Former U.S. Magistrate Judge Kimberly Priest Johnson Joins Shook

After nearly a decade on the federal bench, the Honorable Kimberly C. Priest Johnson (Ret.), a distinguished United States Magistrate Judge for the Eastern District of Texas, has joined Shook as a partner in the firm’s Complex Litigation Strategic Counseling Practice. Her addition boosts Shook’s national platform, increasing its strategic leadership for class/mass actions, governmental investigations, and intellectual property matters. Judge Johnson will remain in Dallas, Texas, but will be affiliated with the firm’s Houston office.

With a career spanning work in the public sector, private practice, and academia, Judge Johnson brings a wealth of experience to the firm. Since her appointment to the bench in 2016, she has presided over a significant portion of criminal and civil dockets in the Eastern District of Texas’ Sherman Division, issuing over 1,300 substantive civil opinions in a broad array of civil litigation. Her judicial responsibilities included presiding over civil cases from initial filing through trial and post-trial, where she developed a national reputation in the areas of data privacy and electronic discovery. Judge Johnson also presided over federal criminal cases from the investigative stages, overseeing investigations by the FBI, SEC, DEA, and other federal law enforcement and regulatory agencies and up through trial.

“We are thrilled to welcome Judge Johnson to Shook,” said Shook Chair Madeleine McDonough. “She has served the legal community as a judge, a litigator, and an educator, and her strategic insight and practical leadership will benefit our clients in Texas and beyond.”

Before her judicial appointment, Judge Johnson was in private practice, where she founded a boutique law firm focused on federal criminal defense and civil litigation. She also served as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney in the White-Collar Section of the Northern District of Texas’ Dallas Division, where she focused on health care fraud.

“I am excited to begin my next chapter at Shook,” said Judge Johnson. “I have long admired the firm’s stellar reputation in complex litigation, its dedication to client service, and its long-standing commitment to the next generation of lawyers. I look forward to serving our clients here in Texas and across the nation.”