Shayla Reed

My Journey

Shayla Reed developed a love for the art of advocacy at a very young age. She was introduced to Lincoln Douglas Debate in ninth grade and became a championship debater in high school and college. She attended Creighton University and graduated with degrees in Political Science and Philosophy. In college, she competed in the World Debating Championships in Australia and England. 

After college, Shayla was selected be a member of the United States Debate Team. She competed in tournaments throughout England, Scotland, and Wales and competed against world class debaters such as the Oxford Debating Society. 

Shayla attended law school at the University of Nebraska College of Law. She competed in the Client Counseling Competition and won second place at the national competition. She also competed in the Mock Trial Competitions, was a Member of Law Review, and graduated "with distinction."

After law school, Shayla was hired as an associate for a prestigious insurance defense law firm. During her first three years, she tried fourteen jury trials as a defense attorney in motor vehicle collision cases. Defense attorneys represent the person in the lawsuit who negligently caused the collision; not the injured victim. 

During these three years, Shayla gained a great deal of jury trial experience. She also gained invaluable insight into how insurance companies value cases and the tactics they use to reduce and deny claims. Although she won all her jury trials, she found herself feeling sorry for the injured victims. The better she did her job, the less the injured victim would be compensated.  Shayla will never forget her last jury trial as a defense attorney. She defended a driver who struck a 40-year-old hospice nurse while the nurse was riding her bike. The injury left the nurse with permanent damage to her back. Shayla worked hard to represent her client and keep the verdict as low as possible. She was successful and the jury awarded the nurse less than five thousand dollars for her permanent injuries. 

After the jury trial, the nurse’s attorney called Shayla to congratulate her. He also told Shayla that his client did not hold any grudge against Shayla. She knew that Shayla was doing her job, but she also wanted Shayla to know that she believed God had a plan for Shayla. That day, Shayla quit her job. She knew she was on the wrong side and was supposed to be representing injured victims; not insurance companies and negligent drivers. 

Since then, Shayla has devoted her law career to helping injured victims. To that end, she started her own law firm and now devotes her practice to helping victims of nursing home abuse and neglect.