Cierra Vaughn
Senior Associate
Suite 900
Washington, D.C., 20001
Suite 1600
Baltimore, MD 21201
Cierra focuses her practice on all aspects of products liability litigation. She has experience representing public-facing clients requiring extreme discretion and counsels clients throughout the litigation process. Cierra is a versatile attorney recognized for persuasive courtroom and written advocacy with a demonstrative record of success across multiple jurisdictions. In her daily practice, Cierra prepares written...
Cierra focuses her practice on all aspects of products liability litigation. She has experience representing public-facing clients requiring extreme discretion and counsels clients throughout the litigation process. Cierra is a versatile attorney recognized for persuasive courtroom and written advocacy with a demonstrative record of success across multiple jurisdictions. In her daily practice, Cierra prepares written discovery requests and responses, takes and defends fact and expert depositions, drafts pre-trial motions, performs legal research, and provides broad support to her team by driving cases forward.
Prior to joining Nelson Mullins, Cierra gained extensive trial experience at law firms representing national political figures, professional athletes, public figures, healthcare entities, non-profits, and professional sports’ team executives in complex litigation often involving multiple practice areas. In her prior experience, she regularly led her own cases from beginning to end, including trials and administrative hearings, as the first-chair attorney. Cierra is at ease in both supportive and leadership roles, with her experience prompting her to anticipate litigation needs and issues in advance.
discovery requests and responses, takes and defends fact and expert depositions, drafts pre-trial motions, performs legal research, and provides broad support to her team by driving cases forward.
Prior to joining Nelson Mullins, Cierra gained extensive trial experience at law firms representing national political figures, professional athletes, public figures, healthcare entities, non-profits, and professional sports’ team executives in complex litigation often involving multiple practice areas. In her prior experience, she regularly led her own cases from beginning to end, including trials and administrative hearings, as the first-chair attorney. Cierra is at ease in both supportive and leadership roles, with her experience prompting her to anticipate litigation needs and issues in advance.
Experience
Speaking Engagements
- Arizona Office of the Supreme Court, Adult Probation Division: 2013 Recidivism Trends by County.
Education
-
Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law,
JD
(2017)
- Student Works Editor, Journal of Law and International Legal Affairs
- Arizona State University, BS in Political Science, Minors in Sociology and Justice Studies, Certificate in International Studies, summa cum laude (2013)
Admissions
- District of Columbia
- California
- Virginia
- Maryland
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California
Clerkships
- Judicial Law Clerk, the Honorable Erick Larsh, Superior Court of California (May - Aug. 2015)
Practice Areas
Speaking Engagements
- Arizona Office of the Supreme Court, Adult Probation Division: 2013 Recidivism Trends by County.
Recognitions
- The Best Lawyers in America® Ones to Watch
- Family Law (2026)
- Product Liability Litigation - Defendants (2026)
- AAML Eric D. Turner Award recipient
- Washington D.C. Super Lawyers, Rising Star - Family Law (2023-2025)
Professional Activities
- Former Board Member, Young Lawyers Chapter, Fairfax County Bar Association
- Former Member, Women in Business Networking Group, Arlington Chamber of Commerce
Community
- Volunteer, Fairfax Bar Association Heroes vs. Villains Annual Run for Justice 5k benefiting the Fairfax Law Foundation (2022-2024)
Cierra focuses her practice on all aspects of products liability litigation. She has experience representing public-facing clients requiring extreme discretion and counsels clients throughout the litigation process. Cierra is a versatile attorney recognized for persuasive courtroom and written advocacy with a demonstrative record of success across multiple jurisdictions. In her daily practice, Cierra prepares written... discovery requests and responses, takes and defends fact and expert depositions, drafts pre-trial motions, performs legal research, and provides broad support to her team by driving cases forward.
Prior to joining Nelson Mullins, Cierra gained extensive trial experience at law firms representing national political figures, professional athletes, public figures, healthcare entities, non-profits, and professional sports’ team executives in complex litigation often involving multiple practice areas. In her prior experience, she regularly led her own cases from beginning to end, including trials and administrative hearings, as the first-chair attorney. Cierra is at ease in both supportive and leadership roles, with her experience prompting her to anticipate litigation needs and issues in advance.
Experience
The following is a selected sampling of matters and is provided for informational purposes only. Past success does not indicate the likelihood of success in any future matter.Speaking Engagements
- Arizona Office of the Supreme Court, Adult Probation Division: 2013 Recidivism Trends by County.
Education
-
Pennsylvania State University Dickinson School of Law,
JD
(2017)
- Student Works Editor, Journal of Law and International Legal Affairs
- Arizona State University, BS in Political Science, Minors in Sociology and Justice Studies, Certificate in International Studies, summa cum laude (2013)
Admissions
- District of Columbia
- California
- Virginia
- Maryland
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California
Clerkships
- Judicial Law Clerk, The Honorable Erick Larsh, Superior Court of California (May - Aug. 2015)
Practice Areas
- Products Liability - Consumer & Mechanical
- Products Liability - Pharmaceuticals & Medical Devices
- Toxic Torts/Asbestos
Industries
- The Best Lawyers in America® Ones to Watch
- Family Law (2026)
- Product Liability Litigation - Defendants (2026)
- AAML Eric D. Turner Award recipient
- Washington D.C. Super Lawyers, Rising Star - Family Law (2023-2025)
- Former Board Member, Young Lawyers Chapter, Fairfax County Bar Association
- Former Member, Women in Business Networking Group, Arlington Chamber of Commerce
- Volunteer, Fairfax Bar Association Heroes vs. Villains Annual Run for Justice 5k benefiting the Fairfax Law Foundation (2022-2024)
Highlights from the Firm’s Insights
