I’m a life-long Northshore Louisiana native who spends my time working tirelessly for my clients int he courtroom and on the platform. I knew I wanted to be a lawyer from a young age, but the world figured it out when I did a book report on John Grisham in 4th grade. Isn’t it every nine year old’s dream to read court room dramas and fight for the underdog?
I continued to vie for Nerdiest Nerd Ever as a student at Lake Castle Private School and Pope John Paul II Catholic High School right here in Slidell. When I wasn’t studying to maintain my nerd status and 4.3 GPA, I made time to branch out into athletics which quickly became my passion. While at Pope John Paul, I used my short, but strong, stature to my advantage and was a member of the three-time state championship powerlifting team (Captain), a track & field athlete (shot put), and cheerleader.
After high school, I moseyed on over to Hammond, Louisiana to attend Southeastern Louisiana University. It was there I earned a degree in Political Science, graduated summa cum laude,and started my career in both the legal field and the fitness industry. Never one to be out worked, I became the youngest officer manager and law clerk for Traumatic Brain Injury attorneys, Anderson & Boutwell (now AndersonBoutwell Traylor). When I wasn’t working inside the office learning the ins and outs of personal injury and law firms, I could be found teaching Spin classes,bootcamps, and personal training at the Rec Center on the SELU Campus.
After graduating from SLU in three years, I worked for a year before crossing state lines and attending law school at Mississippi College School of Law in Jackson, Mississippi. Why MC Law? It offered both civil law and common law courses at a price I could actually stomach. Always a forward thinker, I wanted to be prepared to practice in both Louisiana and Mississippi. In true nerd fashion, I excelled in the class room,clerked for criminal defense and personal injury attorney Coxwell &Associates, spent a summer clerking for bicycle personal injury attorneys Shefman Law Group in San Francisco, and was named Mississippi Athlete Of The Year for powerlifting during this time period. When I wasn’t studying, I wasa CrossFit certified coach and coached several Games athletes.
During law school, along with my co-founder Tyler Smith, I founded the first USA Weightlifting club in Mississippi (Mississippi Barbell) and grew olympic weightlifting in the region. I meet directed the first weightlifting meets in Mississippi history, coached the first Mississippi athletes to National weightlifting events, and became the highest ranked weightlifting coach in the state. In the last six years I converted the program into a 501(c)(3)nonprofit, spearheaded fundraising campaigns, andcoached World Champions and record holders. I sat on a USAW Judicial Committee, became a referee, and served as the Southeast Athlete Development Camp Director for the nationalorganization.
After earning my Mississippi law license, I was approached by various law firms to draft business, personal injury, and criminal motions, memorandums, and state supreme court briefs as a contract attorney. I became a sought after content creator, drafting content for web pages, social media accounts, blogs, and press releases for SEO purposes and lead conversions for small and large businesses--that included law firms, boutique facilities, and national and international corporations.
After law school and focusing on Mississippi Barbell, I decided to combine my love of fitness, the law, and business. I wrote for several national and international fitness magazines focusing on coaching and business aspects of owning a gym or a sports team. I became the Director Of Operations for a national gym management company.During my tenure I implemented a continuing education curriculum and system for personal trainers and handled the day to day operations on a national scale.Under my supervision, the organization doubled their profits. During this timeperiod, I also added nine state records in my own right as a national level powerlifter.
In 2017, I came back to Louisiana to practice law in my home town of Slidell, Louisiana. I wanted to come home to help the community I grew up in.Well, that, and I wanted some decent gumbo. I served as an of counsel attorney with Stanley Wallace Law and broadened my scope of practice--- I began handling family law, business law, personal injury, and public defender work as it related to Child In Need Of Care Cases.
That’s when I met Tubbs and “we”decided to hang our proverbial shingle and allow Sheppard Law, PLLC to stand onits own two (or six if you’re counting Tubbs) feet rather than just serving other firms in the background.
My unique work background has made me a highly sought after attorney for businesses and individuals alike. You know I may know my stuff when other attorneys send me work and ask for help with legal research. I’m a dynamic and highly skilled researcher, author,and advocate. My experiences as a business owner, freelance author, coach and attorney have molded me into a strong and confident leader with unparalleled communication skills.
When I’m not in the courtroom, you can find me coaching my weightlifting & powerlifting athletes, educating other coaches, teams, and organizations in the Olympic lifts, dressing my dog in human clothes, or attending live WWE events.
