Monica D. Cunningham
Areas of Practice
Monica Cunningham practices Of Counsel in the Austin office where her years of municipal law and administrative experience serve the firm’s clients.
Ms. Cunningham’s early municipal experience began with 4 years in County government as Legal and Executive Assistant to the County Judge and Commissioners Court. Cunningham then served as an Assistant City Attorney for the City of El Paso, working with every City department, serving as attorney for the jurisdictionally independent Civil Service Commission, as counsel for the independent entities created by Interlocal Agreement between the City and County, the El Paso City-County Health District, and the Civic, Convention and Tourist Center Board of Directors. Cunningham was a member of the legal team which worked with a Charter Commission to completely redraft the City of El Paso Charter, and became chief labor negotiator, successfully negotiating collective bargaining agreements with both the Police and Fire Unions.
In 1996, Cunningham was appointed by Mayor and City Council to be the City’s Chief Administrative Officer, administering the day to day operation of the City government with over 6,000 employees and an over $500 million annual budget. In 2001, Cunningham joined Kemp Smith, first in the El Paso office, and currently in the Austin office.
Professional Affiliations
- Texas Bar Association
- Austin Bar Association
- Travis County Women's Bar Association
Bars & Courts
- Texas, 1974
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas
Education
- Russell Sage College, B.A. with honors,1970
- Washington College of Law, American University, J.D.,1973
Professional and Civic Involvement
Ms. Cunningham was one of the founding members of the El Paso Women’s Bar Association, serving as one of its early Presidents. She was also the El Paso representative to the State Bar of Texas’ Effective Representation of Women in the Bar Committee, the group who wrote the by-laws for, and was the precursor to, the now established Women and the Law State Bar Section. Cunningham has been honored as the Woman of the Year in Law by the El Paso Women’s Political Caucus.
