John Shors, senior partner at Dentons Davis Brown and a fourth-generation lawyer, is retiring after a 60-year career with the Iowa law firm.

Shors received a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Iowa State University and graduated from the University of Iowa College of Law with his Juris Doctorate degree in 1964. In 1965, he decided to stay in Iowa and joined Harris, Thoma, Schoenthal, Davis & Hockenberg, now Dentons Davis Brown.

“I wanted to be around my family, and not get too far removed from them again like I had during my time in the Army,” Shors said in a news release.

With an interest in science and how things work, his practice has focused on corporate matters, energy and economic growth, the release said. He also helped form Edge Technologies, the Iowa Research Council, the Iowa State University Research Park, the Iowa Funds of Funds, and Iowa Community Development to support technology transfer and capital formation efforts.

“John Shors has been tireless in his advocacy for clients, the Firm, and the Des Moines community,” Dentons Davis Brown President John Pietila said in a prepared statement. “Even after 60 years, he remains motivated more by what is next than by all he has accomplished.”

In 1979, Shors was named a partner in the firm Davis, Hockenberg, Wine, Brown, Koehn & Shors, P.C. He conintued in that role until 2021, when the firm combined with Dentons to become Dentons Davis Brown. His leadership roles have included a term as president and two terms on the firm’s board of directors.

Shors began his involvement with the Iowa State University Alumni Association in the early 1970s, leading each of the three major charitable foundations at the university and leading Iowa State’s first capital campaign with Owen Newlin and Steve Zumbach. He is a lifetime member of the Iowa State Foundation’s Board of Governors and his service was recognized with the ISU Alumni Medal.

He and his wife, Patsy, along with a group of friends, also founded the Iowa Runaway Service in 1973 to provide shelter to young people who had left home. The organization is now Youth Emergency Shelter Service (YESS), which supports thousands of young people each year through emergency shelter, crisis intervention, mental health counseling and therapy.

“John cares deeply about justice, fairness and opportunity. He is constantly thinking creatively about how to solve a problem or make something beneficial happen,” Dentons Davis Brown President-elect Lori Chesser said about Shor’s legacy. “He does not take ‘no’ for an answer easily, which sometimes has challenged me. But when I realize the results, I understand why. Recently a young couple of Hmong Lao heritage approached him at the Downtown Farmers Market. They thanked him for what he had done for their community and told him that they named their first child after him. His legacy is doing what it takes to accomplish the goal, and that kind of commitment makes a lasting impression.”