During the 2023 DAYL Wine Tasting Benefiting the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program, the DAYL recognized Jessica Mannon with the Young Lawyer Pro Bono Service Award. The award was created in 2011 and recognizes the public service or legal aid performed by an individual who in the preceding year has provided outstanding contributions and access to justice to those in need of legal services.
Jessica Mannon joined Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld as a lateral associate in January 2020 and is currently counsel in the firm’s Dallas Litigation group. She received her J.D. from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law, magna cum laude, in 2017 and was licensed by the State Bar of Texas that same year. Prior to practicing law, Jessica worked for more than six years as a professional fundraiser in the nonprofit sector, with an emphasis on child advocacy and higher education.
Jessica focuses her practice on business litigation, and her experience includes a broad array of commercial disputes, including securities and shareholder litigation, breach of contract, employment disputes, crypto litigation, energy sector disputes and business torts. She has litigated individual and class action disputes in forums across the country.
Between January 1, 2022 – December 31, 2022, Jessica gave 646.6 hours of pro bono service, in addition to billing over 2,000 hours at her paying job. Jessica has dedicated herself to advocating for individuals who are some of the most underprivileged in our society, and she focuses her efforts on migrants, women, and girls. Jessica’s tremendous advocacy on behalf of her clients and leadership in the cases she handles, often as lead counsel, has resulted in many successes and favorable outcomes for her clients, including those who were seeking asylum and those who were fleeing persecution, including people fleeing gang violence, domestic violence, and facing persecution based on their political opinion or because of their religion.
DAYL is excited to recognize Jessica Mannon as the recipient of the 2023 DAYL Young Lawyer Pro Bono Service Award recipient for her continued dedication to pro bono service.