She has handled cases in the United States Supreme Court, the federal circuit courts, the Texas Supreme Court,and the fourteen Texas courts of appeal.

Experience

1. Partner

   King & Spalding

   Oct 2014 — Present

   I\'m a partner at the global law firm, King & Spalding, where I handle appeals, mandamuses, post-verdict motions,dispositive motions and related matters. My cases are often high-profile and high-stakes matters, so I look for creative ways to win the appeal while also setting precedent that will help my clients and their industries for years to come. I am known for my advocacy during appellate arguments. I have been board certified by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization since 1995. I am also nationally certified in appellate law by the AIAP-I was one of the first four people to be nationally certified and was the first woman and the first Texan to receive national appellate certification. I have handled more than 100 appeals for a wide variety of companies and on a wide variety of legal issues; however, my practice has focused around energy, automotive and business tort and contract disputes. I have handled cases in the United States Supreme Court (including labor and employment and redistricting cases); the Fifth Circuit and various other federal circuit courts of appeal; the Texas Supreme Court (you may access videos of some of my appellate arguments from the Court\'s site or from my bio on the firm\'s website); and, Texas\' fourteen courts of appeal. I also handle post-trial matters and recently overturned one of the 10 largest Texas verdicts of 20•••84 million in actual damages) via a post-trial reply to a motion to enter judgment on the verdict; thereby obtaining a new trial for my client while saving it the costs of an appeal.

Education

• Baylor University

  BA, Political Rhetoric

  1979 — 1982

• University of Houston Law Center

  LLM, International Economic Law

  1991 — 1995

• South Texas College of Law Houston

  JD

  1988 — 1988

Skills

• Corporate Law
• Commercial Litigation
• Trade Secrets
• Mergers & Acquisitions
• Corporate Governance
• Arbitration
• Litigation
• Civil Litigation
• Appeals
• Mediation
• Product Liability
• Legal Research
• Class Actions
• Courts