Karen Shepherd
Harris County Justice Court
Houston,TX
1
Certification
30
years of professional experience
Highly accomplished Court Administrator serving as the primary administrative leader, fiscal manager, and strategic advisor to the elected Justice of the Peace. Over 12 years experience 6 years in leadership spanning public sector court operations and corporate customer relations management. Proven track record ensuring justice court operations remain legally compliant, optimizing civil/criminal dockets, and managing multi-tiered teams under strict state guidelines.
Work History
Chief Clerk
- Executive Administration: Act as the primary administrative leader, fiscal manager, and strategic advisor to the elected Justice of the Peace (Judge) to maintain high-efficiency court operations.
- Operational Integrity: Ensure the entire justice court operates smoothly and remains in strict compliance with Texas legal requirements across civil, eviction, and Class C misdemeanor cases.
Assistant Chief / Civil Supervisor
5 Years 7 Months- Strategic Advisement & Goals: Served as chief strategic advisor to the Judge to shape the court's short- and long-term operational goals, evaluating program activities and monitoring key performance indicators (KPIs).
- Docket Coordination: Directly coordinates with the Judge in civil, eviction, and criminal trial dockets.
- Infrastructure Management: Ensures staff accurately process filings, execute warrants, and issue writs or citations using county legal infrastructure software like Odyssey and JIMS.
- Compliance Reporting: Compiles and formats complex activity metrics to submit official performance or compliance reports to county departments and state agencies.
- Statutory Alignment: Ensures lawsuits, evictions, debt claims, and small claims cases align strictly with the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure and Harris County local courts.
- E-File Oversight: Oversees the review, auditing, and electronic processing of civil filings submitted via eFileTexas by attorneys and pro-se litigants.
Civil / Criminal Clerk
6 Years- Citation Processing: Processed traffic tickets, safety violations, and Class C misdemeanor citations issued by law enforcement.
- Warrant Management: Prepared, issued, and tracked arrest warrants, failure-to-appear notices, and capias pro fine documents.
- Financial Accounting: Processed fine payments, set up statutory payment plans, managed past-due court costs, and conducted daily cash-drawer reconciliations for filing fees and civil bonds.
- Case Intake: Audited electronic civil filings (eFiles) for small claims, debt claims, and repair-and-remedy lawsuits.
- Eviction Processing: Handled urgent landlord-tenant disputes, filed eviction petitions, and prepared emergency timelines.
- Document Issuance: Generated and issued official citations, Subpoenas, Abstracts of Judgment, and Writs of Possession.
- Appeals Processing: Prepared, sealed, and transferred case files to higher county courts when a civil judgment was appealed.
- Docket & In-Court Support: Built, coordinated, and published daily trial, pre-trial, and bench dockets; assisted the Judge during live hearings by administering oaths to witnesses and recording final dispositions.
- Jury Coordination: Managed the local jury wheel, distributed civic summonses, and coordinated panels for jury trials.
- Public Assistance: Answered procedural questions for the public and legal professionals without providing prohibited legal advice.
Customer Relations Supervisor
18 Years 4 Months- Daily Operations: Supervised daily operations, managed agent schedules, and provided continuous coaching to a high-volume team.
- Performance Management: Monitored team key performance indicators (KPIs) like average handle time, resolution rates, and retention quotas.
- Escalation Support: Stepped in to de-escalate sensitive or angry customer calls regarding severe billing discrepancies or service cancellations.
- Process Compliance: Verified that agents strictly followed security policies, including Customer Proprietary Network Information (CPNI) guidelines.
Education
College Coursework
Skills
Court Legal Systems: Odyssey
JIMS
eFileTexas
PeopleSoft
Microsoft Teams
Financial & Analytics: Office of Budget Management (OBM)
Financial Ledger Reconciliation
Cash-Drawer Auditing
Activity Metrics
Court Operations: Docket Coordination
Jury Wheel Management
Warrant Tracking
Civil/Criminal Case Intake
Compliance & Laws: Texas Rules of Civil Procedure
Harris County Local Court Rules
Statutory Guidelines
CPNI Regulations
Team Leadership: Performance Benchmarking
Talent Acquisition
Training & Onboarding
Dispute De-escalation
Certification
- Certified Clerk – Texas Justice Training Center (TJTC)
- Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) Certified
- Texas Office of Court Administration (OCA) Certified
Timeline
Chief Clerk
Harris County Justice Court
07.2026 - CurrentRead More
Assistant Chief / Civil Supervisor
Harris County Justice Court
12.2020 - 07.2026Read More
Civil / Criminal Clerk
Harris County Justice Court
12.2014 - 12.2020Read More
Customer Relations Supervisor
Comcast Xfinity Cable
08.1996 - 12.2014Read More
Lamar University
College Coursework
Read More