Shawn built the first half of his career advising on mergers and acquisitions before shifting into the litigation that can follow a deal, including earnout and indemnification disputes and, on occasion, claims that a transaction wasn't approved consistently with the board's fiduciary duties. His transactional background gives him an unusually granular read on deal documents, which he uses to build case strategy from the inside out. Shawn clerked for a federal judge early in his career and now speaks regularly at conferences on transaction-related disputes. He has represented both acquirers and target companies in disputes spanning healthcare, technology, and industrial sectors, and is often engaged as lead counsel when a deal's post-closing obligations come under dispute. Shawn earned his JD from the University of Virginia and completed his clerkship in the Fourth Circuit. He is a regular contributor to legal publications on transaction risk and is active in the firm's associate training program, where he teaches deal-document analysis to junior litigators.
