Stephen M. Sheppard (born 1963) is an American professor of law, legal historian, and editor. He is Dean Emeritus, and Charles E. Cantú Distinguished Professor of Law Emeritus at

St. Mary's University School of Law St. Mary's University School of Law is one of the professional graduate schools of St. Mary's University, a private Catholic university located in San Antonio, Texas. Academics The School of Law has an enrollment of about 770 students, pursu ...

, in

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

, Texas.

Education

Sheppard received a B.A. in Political Science from the

University of Southern Mississippi The University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM) is a public research university with its main campus located in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award bachelor's, ma ...

followed by a J.D., L.L.M., and his doctorate, J.S.D., from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

. He has also received a post-J.D. certificate in International Law from

and was made

Master of Letters The Master of Letters degree (MLitt or LittM; Latin ' or ') is a postgraduate degree. Ireland Trinity College Dublin and Maynooth University offer MLitt degrees. Trinity has offered them the longest, owing largely to its tradition as Ireland ...

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...

Scholarship

Sheppard is a legal historian, with a focus on the development of the

common law In law, common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law created by judges and similar quasi-judicial tribunals by virtue of being stated in written opinions."The common law is not a brooding omnipres ...

and of legal institutions, particularly

legal education in the United States Legal education in the United States generally refers to a graduate degree, the completion of which makes a graduate eligible to sit for an examination for a license to practice as a Lawyer. Around 60 percent of those who complete a law degree ty ...

. His work in the law has been cited by courts including the

Utah Supreme Court The Utah Supreme Court is the supreme court of the state of Utah, United States. It has final authority of interpretation of the Utah Constitution. The Utah Supreme Court is composed of five members: a chief justice, an associate chief justice, ...

, (in ''State v. Reyes'', 116 P.3d 305 (2005)) which changed the burden of proof for felonies in Utah citing Sheppard's law review article, "The Metamorphoses of Reasonable Doubt: How Changes in the Burden of Proof Have Weakened the Presumption of Innocence". Dr. Sheppard is credited as the General Editor of a revised edition of the American legal dictionary by

John Bouvier John Bouvier (1787 – November 18, 1851), was a French-American jurist and legal lexicographer, is known for his legal writings, particularly his ''Law Dictionary Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States of America and of the S ...

, '' The Wolters Kluwer Bouvier Law Dictionary''. As an editor, he has prepared new editions of several law books, including the ''Opera Omnia'' of

John Selden John Selden (16 December 1584 – 30 November 1654) was an English jurist, a scholar of England's ancient laws and constitution and scholar of Jewish law. He was known as a polymath; John Milton hailed Selden in 1644 as "the chief of learned ...

, ''Bramble Bush'' by

Karl Llewellyn Karl Nickerson Llewellyn (May 22, 1893 – February 13, 1962) was a prominent American jurisprudential scholar associated with the school of legal realism. ''The Journal of Legal Studies'' has identified Llewellyn as one of the twenty most cited A ...

, and ''Introduction to the Legal System of the United States'' by E. Allan Farnsworth.

Professional career

A member of the State Bar of Texas and the Mississippi Bar, Sheppard is admitted to practice before the

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

and the U.S. Tax Court. Until 2014, he was the William H. Enfield Distinguished Professor of Law at the

University of Arkansas School of Law The University of Arkansas School of Law is the law school of the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, Arkansas, a State university system, state university. It has around 445 students enrolled in its Juris Doctor (J.D.) and Master of Law (LL.M) ...

, where he was also the Associate Dean for Research and Faculty Development.

Sexual Assault Case

On April 12, 2023, Texas Rangers and University police searched Sheppard's office on the campus of St. Mary's University School of Law for evidence in the sexual assault case filed by a student against Sheppard. Sheppard has been barred from campus and placed on administrative leave while the investigation is in progress.

Awards

* Member of the American Law Institute * Member of the

Royal Historical Society The Royal Historical Society, founded in 1868, is a learned society of the United Kingdom which advances scholarly studies of history. Origins The society was founded and received its royal charter in 1868. Until 1872 it was known as the Histori ...

Publications

* ''The Selected Writings and Speeches of Sir Edward Coke'',

Liberty Fund Liberty Fund, Inc. is an American private educational foundation headquartered in Carmel, founded by Pierre F. Goodrich. Through publishing, conferences, and educational resources, the operating mandate of the Liberty Fund was set forth in an un ...

, 2003, * with George P. Fletcher, ''American Law in a Global Context: The Basics'' Oxford University Press, 2005, * ''The History of Legal Education in the United States: Commentaries and Primary Sources'' Salem Press, 2005, * ''I Do Solemnly Swear: The Moral Obligations of Legal Officials'' Cambridge University Press, 2009, * General Editor, ''The Wolters Kluwer Bouvier Law Dictionary: Compact Edition'', Kluwer, 2011, * ''An Introduction to the Legal System of the United States'', Fourth Edition, Oxford University Press, 2010,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheppard, Stephen M. 1963 births Living people St. Mary's University, Texas faculty University of Southern Mississippi alumni Columbia Law School alumni University of Arkansas School of Law faculty 21st-century American historians 21st-century American male writers Legal historians Deans of law schools in the United States American male non-fiction writers