Sharon McGowan
CEO
Sharon McGowan, Chief Executive Officer, leads Public Justice’s legal and foundation staff, guiding the organization’s litigation and advocacy work.
Prior to joining Public Justice, Sharon served as a partner with Katz Banks Kumin, and previously served as Chief Strategy Officer and Legal Director for Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, the nation’s oldest and largest LGBTQ+ legal organization. During her time at Lambda Legal, McGowan developed and implemented the organization’s strategic priorities, led its litigation and policy advocacy teams, and built partnerships with national civil rights groups on intersecting issues. McGowan also held several senior positions within the Obama Administration including Principal Deputy Chief of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division’s Appellate Section; and Acting General Counsel and Deputy General Counsel for Policy at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.
As a senior federal official, McGowan fought to end discrimination in employment, education, housing, health care, and policing, and helped implement groundbreaking federal initiatives including the Affordable Care Act and nationwide marriage equality.
Earlier in her career, McGowan was a Staff Attorney with the LGBT & AIDS Projects of the American Civil Liberties Union, where she served as lead attorney in a landmark Title VII case, Schroer v. Billington, which established new protections for transgender individuals against employment discrimination based on their gender identity and gender transition.
McGowan served as a law clerk to the Honorable Norman H. Stahl, U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, and as a law clerk to the Honorable Helen G. Berrigan, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. McGowan graduated with honors from Harvard Law School in 2000, and graduated with honors from the University of Virginia in 1995. She is licensed to practice in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Massachusetts, and New York.
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