Overview & Experience
Insights & Activities
Sara Jane Shanahan is the firm's Managing Partner.
Her practice focuses on complex business litigation and insurance coverage disputes. She represents a diverse range of clients, including investment managers, property owners, national retailers, insurers, insureds, and shareholders of closely-held corporations.
Prior to joining the firm, Sara was partner at Griesinger, Tighe, & Maffei, LLP and junior partner at Hale and Dorr LLP. After law school, Sara clerked for the Hon. Nathaniel M. Gorton, U.S. District Judge for the District of Massachusetts.
Outside the firm, Sara is an active contributor to the legal and charitable communities. She has held various leadership positions with the Boston Bar Association, including Council Member and co-chair of the Administration of Justice Section, and served on the Women’s Bar Association’s Women’s Leadership Initiative. She is a longtime supporter of the Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, and for 11 years served on its Board of Directors. Sara is also a regular speaker and contributor to programs for Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, Inc. (MCLE). Additionally, she sits on the Board of Directors for the Wellesley Club, and is a member of the Massachusetts Advisory Council of The New England Legal Foundation.
Experience
- Hedge funds and the investment manager with regard to claims against their third party administrator
- National retailer in arbitration and litigation with third party business brokers
- Hospital patent-owner in licensing dispute with medical device manufacturer
- Generic drug manufacturers in False Claims Act and products liability litigation
- Insurers and insureds in complex insurance coverage disputes
- Minority shareholders in closely-held corporations regarding breach of fiduciary duty and voting trust claims
- Homeowners in arbitrations regarding construction disputes
- Successfully obtained summary judgment on securities fraud claims for defendant; Federal District Court denied plaintiffs’ motion for class certification
- Internet operating and development company prevailing on all claims in two week jury trial regarding insurance coverage
Accolades
- Ranked in Chambers USA for Litigation: General Commercial – Massachusetts
- Listed in The Best Lawyers in America©
- Lawyer of the Year, Litigation – Insurance, Boston (2020)
- Included in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly 2023 Top Women of Law Circle of Excellence
- Included in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly 2015 Top Women of Law
- Included in Massachusetts Super Lawyers
- Top 50 Women in Massachusetts
- Top 100 in New England
- Perlman Service Award from the fellows of the Litigation Counsel of America (LCA)
- Listed in Benchmark Litigation
- Named to Boston magazine’s Top Lawyers list (2022, 2023)
Speaking Engagements & Publications
- “Year in Review: Top 10 Cases,” panelist and conference co-chair, MCLE 23rd Annual Business Litigation Conference, February 9, 2024
- Harvard Law School Winter 2024 Trial Advocacy Workshop, guest faculty member, January 2024
- “Year in Review: Top 10 Cases,” panelist and conference co-chair, MCLE 22nd Annual Business Litigation Conference, February 3, 2023
- Harvard Law School Winter 2023 Trial Advocacy Workshop, guest faculty member, January 2023
- “Year in Review: Top 10 Cases,” panelist and conference co-chair, MCLE 21st Annual Business Litigation Conference, January 26, 2022
- Harvard Law School Winter 2022 Trial Advocacy Workshop, guest faculty member, January 2022
- “LLC Liability Loopholes & Piercing the Corporate Veil,” chair, Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, October 19, 2021
- Harvard Law School Winter 2021 Trial Advocacy Workshop, guest faculty member, January 2021
- “Using or Defeating COVID-19 Liability Waivers: The 60-Minute Lawyer,” panelist, Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, September 10, 2020
- “Bad Faith Claims Handling – G.L. c. 93A and G.L. c. 176D,” Massachusetts Liability Insurance Manual, chap. 13, 3rd edition 2017 with 2020 supplement, Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, Inc., May 5, 2020
- “Year in Review: Top 10 Cases,” panelist and conference co-chair, MCLE 19th Annual Business Litigation Conference, February 2020
- Harvard Law School Winter 2020 Trial Advocacy Workshop, guest faculty member, team advisor, January 2020
- “Ch. 176D Claims in Commercial Litigation: When Does Liability Become “Reasonably Clear?,” speaker, Boston Bar Association, November 2019
- “Trending Issues in Business Litigation, Intellectual Property and Bankruptcy: Insights from Leading Attorney Practitioners,” moderator, Massachusetts Bar Association Fourth Annual Complex Commercial Litigation Conference, April 23, 2019
- “Year in Review: Top 10 Cases,” panelist and conference co-chair, Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education 18th Annual Business Litigation Conference, February 2019
- “Unexpected Liabilities and Exposures,” panelist, Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education 17th Annual Business Litigation Conference, February 2018
- “Bad Faith Claims Handling – G.L. c. 93A and G.L. c. 176D,” Massachusetts Liability Insurance Manual 2017, chap. 13, 3rd edition, Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, Inc., 2017
- “5 Risk Management Practices Innovators Should Follow,” Xconomy.com October 2015
- “Evidence: Strategic Considerations for Summary Judgment and Trial”, Boston Bar Association, January 2015
- “Social Media: When to use it, When to Lose it – The Legal Implications of Social Media for Law Firms and Clients,” Women in E Discovery Panel, June 2014
- “Avoiding Expensive Litigation after the Deal is Done,” Massachusetts Family Business, July 2013
- “Service providers should review their own contracts” Boston Business Journal, June 2013
- “Cornwell ruling a warning to investment managers,” Boston Business Journal, March 2013
- “Cornwell’s $50M Jury Award Wake-Up Call For Advisors,” Private Wealth Magazine, February 2013
- “Cyberbullying and Social Media Misuse: Prevention and Response,” Magna Online Seminars, August 2012
- “RE and Social Media: A Legal Perspective,” The Real Reporter, July 2012
- “Social Networking Policies: Mitigating Risks and Reaping Rewards,” ALM General Counsel Conference, June 2012
- “How to Protect Your Students from Cyberbullying,” The Chronicle of Higher Education, March 2012
- “Why You Should Protect Your Employees’ Twitter Accounts,” CFO, December 2011
- “Social Media Policies and Practices Your Company Can ‘Like’,” moderator, New England Legal Foundation Fall Breakfast Program, October 2011
- “Privacy and Privilege When Communicating With Clients Via Email,” speaker, Boston Bar Association Luncheon, October 2011
- “Slow the Trigger When Firing Over Twitter,” CFO, September 2011
- “Litigation Potluck: How to Avoid Litigation and How to Manage It Effectively If You Can’t,” panelist, Association of Corporate Counsel Northeast Chapter, July 2011
- “Preparing Your Company for Social Media Challenges,” panelist, 23rd Annual Corporate Counsel Conference East Coast, June 2011
- “To Preserve and Protect: Warding Off Wiki-Like Attacks,” Corporate Counsel, January 2011
- “Directors Urged to Submit Comment to SEC on Whistleblower Provisions,” with Jason Drori, Corporate Board Member, December 2010
- “Warding Off Shareholder Derivative Suits: Diligence and Faithfulness Are the Keys,” Corporate Counsel, August 2010
- “Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Decision Supports Public’s Rights in the Waterfront,” Sherin and Lodgen LLP Client Advisory, August 2010
- “Looking Inward,” Corporate Counsel, June 2010
- “One Size Does Not Fit All: Approaches to Internal Investigations,” speaker, Association of Corporate Counsel Northeast Chapter, March 2010
- “Conflicting Decisions Lead to Uncertainty for Massachusetts Companies and Auditors Alike,” SumNews, Winter 2009
- “View from Both Sides of the Bench,” introduction, Boston Bar Association, January 2009
- “Tensions are rising from IRS victory in Textron case,” WebCPA.com, November 2009
- “Another View: The Eroding Attorney-Client Privilege,” The New York Times DealBook, November 2009
- “Director and Officer Liability in the Aftermath of Fraud,” Suffolk University Law School Seminar, May 2009
- “Attorney-Client Privilege for In-House Counsel,” client seminar, April 2009
- “How Private is that Email to the Contract Attorney in Mumbai? Attorney-Client Privilege in the 21st Century,” with Edward S. Cheng, Association of Corporate Counsel Northeast Chapter, February 2009
- “Bad Faith Claims Handling – G.L. c. 93A and G.L. c. 176D,” Massachusetts Liability Insurance Manual 2009 Supplement, chap. 14, Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, 2004, 2009
Memberships
- Boston Bar Foundation Society of Fellows
- Boston Bar Association
- Council, Member, elected to serve three-year term, Fall 2013 – Summer 2016
- Administration of Justice Section
- Co-chair, Fall 2011 – Summer 2014
- Member, 2009 – 2014
- International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC)
- Joint Bar Committee on Judicial Appointments, 2014 – 2020
- Litigation Counsel of America
- Senior Fellow
- Women’s Bar Association
- Women’s Leadership Initiative, 2017 – 2018
Community Involvement
- Girl Scouts Troop Leader, 2011 – 2016
- Co-Service Unit Coordinator, 2016 – 2018
- Massachusetts Appleseed Center for Law and Justice
- Board of Directors, 2009-2021
- The New England Legal Foundation
- Massachusetts Advisory Council
- Member
- Massachusetts Advisory Council
- The Wellesley Club
- President, March 2023 – present
- Vice President, 2022 – 2023
- Board of Directors, 2020 – 2022
- Secretary, 2014 – 2018
- Town of Wellesley, Massachusetts
- Hardy, Hunnewell and Upham (HHU) Master Plan Committee, Co-chair, 2016 – 2017
- HHU Master Plan Committee Final Report, Co-author, March 2017
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