Credentials

Why Shaun’s background matters to your business

Shaun founded Palmer Advisory after 17 years as General Counsel at Rem Koolhaas’ OMA, a global, design-driven practice. He focuses on commercial contracts, IP and licensing, cross-border delivery, governance, and dispute prevention—turning creative intent into agreements that protect value and move quickly.

The path that built this approach

• Covington & Burling. Early litigation work on complex business disputes taught where ambiguity breaks, how leverage is created, and which clauses actually matter.

• U.S. Department of Justice, Public Integrity Section. Federal prosecutor leading sensitive investigations and trials built habits of disciplined fact-finding, clear written advocacy, and calm decision-making under pressure.

• OMA. Drafted and negotiated hundreds of commercial agreements—client, consultant, vendor, and JV—translating creative objectives into precise scope, fee, IP, and risk terms that kept projects moving. Built contracting playbooks and escalation paths that accelerated time-to-signature and reduced disputes.

What this means for clients of Palmer Advisory

• Sharper contracts, fewer surprises — precise drafting, workable scope/fee mechanics, and change-order protections that hold up.

• Structured choices before problems escalate — investigations rigor for pre-mortems, tidy documentation, and credible board-ready memos.

• Calm, solution-oriented negotiations — experience with public bodies, counterpart counsel, and senior executives.

• Cross-border ease — alignment across EU/U.S./MENA on IP, privacy, procurement.

How clients use Palmer Advisory

• Deal Desk reviews and negotiations

• IP and licensing strategy

• Project playbooks (scope, change orders, risk gates)

• Early interventions on brewing disputes

• Governance (signature rights, vendor policy, playbooks)

Through-line — Deal judgment, courtroom discipline, and investigations rigor to protect margins, timelines, and reputation for design-led businesses.

Education

• J.D., Harvard Law School, 1999

• B.A., University of Virginia, 1996