In the world of oil and gas, Richard McGee has seen it all — and he’s done most of it.
As a corporate transactional lawyer for Vinson & Elkins, he represented some of the biggest players in the oil patch, including Enron. In 2001, he joined Duke Energy, first as a lawyer and then as president of its international operations. Houston-based Plains All American hired McGee in 2009 and became its general counsel in 2012.
Along the way, he led or was heavily involved in more than 100 M&A transactions totaling in the tens of billions of dollars. This month, he is working to close the $3.8 billion sale of Plains’ natural gas liquids business to Canadian-based Keyera.
A former national champion pole vaulter, McGee’s first run-ins with the law were as a boy when his father, also a lawyer, would conduct mini-trials for him and his four siblings when they got into trouble.
“If we misbehaved in a meaningful way, before disciplining us he would hold a ‘trial’ of sorts in his study at our home, where we were the accused and he would serve as the judge and prosecutor,” McGee told The Texas Lawbook in an interview. “We would be given a full opportunity to explain our actions and why we felt we were not in the wrong, even being allowed to call ‘witnesses’ if desired.”
“He would carefully listen to our case, fully cross-examine us and then make a decision based on the ‘evidence’ before him — always taking care to explain the logic for his decision and giving us the opportunity to offer a rebuttal,” he said. “More often than not, the ‘trial’ would conclude with the accused acknowledging the error of his or her ways and agreeing that the applicable discipline recommended by the court was appropriate.”
Was he ever found “not guilty?”
“No, not very often or at all,” he laughed. “On reflection, it was a brilliant parenting technique that taught us important life lessons about accountability, speaking up for oneself, being honest with yourself and differentiating right from wrong. And I suppose he also taught us a bit about the legal process along the way, although his ‘trials’ were certainly not models to be followed from the standpoint of the rights of the accused.”
Premium Subscriber Q&A: Richard McGee discusses the traits he seeks in outside counsel, what outside counsel need to know when working with him and more.
Across the board, lawyers and fellow general counsel who have worked with McGee say he is one of the wisest, most thoughtful and trusted leaders in the energy sector.
“Richard McGee exemplifies the qualities the Lifetime Achievement Award is designed to honor: decades of strategic leadership, unwavering integrity, mastery at the intersection of law and business and a deep commitment to service — both to the companies he has guided and to the broader community,” said V&E partner Nettie Downs. “Over more than 30 years in the energy sector, Richard has shaped the direction of two major global companies in both chief legal advisor and senior business executive capacities, stewarded some of the industry’s most complex and consequential transactions, and built a reputation as a trusted advisor whose judgment, composure and humanity set him apart.”
The Association of Corporate Counsel’s Houston Chapter and The Texas Lawbook agree and have named McGee as the recipient of the 2026 Houston Corporate Counsel Award for Lifetime Achievement. McGee and other award winners will be celebrated on May 28 at the annual awards event.
“Richard’s career reflects a steady progression of increasing responsibility and impact, highlighting a unique professional versatility,” Downs wrote in nominating McGee for the award. “Yet Richard’s legacy extends beyond the boardroom and the negotiating table. Throughout his career, he has demonstrated a deep commitment to service and community leadership. He has devoted significant time to nonprofit board work, lending his expertise to organizations focused on education, community development and youth engagement.”
Karl Stern, a partner at Quinn Emanuel in Houston, said McGee is “one of the smartest people I know.”
“He sees a problem or opportunity from all angles and is usually several steps ahead of everyone else,” Stern said. “He is incredibly strategic and very practical. He is an exceptional transactional lawyer who also has a keen understanding of litigation. And he has a strong moral compass that guides him in everything he does.”
Stern said McGee is a great listener, especially when groups discuss how to address large and complex legal issues.
“Richard sits back and lets everyone have their say,” he said. “But once they’re done, he speaks up, winnows everything down to the key points and decisively makes whatever call is required. He’s a bold decision-maker, not afraid to take risk, so long as he’s satisfied the pros and cons are thoroughly assessed.”
McGee said he has had an amazing career spanning four decades.
“When I reflect on the last 40 years, the fact that we as lawyers are blessed to pursue a profession that can provide a lifetime of challenges, satisfaction and rewards, and because of that, I believe we have a duty to give back, whether to the communities in which we live and work or elsewhere,” McGee said. “For each of us that may mean different things, but the important point is to make the effort to engage and be involved in organizations that serve and help others.”
“For me, it has meant coaching my kid’s sports teams, getting involved in organizations I care about like my church, my children’s schools, the schools I attended and arts organizations like Houston Ballet,” he said. “I have found this type of engagement to be extremely rewarding and satisfying and I would advise young lawyers, no matter how busy you are and even though you think you don’t have the time, to start doing this early in your career so that you can make a more meaningful impact over the longer arc of your entire legal career. The nonmonetary rewards in terms of relationships and personal satisfaction will be significant and enduring.”
“And it is the least we can do in exchange for the privilege of practicing law.”
The Early Years & Pole Vaulting
McGee was born and grew up in Houston. His father was an old-fashioned Texas lawyer who did everything from business transactions to litigation to family law.
“Dad handled anything that walked in the door,” he said.
His father also possessed an entrepreneurial bent, including owning two Toyota dealerships. His mother stayed at home and raised their five children.
McGee’s older brother and sister are both lawyers, and they both married lawyers.
“I went to college assuming I would get my undergraduate degree and then go to law school,” he said. “Although no family member pushed me to go to law school, the fact that dad was a lawyer and my older siblings went to law school definitely influenced me to do the same. It felt like the natural thing to do.”
During high school and college at Rice University, McGee became a competitive pole vaulter and won the USA Track & Field Masters 2026 Indoor National Championship in his division, clearing 11 feet 5 inches. And then he started pole vaulting again in his 50s.
“Masters pole vault has been a great outlet and involves a great community of individuals,” he said. “I enjoy the competition, but it is also a really fun sport. A fellow jumper once said: ‘Even though the bar may not be as high as in our earlier years, for the few seconds when you are suspended in mid-air and floating over the bar, you forget how old you are.’ I agree with that sentiment.”
McGee is also married to a lawyer who practices corporate transactional law at V&E.
“We met at a practice section outing in Galveston, where we were paired in a scramble golf event,” he said.
After spending a dozen years at V&E in Houston, McGee took a job with Duke Energy, which had approached him three times about joining the company in various roles.
“I really did not want to leave the firm,” he said. “I was in a good situation and worked with great lawyers on very interesting work. I agonized over the decision and openly discussed it with my mentors at the firm, who were great about unselfishly helping me objectively look at the pros and cons. Ultimately, I ended up deciding it was an offer I could not refuse because it was such an intriguing and exciting opportunity.”
Going In-House
Duke, when he joined in 2001, had a sizable business with assets around the globe and ambitions to grow it further. But then Enron filed for bankruptcy in December 2001, causing a “ripple effect that was felt throughout the energy sector.”
“The mission for Duke’s international business shifted from growth through acquisitions to optimizing returns on the then existing portfolio,” he said. “This was really a blessing in disguise for me as it forced us to focus on how we made money and what we could do to increase returns and be more profitable and efficient, versus just buying more assets and earnings. For someone who had spent 15 years as a lawyer doing deals, it was a bit daunting at first but everything worked out well.”
The job also allowed McGee to travel the world and work on interesting projects.
But then Duke wanted McGee to move to Charlotte, where the company is based. He and his wife did not wish to leave Houston while raising four children, whose ages at the time ranged from 6 to 12.
That’s when a friend approached McGee about joining Plains to help the company take its gas storage business public. He joined in 2009 and was promoted to general counsel in 2012.
“Looking back on it, I can definitely say that the time I spent both as an outside lawyer — 12 years at V&E — and then the time at Duke helped make me a better GC for Plains,” he said.
Brad Brian, a partner at Munger, Tolles & Olsen, said McGee is always “calm under pressure and has great judgment.”
“I worked closely with Richard on a very challenging matter,” Brian said. “He showed terrific judgment throughout the matter, and was always able to evaluate the legal challenges and balance them against the business needs. He’s a terrific General Counsel.”
McGee said the role of GC has changed during the past two decades.
“I think expectations have increased for the GC to be more of a generalist and have a better understanding and grasp of the business,” he said. “Although not just limited to Texas GCs, I would say one of the biggest challenges for any GC in the current environment is how to make the best use of, and harvest the benefits from, AI without experiencing some of the potential pitfalls.”
Those potential pitfalls, he said, include “unintentionally exposing proprietary or confidential company or personal information/data to third parties, failing to check or adequately review AI outputs — especially in the litigation context — and failing to recognize or account for the potential for confirmation bias inherent in the use of some AI platforms.”
“Richard is not the type of GC who sits on the sidelines and is called in at the last minute to paper up the deal once all of the terms are set,” said John Zavitsanos, managing partner at Ahmed, Zavitsanos & Mensing. “Rather, he is a core part of the negotiating team and evaluating whether a deal makes sense from a business standpoint. He is both principled and flexible in ways that translate into getting the deal over the finish line.”
“What makes him formidable is precisely what is hardest to see coming — he never telegraphs his intentions,” said Zavitsanos, who has done legal work for Plains for three decades. “He is comfortable with silence and ambiguity in a way that makes others anxious and prone to overplaying their hand. By the time the other side realizes what is happening, the position has already shifted and the ground they were standing on has quietly moved. He outmaneuvers not through aggression or bluster but through patience, precision and an almost uncanny ability to see around corners.”
Major Strategic Transactions Led or Guided by McGee at Plains
- 2012 — Plains All American Pipeline’s $1.7 billion acquisition of Canadian NGL assets from BP;
- 2013 — Plains GP Holdings IPO for $2.9 billion, which was the largest U.S. IPO that year;
- 2016 — Plains’ $7.2 billion simplification transaction, which streamlined Plains’ governance and economic structure, reduced long-term cost of capital, and positioned the company for greater stability during commodity volatility;
- 2017 — Plains’ sale of a 40 percent interest in the Red River Pipeline’s Hewitt segment to Valero for $70 million;
- 2018–2020 — Plains’ formation of the Wink to Webster Pipeline LLC joint venture, which created one of the most significant Permian Basin crude pipeline systems of the decade;
- 2021 — Plains’ joint venture with Oryx Midstream, which created one of the largest integrated crude gathering and transportation platforms in the Permian Basin; and
- 2025 — Plains’ agreement to divest Plains’ Canadian NGL business to Keyera ($3.75 billion), which would give Plains the freedom to redeploy capital toward core crude oil transportation and storage assets.
Fun Facts: Richard McGee
- Favorite book: Any book written by Tom Clancy or John Grisham because I love the suspense/thriller genre. Once I get drawn in, I find their books hard to put down.
- Favorite movie: It’s a Wonderful Life because it is a timeless classic with an enduring message.
- Favorite drink: Cold milk served with homemade chocolate chip cookies.
- Favorite restaurant: Naiades, located on the Greek island of Ikaria, because the food is delicious and setting/view is amazing.
- Favorite vacation: Visiting the island of Ikaria, which is my late father-in-law’s ancestral home. It has beautiful beaches, wonderful cuisine and zero stress.
- Hero in life: Definitely my father because he was such a good person and role model. He was a self-made man and a true Renaissance man with many talents and interests. He was a great role model for me and my four siblings, and he taught us how to live our lives and how to handle people and situations through a combination of leading by example, disciplining where appropriate, letting us fail and always being a source of support and love — sometimes tough love.