Nick Peck & Allen Pusey

We’re expanding our popular CDT M&A rankings from twice a year to a new quarterly format. Beginning next month, our CDT rankings for law firms and lawyers (M&A and capital markets) will be published four times annually, offering Lawbook subscribers a more frequent and detailed look at the lawyers leading and advising on deals in the Lone Star State. Plus, the CDT Roundup looks at last week’s transactions.

The phrase “Drill, Baby, Drill,” may be short code for the new administration’s energy policy, but according to a recent analysis by S&P Global, don’t expect the slogan to characterize the short-term CapX plans for major O&G producers. Stalled by stubborn market prices, fossil fuel production by the world’s largest energy producer has plateaued for the moment, a situation that is likely to characterize all of 2025. The CDT Roundup takes a look at the numbers for the U.S. and Texas, as well as the usual summary of Texas-driven transactions reported last week.

Last year was a year of transition, particularly in M&A. According to a recent report by Goldman Sachs, that augurs a really optimistic outlook for M&A in 2025. Simplifications in strategies, governance and geography are driving a surge in M&A, particularly the corporate variety. This week’s Roundup looks at the data behind the Goldman optimism, as well as the deals that shaped last week.

Just in time for Christmas, DOE has published its months-awaited study on the economic and environmental effects of LNG exports. The report was promised in January as a rationale for the Biden Administration’s decision to pause permitting of new LNG export processing facilities. The CDT Roundup takes a brief look at the exhaustive study and wonders if DOE has missed the irony in its concern about the effect of LNG exports on future natural gas prices That, and the usual review of last week’s major Texas-related transactions.