Julie Ann Shepard

Practice Areas

Julie Shepard litigates in trial and appellate courts throughout the United States. Representing entertainment and media industry leaders, including film studios and television networks, technology companies, and other players in media and entertainment, she navigates clients through cases involving the convergence of content and technology.

She successfully defends clients’ interests in copyright, trademark, trade secrets, piracy, antitrust, unfair competition, fraud, and related business tort cases. She is adept at developing and implementing strategies for clients litigating in multiple jurisdictions on the same or similar issues. Among her victories is a $940 million jury verdict and permanent injunction in a trade secret case, one of the largest trade secret verdicts in U.S. history. Julie also arbitrates and counsels clients in profit participation disputes. She advises clients on and develops strategies involving new technologies and content licensing, and serves on the Steering Committee of the firm’s Artificial Intelligence Task Force. Legal and trade publications regularly recognize Julie as one of the top entertainment lawyers in the U.S. and a leader in tech law.

Beyond her work in the entertainment and technology arenas, Julie represents her clients with respect to a wide range of disputes, including class actions and commercial and contract disputes. While always prepared to take cases to trial, when disputes are better resolved outside the litigation context, Julie helps develop and implement creative business solutions in partnership with her clients.

Julie maintains an active pro bono practice, which has ranged from assisting women’s and girls’ reproductive rights, to helping a non-profit secure a multimillion-dollar endowment, to advising an environmental non-profit on copyright issues, to trying cases involving prisoners’ rights.