Amanda Taylor

Practice Areas

Appellate and Written Advocacy; Commercial Litigation; Class Actions

Career

As a Board-Certified Civil Appellate specialist, Amanda helps to shape successful case strategy from the outset of litigation through the end of an appeal. Amanda is a detail-oriented lawyer who represents her clients with passion, stays current on emerging trends and issues, and brings a practical perspective to problem solving. She has experience handling complex civil disputes regarding contracts, fraud, tax, insurance, products, employment, real property, and trust and estates. Amanda provides pro bono appellate services each year and is committed to community service through her State and Local Bar Associations.

Amanda has served as appellate counsel in over 100 matters before the Texas Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth, Seventh, Ninth and Eleventh Circuits, and appellate courts across Texas and other jurisdictions. She also regularly appears in district court to assist with dispositive motions, legal issues, and preservation of error.

She has developed an expertise related to the Texas Citizens Participation Act (a/k/a, anti-SLAPP statute). She frequently represents clients, writes, and presents legal education on this topic, and other topics related to Texas appellate law. She has been recognized as a Texas Super Lawyer® in Appellate practice every year since 2014.

Amanda is involved in a number of professional organizations including the Austin Bar Association, where she served as a member of the Board of Directors (2015-2018), Chair and Council Member of the Civil Appellate Section (2014-2019), Foundation Fellow (2016-Present), and Lawyer Well-Being Committee Co-Chair (2019-2020), as well as holding numerous other leadership positions. She served as the President and as a Board Member of the Travis County Women Lawyers Association (2008-2013) and has been actively involved in the organization as a Fellow and mentor for many years. She also dedicates professional service to the State Bar of Texas, including service on the Grievance Committee (Dist. 9 Panel Member, 2020-2023), Foundation (Fellow, 2014-Present), and Civil Appellate and Litigation Sections (Member, 2008-Present). She is a member of the Baylor Law School Alumni Association, where she served on the Austin Steering Committee (2016-2018), volunteered for the Mentorship Program (2016-2018), and was an Assistant Coach to Texas Young Lawyers Moot Court Competition (2017). Additionally, she has served as a program mentor for The Appellate Project, which empowers law students of color to thrive in appellate law.

Amanda completed her undergraduate education at Vanderbilt University and earned her Juris Doctor from Baylor University. She previously served as a law clerk to Justice Jan Patterson and staff attorney to Chief Justice Kenneth Law, both of the Texas Third District of Appeals. She is admitted to the State Bar of Texas, the Western, Southern and Eastern Districts of the U.S. District Court of Texas and the Fifth, Seventh, Ninth and Eleventh Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals.

Professional Memberships

Amanda is involved in a number of professional organizations including the Austin Bar Association, where she served as a member of the Board of Directors (2015-2018), Chair and Council Member of the Civil Appellate Section (2014-2019), Foundation Fellow (2016-Present), and Lawyer Well-Being Committee Co-Chair (2019-2020), as well as holding numerous other leadership positions. She served as the President and as a Board Member of the Travis County Women Lawyers Association (2008-2013), and has been actively involved in the organization as a Fellow and mentor for many years. Amanda also dedicates professional service to the State Bar of Texas, including service on the Grievance Committee (Dist. 9 Panel Member, 2020-2023), Foundation (Fellow, 2014-Present), and Civil Appellate and Litigation Sections (Member, 2008-Present). She is a member of the Baylor Law School Alumni Association, where she served on the Austin Steering Committee (2016-2018), volunteered for the Mentorship Program (2016-2018), and was an Assistant Coach to Texas Young Lawyers Moot Court Competition (2017).

Publications

Amanda co-authored and presented “Remedy: Remand, Render, or Retreat” with the Hon. Sarah Beth Landau at the UT Law Conference on State and Federal Appeals, June 17, 2022. Amanda’s recent publications and speaking engagements include: Author and Presenter, "Jury Change Update” at UTLaw State and Federal Appeals Conference, June 2023, Austin Bar Construction Section, April 2024, SBOT Civil Litigation Conference, May 2024; Presenter, “The Role of Appellate Lawyers at Trial” at Austin Bar Civil Appellate Section, November 2023; Author and Presenter, “Interlocutory Appeals” at State Bar of Texas Appellate Practice 101 Conference, September 2022; Presenter, “Top 10 Appellate Mistakes Made in Trial Court,” Amarillo Bar Association, March 10, 2022; Panelist, "Law Specialization Panel," Phi Alpha Delta, Vanderbilt University, February 3, 2022; Course Director, Texas Bar, 13th Annual Business Disputes Conference, September 2-3, 2021; Presenter, “Anti-SLAPP, Is this Still a Thing?,” Harris County Civil District Judge Retreat, July 28, 2021; Presenter, "Three Pack Update on TRAP Amendments, the TCPA, and Sufficiency Standards of Review," UT Law Conference on State and Federal Appeals, June 10, 2021; Quoted, "As Clients' Challenges Continue, Client Service Is More Important Than Ever," Texas Lawyer, May 5, 2021; Author and Presenter, “Updates on the TCPA and Rule 91a,” Texas Bar, Advanced Business Law Conference, November 5, 2020; and Author, “Recovering Attorney’s Fees in Texas: Five Lessons,” BizLitNews Blog, February 20, 2020.

Personal

Baylor University, J.D., cum laude, 2004 (Law Review, Associate Editor); Vanderbilt University, B.A., Political Science and Sociology, cum laude, 2001; Texas Third District of Appeals (Law Clerk to Justice Jan Patterson, 2004-2005, and Staff Attorney to Chief Justice Kenneth Law, 2005-2007)