New Year Game Plan: Firm Leaders Talk 2019 Strategy
Firm and office managing partners talk about strategy for 2019 as the Texas market digests big change in 2018 caused by mergers, an influx of out-of-state firms and a wild lateral hiring market.
December 28, 2018 at 11:43 AM
5 minute read
Over the course of the past year, the Texas legal market changed dramatically. The change-makers were mergers, new offices and lateral hiring. Three of the state's largest firms merged—Andrews Kurth Kenyon with Hunton & Williams, Gardere Wynne Sewell with Foley & Lardner, and Strasburger & Price with Clark Hill. A number of prominent out-of-state firms opened offices in Dallas, Houston and elsewhere, providing further competition and reaching into Texas firms for lawyers, particularly those with energy industry clients. The lateral market was exceedingly active throughout 2018, as lawyers were poached by the new firms in the market or established Texas firms. The level of lateral activity made other lawyers who may have been content at their firms to explore the market and eventually make a move as well.
Those factors resulted in a sort of paradigm change in Texas, with the competition for lawyers continuing apace and the prospects of further mergers and out-of-state offices in 2019 a reality.
Because the Texas legal market has changed so much, Texas Lawyer asked managing partners of some Texas firms and Texas offices of out-of-state firms to discuss their firm's strategy for 2019. Here's what they had to say:
Texas Lawyer: The Texas legal market changed in a big way during 2018 due to mergers involving large Texas firms, a heated lateral hiring market and a number of out-of-state firms opening offices in Texas, particularly in Dallas and Houston. In the wake of all of that change, what is your strategy for 2019, and how does it differ from your plan a year ago? If you anticipate adding lawyers in 2019, which practice areas will you target?
Andrew Calder, partner, Houston office of Kirkland & Ellis and member of firm's global management committee:
We see continued steady growth. We are continuing to get new clients all the time, and we want to continue to ensure we are establishing the appropriate resources. Our core business is obviously M&A. We have been very happy to also have some great lawyers join us in capital markets and debt finance. Those are the three primary areas we will build out.
Wade Cooper, managing partner, Jackson Walker, based in Dallas:
No change in our strategy, as this year demonstrates the continued success of our game plan. We will continue to grow within our existing footprint and attract high quality laterals and law school recruits who are good fits for us. We will continue to keep our costs low so that we can offer rate flexibility for clients and great profitability for partners.
On the one hand, we want to continue to be the safe choice to engage on a broad range of issues for individuals and companies doing business in Texas—and so we recruit and develop expertise consistent with that goal across a broad range of geographic and practice areas. On the other hand, we have a number of practice areas which are national and international in scope, even though our “bricks and mortar” are not. We look to continue to develop those areas where our expertise gives us a competitive advantage. Examples of the latter would be our real estate, litigation, energy and environmental practice areas—each of which have substantial amounts of work outside of Texas.
David Dawson, managing partner, Winstead, based in Dallas:Winstead has had a good year overall and in each of its core practice areas. We expect more of the same in 2019. We do anticipate making additional hires next year in various strategic practice areas.
Bryan Goolsby, managing partner of Dallas office of Winston & Strawn:
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllTexas Social Media Law: Federal Circuit Gives Trial Court Instructions
3 minute readTrending Stories
- 1Infant Formula Judge Sanctions Kirkland's Jim Hurst: 'Overtly Crossed the Lines'
- 2Trump's Return to the White House: The Legal Industry Reacts
- 3Election 2024: Nationwide Judicial Races and Ballot Measures to Watch
- 4Climate Disputes, International Arbitration, and State Court Limitations for Global Issues
- 5Judicial Face-Off: Navigating the Ethical and Efficient Use of AI in Legal Practice [CLE Pending]
- 6How Much Does the Frequency of Retirement Withdrawals Matter?
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250