Mark D. Shepard
USA Guide 2023
Band 1 : Litigation: Mediators
Email address
[email protected]Contact number
412-394-6546Share profile
Band 1
About
Provided by Mark D. Shepard
Practice Areas
Mark Shepard is a shareholder in the Litigation Group of Babst Calland and currently serves on the firm’s Board of Directors. He also serves as general counsel to the Firm. Prior to joining the firm, he served as chair of the litigation group for one of Pittsburgh’s largest law firms.
Background as a Litigator
Mr. Shepard focuses his practice in the areas of commercial, toxic tort, products liability and environmental litigation. He has represented clients as lead trial counsel in a variety of complex commercial litigation matters involving contract, trade secret, trade name disputes, securities fraud, common law fraud, antitrust and RICO claims. Mr. Shepard also has significant experience in representing defendants in consumer and other class actions.
A sizeable portion of his environmental litigation practice has been devoted to defending clients in federal and state superfund litigation and permit appeals. Mr. Shepard has used his broad experience in environmental cost recovery litigation to develop a specific emphasis on natural resource damage (NRD) claims by federal and state trustees.
Mr. Shepard has maintained an active practice in toxic tort litigation involving alleged exposure to toxic substances in the air, water and/or soil. During his career, he also has frequently been retained to handle communications, insurance coverage and mining litigation. He also has substantial experience in products liability defense, particularly in the mining equipment industry. As a result of the nature of his litigation practice, Mr. Shepard has participated in numerous forms of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) proceedings including commercial arbitration, mediation, mini-trials and early neutral evaluation. He has been retained regularly as a mediator for complex commercial, products liability, insurance coverage, securities and natural resources cases. Mr. Shepard currently serves as a mediator, arbitrator and early neutral evaluator in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
Background as a Neutral
Mr. Shepard is a trained mediator who has mediated well over 800 cases during the past 20 years involving commercial contracts, securities or broker dealer claims, products liability, professional liability, insurance coverage, personal injury, natural resources, environmental statutes, oil and gas disputes, closely-held business disputes, copyright, trademark, construction and real estate disputes. He has been appointed as a Special Discovery Master in the Western District of Pennsylvania and Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny on a number of occasions. Mr. Shepard has also served as an AAA appointed or common law Arbitrator in approximately 20 commercial arbitrations. He is a certified mediator and early neutral evaluator in the Western District of Pennsylvania and a member of the Pennsylvania Council of Mediators. Currently, mediation, arbitrations and special discovery master appointments constitute approximately 70% of his practice.
Professional Memberships
Mr. Shepard is an active member of the Allegheny County, Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations. He also was appointed to the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Judicial Evaluation Commission in 2007 for a three-year term. Mr. Shepard served as chair of the Allegheny County Bar Association’s Civil Litigation Section in 2000-2001 and as a member of the Bar Association’s Board of Governors from 2005-2011. In 2001, he was elected to membership in the Allegheny County Academy of Trial Lawyers. Mr. Shepard has served as chairman of the Academy’s Program Committee. For a number of years he coordinated the county-wide High School Mock Trial competition.
Expert in these Jurisdictions
Mr. Shepard is admitted to practice in both Pennsylvania and West Virginia, as well as before the United States Supreme Court, the United States Courts of Appeals for the Third, Fifth and Sixth Circuits, and the United States District Courts for the Western District of Pennsylvania and the Northern and Southern Districts of West Virginia.
Education
University of Notre Dame
B.A.
1975 - 1979
Duke University
J.D.
1979 - 1982
Awards
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2006
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2007
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2008
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2009
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2010
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2011
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2012
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2013
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2014
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2015
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2016
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2017
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2018
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2019
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2020
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2021
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2022
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2011
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2012
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2013
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2014
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2015
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2016
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2017
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2018
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2019
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2020
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2021
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2022
Bet-the-Company Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2015
Bet-the-Company Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2016
Bet-the-Company Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2017
Bet-the-Company Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2018
Bet-the-Company Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2019
Bet-the-Company Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2020
Bet-the-Company Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2021
Bet-the-Company Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2022
Litigation – Environmental “Lawyer of the Year” in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Best Lawyers®
2019
Bet-the-Company Litigation “Lawyer of the Year” in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Best Lawyers®
2022
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2005
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2006
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2007
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2008
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2009
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2010
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2011
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2012
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2013
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2014
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2015
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2016
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2017
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2018
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2019
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2020
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2021
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2022
Top 50: Pittsburgh Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2011
Top 50: Pittsburgh Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2012
Top 50: Pittsburgh Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2013
Top 50: Pittsburgh Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2014
Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
Thomson Reuters
2023
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2023
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2023
Bet-the-Company Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2023
Bet-the-Company Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2024
Commercial Litigation Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2024
Litigation – Environmental Section
The Best Lawyers of America©
2024