• Pennsylvania Supreme Court, 1978
• U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 1978
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 1995
• Pro hac vice admissions in New Jersey, New York, Delaware and Michigan

Attorney Carol Nelson Shepherd Discusses What Makes Feldman Shepherd Unique

Attorney Carol Nelson Shepherd Discusses the Importance of Serving as an Attorney and Counselor

Personal Injury Attorney Carol Nelson Shepherd Discusses Feldman Shepherd's CLE Program

Carol Nelson Shepherd Medical Malpractice Attorney Speaks about Feldman Shepherd

Attorney Carol Nelson Shepherd Speaks about Her Love for the Legal Profession

A passionate litigator, Carol has limited her practice to representing patients in medical negligence claims for over thirty years. To her, it is the perfect combination of applying her extensive knowledge of diverse medical topics with using strong oral advocacy skills to prove her cases and win.

Both Carol’s mother and father were physicians, and she recalls as a small child tagging along with her family physician mom on hospital rounds and house calls. Then from age 11 until she went to college at age 18, she worked in her mother’s office. Her first-hand experience with patients and medical practice instilled in her both a fascination with medicine and an empathy for the concerns of patients.

While one of the highlights of her practice is taking apart a health care provider defendant on cross-examination at deposition or trial, Carol says her favorite part of practicing law is being able to provide a better and more comfortable future for her clients. She has worked with many individuals and families who have suffered an obstetric disaster, a delay in diagnosis or have lost a beloved family member as a consequence of medical negligence. Her clients and their families often stay in touch with her over the years.

When Carol began her legal career, she was daunted by the weighty responsibility to her clients who had placed their trust in her and, therefore, was driven to excel as a trial lawyer in every way. Presently, she says it is a desire to right a wrong, to obtain justice, sometimes to prevent the same mistakes from occurring again, and to provide for her clients and their families that motivate her to succeed.

A little known fact about Carol is that she is an aspiring writer and recently completed her first novel. She also loves to travel. In fact, Paris is one of Carol’s favorite places in the world where she dreams of having a pied-à-terre to pursue her fiction writing hobby.

Carol is also an avid culinarian and loves to cook for everything from barbeques at her beach home in Avalon to large family holiday dinners. She has placed second and third in the local “Cooking up Justice” competition which provides funding for Philabundance. Carol also appreciates contemporary art and crafts and supports many Philadelphia-area art shows, fairs and museums.

While the practice of law, helping others, writing and cooking are all things that feed Carol’s spirit, she is most proud of raising four wonderful children - all of whom are now successful adults. She recently married Thomas Backenstose, a dentist in Philadelphia, and inherited also his two lovely daughters.