About Laura Sams
Laura Sams Neal built an early career inside the courthouse and in the field. She earned her J.D. from Oklahoma City University School of Law in 2013. Her academic training followed years of hands-on work that shaped her approach to cases and clients.
Before law school she served as an investigator and mitigation specialist at the Oklahoma County Public Defender's Office in 2008. That role put her on the ground gathering facts, interviewing witnesses and compiling mitigation materials. The experience gave her practical insight into how investigations and mitigation can affect outcomes at trial.
After finishing law school she returned to the Oklahoma County Public Defender's Office as an attorney in 2014. There she handled trial preparation, client interviews and courtroom appearances for indigent defendants. Her time in public defense deepened her familiarity with criminal procedure and the practical realities of trial work.
In 2016 she opened her own firm, Laura Sams Neal PLLC. Since founding the firm she has built a practice that draws on her mitigation background and public defense experience. She is admitted to practice in Oklahoma and before the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma. Her professional activities include long-standing participation in the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Inn of Court, where she has been a member since 2014.
Colleagues describe her work as thorough and grounded in courtroom experience. She approaches cases by combining investigative detail with courtroom advocacy. She represents clients in state and federal proceedings, handling matters that require mitigation investigation, trial preparation and direct representation. She currently leads Laura Sams Neal PLLC and maintains an active practice in Oklahoma state and federal courts, handling criminal defense and mitigation advocacy.
