Allyson N. Ho

Allyson N. Ho is Co-Chair of the Firm’s nationwide Appellate and Constitutional Law Practice Group and partner in the Dallas office of Gibson Dunn. She has presented over 100 oral arguments in federal and state courts nationwide, including seven before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Chambers has called her “undoubtedly one of the premier appellate lawyers in the United States”—“a magician” who “creates paths to victory that others do not see”—and ranked her among leading appellate advocates every year for the past 16 years. Benchmark Litigation has named her one of the “Top 250 Women in Litigation,” a "Litigation Star," and shortlisted her for “Appellate Litigator of the Year.” She is one of the few appellate lawyers nationwide named multiple times to the BTI Client Service All-Stars List, recognized by corporate counsel for “delivering the absolute best in client service.” Most recently, Women in Business Law shortlisted Allyson for Constitutional Lawyer of the Year.

The American Lawyer has recognized her in its “Litigators of the Week” column every year for the past five years. The National Law Journal has repeatedly featured her on its “Appellate Hot List.” Law360 has honored her multiple times as an “Appellate MVP,” “Litigation Powerhouse,” and leading member of the “Appellate Group of the Year.” Texas Lawyer has recognized her as a “Distinguished Leader,” “Attorney of the Year Finalist,” leading member of a “Litigation Department of the Year,” and one of the state’s most “Winning Women.”

Federal and State Appellate Practice

Allyson has argued significant business cases before the U.S. Supreme Court in the areas of bankruptcy, patents, ERISA, employment, administrative law, and the False Claims Act. The National Law Journal called Allyson a “Veteran SCOTUS Advocate” in the “upper echelons of Supreme Court practice,” Law360 named her a “Supreme Court Star” and “one of the nation’s preeminent appellate lawyers,” and EmpiricalSCOTUS.com ranked her among “the most successful attorneys that currently practice before the Court.”

She has also successfully represented businesses in every federal court of appeals in the country, as well as state appellate courts nationwide, including courts in Arizona, Louisiana, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, and West Virginia.

Her most significant wins include multiple U.S. Supreme Court decisions overturning decades-old precedent opposed by the business community, several multi-billion dollar and nine-figure reversals in both federal and state appellate courts across the country, critical class-certification reversals, and landmark constitutional rulings.

Government and Public Service Experience

Allyson has a distinguished record of experience at the highest levels of the federal government. She served as Special Assistant to President George W. Bush, Counselor to Attorney General John Ashcroft, and law clerk to Justice Sandra Day O’Connor of the U.S. Supreme Court and Judge Jacques L. Wiener Jr. of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Her record of public service also includes appointments to various boards and commissions. President Donald Trump appointed her to the Religious Liberty Commission. Senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz appointed her vice chair of the Federal Judicial Evaluation Committee, which evaluates potential appointments of all federal judges and U.S. Attorneys in Texas. Governors Rick Perry and Greg Abbott previously appointed her to the Texas Judicial Council. She has also served as a public member of the Administrative Conference of the United States, on the boards of the United States Supreme Court Historical Society and the Texas Supreme Court Historical Society, and on the Federalist Society Board of Visitors, the Washington Legal Foundation Legal Policy Advisory Board, and the U.S. Magistrate Judge Merit Selection Panel for the Northern District of Texas. She has testified before Congress on issues of importance to the business community.

Other Background Information

An active pro bono litigator, Allyson works most frequently with First Liberty Institute, the National Organization for Victim Assistance, and the National Crime Victim Law Institute. Her amicus briefs have been repeatedly cited in Supreme Court opinions and during oral argument.

She graduated from Duke University magna cum laude  with a B.A. in English, Rice University with an M.A. and Ph.D. in English Literature, and the University of Chicago Law School with high honors. She was a member of the Law Review and Order of the Coif. She and her husband Jim, a federal judge, have a twin daughter and son.

Capabilities

• Appellate and Constitutional Law
• Litigation

Credentials

Education:

• University of Chicago Law School - 2000 Juris Doctor
• Rice University - 1994 Master of Arts
• Rice University - 1994 Ph.D.
• Duke University - 1988 Bachelor of Arts

Admissions:

• District of Columbia Bar
• Texas Bar

Clerkships:

• US Supreme Court, Hon. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, 2002 - 2003
• US Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit, Hon. Judge Jacques L. Wiener, 2000 - 2001