Julia Simon is a seasoned trial lawyer, respected business advisor, and dispute resolution specialist who has successfully guided clients through complex legal and regulatory issues for more than 30 years. She is currently a partner at Lynn Pinker Hurst and Schwegmann in Dallas where she balances her growing dispute resolution practice with representing clients in high stakes litigation.
For more than 23 years Julia served as in-house counsel at Mary Kay Inc. retiring from her position as Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary in 2023. During her tenure at Mary Kay Julia was responsible for the company’s worldwide legal, risk management, corporate governance, compliance, public affairs, records management, corporate/crisis communications, and corporate social responsibility functions. She also served as the company’s first Chief Privacy Officer.
Before her tenure at Mary Kay, Julia was an associate and partner at Locke Liddell & Sapp in Dallas, specializing in commercial litigation and labor & employment law. She began her legal career at McGlinchey, Stafford, Nealy & Lang in New Orleans, where she focused on labor & employment law.
Julia earned a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University and a law degree from The University of Texas School of Law.
She is on the Board of the Center for American and International Law, currently serving as Vice Chair. She also serves on the Board of the National Association of Women Lawyers, Dallas Association of Women Lawyers Foundation Board, the SMU Tower Center, and the UT Southwestern President’s Advisory Board. She serves as an adjunct professor for the Corporate Counsel Externship Program at Southern Methodist University Law School.
Julia is recognized as one of the Top 500 Business Leaders in Dallas-Fort Worth by D CEO magazine. She received the Robert H. Dedman Award for Ethics & Law from the Texas General Counsel Forum. She was spotlighted by Business Insider as one of the most influential businesswomen in the United States and listed as one of the most powerful executives in corporate America by Black Enterprise. She has been recognized many times for her work in advancing diversity and inclusion in the law.