Gwendolyn Dawson - Managing Counsel, Exxon Mobil Corporation

EDUCATION:  Tomball High School - 1994 Rice University, BS in Chemical Engineering - 1998 University of Texas at Austin, Juris Doctorate - 2001

I am currently Managing Counsel at Exxon Mobil Corporation. From my office in Houston, Texas, I supervise a team of lawyers and support staff that handles ExxonMobil’s commercial, tort and intellectual property litigation. While I’m not working as an engineer, my engineering education helps me in my job every day, from understanding the complexities of oil and gas operations, to grasping the technical details of a patent involved in a patent infringement lawsuit. 

In prior assignments within ExxonMobil, I provided legal support to the company’s natural gas and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) businesses around the world, as well as to domestic and international oil and gas production projects. Prior to joining the ExxonMobil legal team in 2007, I worked in private practice at King & Spalding LLP and Vinson & Elkins LLP, focusing on disputes involving energy industry clients. 

I am definitely a better lawyer thanks to my engineering background – and to the SPE for giving me a scholarship that encouraged me to pursue engineering at Rice University. My advice to students is to think about the career you want before choosing a college major and to choose the best major to move you toward that career – but to keep an open mind. An engineering degree opens many doors, including many that lead to fulfilling, non-engineering careers. Contact me at gwendolyn.dawson@exxonmobil.com.