Biography
Shannon T. O’Connor is a partner in the employment and labor and public sector groups with a focus on municipal and governmental liability, professional liability, general liability, and matters involving employment and labor. She is admitted to all four federal courts in New York State – Eastern District of New York, Southern District of New York, Northern District of New York, and Western District of New York – as well as to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.
Shannon defends clients in a range of matters in both federal and state court, and has taken nearly 10 trials to verdict in the Northern District of New York on Section 1983 civil rights matters and Title VII employment discrimination cases. She also has significant appellate experience, and has submitted several briefs to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Shannon regularly defends municipal entities and municipal employees in claims in federal and state courts, and before administrative agencies such as the New York State Division of Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Employment Commission.
Before entering private practice, Shannon served for several years as Assistant Corporation Counsel for the City of Syracuse, where she represented the city and its officials in a wide variety of litigation and in administrative proceedings before New York State agencies such as the Department of Environmental Conservation. She also provided advice and recommendations to the City of Syracuse Police Department on its policies and procedures related to officer training and the use of force, including tasers, and drafted legal opinions on various City of Syracuse departments, including the mayor’s office.