Sylvia A. de Leon co-founded Akin Gump’s internationally recognized public law and policy practice. Ms. de Leon was the first woman elected to the partnership in Washington and the first elected to its firmwide management committee. She created the Akin Gump women lawyers initiative, a group focused on business development, which serves as a model for other firms. As the first Hispanic partner in the firm, she also helped initiate the Akin Gump Diversity Committee.
Ms. de Leon has counseled many large corporations and state and local governments on matters before the federal government. The intersection of business, policy and law, and the development of business strategies for federal regulation and legislation, are areas of particular focus. She has worked extensively on matters in all modes of transportation, managing cases before several federal departments. She has handled federal investigations, federal contracts, civil aviation international route proceedings, code-share approvals and foreign ownership matters.
In addition to her client representations, Ms. de Leon has worked with federal and state governments in other capacities. She has served on numerous presidential and congressional commissions and committees, and has advised federal and state officials on select special projects. She was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to the Amtrak board of directors, and during her final term on the Amtrak board served as its vice chair.
Through her service on a variety of other corporate and nonprofit boards, Ms. de Leon maintains an interest in corporate governance and the adoption of best practices for boards and commissions. A former adjunct professor of law at the Georgetown University Law Center, she has been a guest lecturer at other universities and has spoken widely on legislation, policy matters and the legal profession.
At the University of Texas, Ms. de Leon is a lifetime member of the University Development Board and a board member of the Archer Center. She serves on the University of Texas Law School Foundation Board and she is a founder of the new Center for Women in Law at the University of Texas School of Law whose mission is to study issues of unique concern to women in the legal profession.
Ms. de Leon received her B.A. from Briarcliff College and her J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law, where she was selected as an honorary member of the Order of the Coif. She is a member of the Bars of Texas and the District of Columbia. She resides in Washington, D.C., and Hume, Virginia, with her husband, Lynn R. Coleman, and their three children.
Ms. de Leon is the chair of the Washington Ballet board of directors, which oversees the performing and studio companies, The Washington School of Ballet and facilities and community programs in Anacostia. Committed to pro bono representation and community service, she has served on various Washington, D.C. civic boards, including hospital and independent school boards. For the past two years, she has been named by Hispanic Business Magazine as one of the most influential Hispanic women in America. She currently serves on the National Women's Steering Committee for the Hillary Clinton for President campaign.