The seemingly overnight explosion of the Marcellus Shale play has attracted law firms of all sizes and practices from both inside and outside Pennsylvania. But while some believe the amount of work coming from major drillers will require the huge staff only a megafirm can provide to manage it, smaller firms are banking on the depth of their expertise to help them remain competitive.
Energy lawyer Michael P. Joy, upon joining Reed Smith in Pittsburgh as a partner in its energy and natural resources group from his boutique law firm Biltekoff & Joy in Buffalo, N.Y., told The Legal in January that he chose the firm because he believed “the volume of work, as well as the [sophistication] and the breadth of the projects” related to natural gas drilling in Western Pennsylvania are evolving in such a way that only large firms with a wide range of expertise will be equipped to handle them.
