Practice Profile: Steven Shepard represents plaintiffs and defendants in high-stakes commercial cases in state and federal courts across the United States. Mr. Shepard has worked on a wide variety of complex commercial litigation including breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, securities fraud, insurance coverage, merger disputes, antitrust, and False Claims Act (whistleblower) cases. Mr. Shepard has also brought successful Commerce Clause claims against discriminatory laws enacted by Texas and Puerto Rico.

Leadership, Pro Bono and Civic Work:

Liaison to SDNY Office of Pro Se Litigation. Assess and supervise pro bono representation of pro se litigants, where representation has been requested by the Court.

Federal Bar Council, Co-chair of Panel on Cryptocurrency (October 2018)

Federal Bar Council, Inn of Court

Prior Experience:

Susman Godfrey, 2013-present

U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps (JAG Corp.) 2009-2013

Law Clerk, Hon. Anthony M. Kennedy, Supreme Court of the United States, 2008-2009

Law Clerk, Hon. Alex Kozinski, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 2007-2008

Education:

J.D., Yale Law School, 2007

B.A., University of Virginia, 2001, highest honors

What advice would you give to young lawyers? 

My partner Bill Carmody gave me this advice years ago and I follow it in every case: A trial lawyer's goal from day one is to figure out "where the win is." What is the winning closing argument going to be? Once you figure that out, the answer will guide you in every step leading up to trial. By keeping your focus on "where the win is," you can be confident that your time and energy (and your client's money) is being spent on what really matters to win the case. Keeping that focus will also help you avoid spending undue time and effort on distractions that aren't essential to winning.