Laura Popps practices in Austin, Texas and has been Board Certified in Criminal Law since 1999. A former prosecutor with the Texas Attorney General’s Office, Laura travelled the state assisting local district attorneys who needed help with complex and high-profile cases, including everything from capital murder to white collar offenses. Prior to that, Laura spent several years focused exclusively on federal habeas death penalty litigation. Through these positions, Laura gained extensive trial, appellate and post-conviction experience in criminal law.
In 2009, Laura was recruited to head up the Austin Region of the State Bar’s Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel, where she was designated as CDC’s statewide “point-person” on cases alleging prosecutorial misconduct. Laura became known as an authority on the topic, giving lectures and writing on the challenges of these cases as well as handling the Bar’s most complex and serious litigation involving prosecutors. Laura served as lead counsel in the disciplinary case against Ken Anderson, a district judge and former prosecutor who suppressed evidence in the 1987 trial of Michael Morton, resulting in Morton’s wrongful conviction and life sentence for the murder of his wife. The case received national attention when it settled shortly before trial for one of the largest sanctions ever obtained against a prosecutor in a disciplinary case. Two years later, Laura and her trial team successfully prosecuted and disbarred former district attorney Charles Sebesta for misconduct leading to the wrongful conviction and death sentence of Anthony Graves.
In 2016, Laura tapped into a long-held interest in Forensic Psychology and enrolled part time as a graduate student while continuing her work as an attorney. There she studied the most up-to-date scientific research on issues such as jury decision-making, false confessions, eyewitness identification errors, false memories, and psychological disorders. Her desire to share this information with other criminal law practitioners in a way that is easily accessible and relevant became the seed for her consulting practice.
AUTHOR and LECTURER
Laura Bayouth Popps, The Ethics of Seeking or Responding to Online Reviews, Voice for the Defense, Vol. 52, No. 8, 11 (Oct. 2023).
Six Ways to Virtually Ensure a Grievance and How to Prevent Them, Austin Criminal Defense Lawyers Association Annual Ethics Seminar, September 2023, Travis Co. Courthouse, Austin, TX (via Zoom).
Laura Bayouth Popps, How to Avoid a Grievance when an Attorney-Client Relationship Ends, Voice for the Defense, Vol. 51, No. 8, 9-11 (Oct. 2022).
Laura Bayouth Popps, A Peek Behind the Curtain: The Texas Attorney Grievance Process in a Nutshell, Voice for the Defense, Vol. 50, No. 8, 8-9 (Oct. 2021).
The Top Three Reasons Criminal Attorneys are Grieved and How to Prevent Them, Austin Criminal Defense Lawyers Association Annual Ethics Seminar, September 2020, Travis Co. Courthouse, Austin, TX (via Zoom).
Ethics for Post-conviction Lawyers, University of Texas Conference on Criminal Appeals, May 1-3, 2019, Austin, TX.
Laura Bayouth Popps, Prosecutorial Misconduct and the Role of Discipline, Examining the Intersection Between Error and Ethics, Tex. B.J. 430-31 (2017).
The Problem of Wrongful Convictions from a Discipline Perspective, Annual Program: Establishing Innocence or Guilt, Center for American and International Law, August 27, 2018, Plano, TX.
The Bigger They Are, The Harder They Fall—Challenges in Prosecuting Government Officials, National Organization of Bar Counsel, August 2016, San Francisco, CA.
New Models for Prosecutorial Accountability, April 2016, Cardozo School of Law, New York, NY.
Trust Accounts: The Most Common Scenarios Involving Lawyers Facing Disciplinary Action, Grievance Symposium 2014, Texas Law Center, Austin, TX.
The Attorney Discipline System, August 2012, University of Texas Administrative Law Conference, Austin, TX.
Grievance Referral Program, Grievance Symposium 2012, Texas Law Center, Austin, TX.
Attorney Ethics, Austin Criminal Defense Lawyers Association Annual Ethics Seminar, September 2010, Travis Co. Courthouse, Austin, TX.
Making a Difference Together: Identification, Investigation and Prosecution of Child Abuse and Neglect, April 2008, Omni Colonnade Hotel, San Antonio, TX.
Noah's Story: The Life and Death of a Drug Endangered Child, April 20, 2007, National Shaken Baby Alliance and Drug Endangered Child Conference.
Investigation and Prosecution of Fatal Child Abuse Cases, June 28, 2007, Child Victims Interventions and Investigations Conference.
Pretrial Discovery in Federal Habeas Proceedings, August 1997, Texas District and County Attorney's Association Seminar.
AWARDS & HONORS
Defender of Justice Award, Texas Fair Defense Project (2016) (for her work on the Anthony Graves/Charles Sebesta case).
Presidential Citation, State Bar of Texas (2014) (for her work on the Michael Morton/Ken Anderson case).
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS & HONORS
Board Certified by Texas Board of Legal Specialization, Criminal Law, since 1999.
Co-Chair, TCDLA Ethics Committee, since 2023.
Member, TCDLA Ethics Committee, since 2019.
Member, Texas Bar College, since 2018.
Member, Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers
Member, Texas Criminal Defense Lawyer’s Association
Member, Austin Criminal Defense Lawyer’s Association
Member, Mother Attorneys Mentoring Association of Austin
Member, Travis County Women Lawyer’s Association
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
Mentor, Faith & Leadership Mentoring Cohort, 2023.
Member, National Charity League, 2016-present.
Board of Directors, National Shaken Baby Alliance, 2006-2013.
Schedule your initial consultation with Laura today.