Sydney Scott is a partner in Gibson Dunn’s Houston office. Ms. Scott has experience representing plaintiffs and defendants in every stage of litigation, from pre-suit demands to final appeals, in a wide array of complex commercial disputes. She has also represented defendants in white-collar criminal matters. Ms. Scott focuses on developing pragmatic, winning strategies to resolve even the most complex disputes.
Benchmark Litigation named Ms. Scott to its 2022 and 2024 “40 & Under List - South,” which identifies the best and brightest litigators across the US and Canada.
Ms. Scott received her law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she served as an Articles Editor for the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law. She graduated from Dartmouth College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English. At Dartmouth, Ms. Scott won three Ivy League Championships with the women’s basketball team. After college, she played two seasons with B.K. Amager in Copenhagen, Demark and won the Danish Women’s League Championship during her first season.
Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Ms. Scott practiced at Smyser Kaplan & Veselka, L.L.P., where she was elected to the partnership, and at Vinson & Elkins, LLP. Ms. Scott also clerked for the Honorable Chief Judge Carl E. Stewart on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, and the Honorable James J. Brady on the United States District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana.
Ms. Scott is admitted to practice in Texas, and before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth and Sixth Circuits and the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas.
Representative matters include*:
- Obtained a total victory for life settlement broker in payment dispute, including an almost $2 million arbitration award, fees and costs, and a take-nothing judgment on defendant’s counterclaims.
- Obtained a $3.3 million jury verdict in Texas state court for an oil and gas operator in a contract dispute involving unpaid invoices. Arguing an issue of first impression, successfully defended jury verdict in appeals to the Texas Fourteenth Court of Appeals and the Texas Supreme Court.
- Successfully briefed and argued appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on behalf of a billion-dollar settlement facility in a multi-million-dollar payment dispute brought by a foreign class of claimants.
- Litigated and tried royalty dispute in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas for a group of mineral interest owners against a large oil and gas operator and its non-operating working interest owners. Secured ruling awarding over $8.4 million in damages and making favorable lease interpretations.
- Represented a group of mineral interest owners in Texas state court against large oil and gas operator in a multi-million-dollar royalty dispute involving novel issues of co-tenancy law. Negotiated a favorable pre-trial settlement.
- Represented an individual defendant in a federal prosecution and post-conviction proceedings in matter involving charges of wire fraud and money laundering stemming from a multi-million-dollar scheme to defraud investors.
* Includes matters handled prior to joining Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP
Capabilities
- Litigation
- Energy Regulation and Litigation
- Energy and Infrastructure
- Media, Entertainment, and Technology
- Oil and Gas
- Power and Renewables
- Sports Law
- Trials
- White Collar Defense and Investigations
Credentials
Education:
- University of Pennsylvania - 2013 Juris Doctor
- Dartmouth College - 2008 Bachelor of Arts
Admissions:
- Texas Bar
Clerkships:
- US Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit, Hon. Carl E. Stewart, 2014 - 2015
- USDC, Middle District of Louisiana, Hon. James J. Brady, 2013 - 2014