© 2013 The Texas Lawbook.
By Brooks Igo
Staff Writer for The Texas Lawbook
Baker & McKenzie partner Amar Budarapu is returning to a familiar leadership position within the firm. The recently elected chair of the firm’s North America corporate & securities practice held the same post from 2004-2006.
“For more than 50 years, clients have relied on Baker & McKenzie to handle complex, cross-border transactions,” Budarapu said in a statement. “As companies grow domestically and into emerging markets, our North America corporate attorneys are well positioned to advise multinational companies on the range of corporate matters, including M&A, securities, private equity, and corporate governance and compliance issues.”
In the U.S. alone, Baker & McKenzie has approximately 150 lawyers in its corporate and securities practice. Globally, the practice consists of more than 800 lawyers.
“We were global before it was fashionable to be global,” Budarapu said. “We’ve been doing it so long it’s in our DNA.”
Budarapu says that while the firm is large globally, it still has local expertise. And this, he says, allows the firm to service clients’ needs very seamlessly without having a lot of local law firms get involved.
“We think we can do a cross-border transaction better than our competitors can,” he said. “We have the depth and breadth.”
For a firm with 74 offices in 46 countries, it is fair to ask how important Texas is to the firm’s corporate strategy.
“There are more Fortune 500 companies in Texas than any other state in the country,” he said. “That says it all. These companies are truly global. Lots of Texas companies are entering emerging markets.”
Even more telling of how important Texas is to Baker & McKenzie’s corporate practice is where its chair of the global capital markets practice is: Dallas. Budarapu also holds that position. He says he’s been asked many times why the firm’s global chair is in Dallas. To him, the answer is simple.
“Texas has one of the largest economies in the world,” he said. “And it continues to grow.”
The most important requirement of leading, according to Budarapu, is collaborating with the firm’s partners to see a strategy for growth and developing a strong understanding of the clients’ needs.
“We want to be client-centric,” he said. “As companies grow, we want ourselves to be positioned to advise multinational companies.”
In addition to chairing two practices, Budarapu will continue to manage his own full-time practice.
The former managing partner of the firm’s Dallas office believes it’s essential to maintain a practice while serving in a management position in order to stay in touch with clients’ needs.
“It lets you translate your management position to what clients are doing,” he said. “What clients need changes pretty quickly, so you need to be agile.”
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