© 2013 The Texas Lawbook.
By Mark Curriden
Senior Writer for The Texas Lawbook
(July 1) – Holland & Knight announced Monday that its new Dallas office at 300 Crescent Court Towers is open for business with 23 lawyers, including a dozen partners, and that additional hires are expected soon.
The Florida-based firm is already looking to expand to Houston.
The 12 partners – all lateral hires from Patton Boggs’ Dallas office – are James C. Chadwick, M. Matthew Fontane, Michelle White Suarez, Robert W. Jones, Scott C. Wallace, Kenneth M. Vesledahl, Fred S. Stovall, James L. Baker, Eric W. Kimball, Anthony J. Herrera, Brent R. McIlwain, and Eric M. Pfeifle.
Holland & Knight also announced that 10 associates and a senior counsel will join the new office. The practice areas for these lawyers include corporate finance, M&A and bankruptcy.
Chadwick, who will be the firm’s executive partner in Dallas, said Monday that he initially met Holland & Knight managing partner Steve Sonberg this past spring while he was vacationing.
“I rapidly came to the conclusion that we are kindred spirits,” said Chadwick. “The discussions really picked up steam in mid-May.”
Chadwick said he knew he and his group were a good fit when he laid out a map of the U.S. and then circled every city where Holland & Knight has offices and he and his team also have clients.
“There was a lot of overlap,” he said.
Sonberg agreed that the firm and its new lawyers share many common clients.
“We have been interested in expanding into Texas for several years,” Sonberg told The Texas Lawbook. “The expansion in Dallas is an important piece to our strategy of growing in the U.S. and in Latin America.”
Sonberg said that Chadwick, Suarez and their team complement Holland & Knight’s existing strength in the finance industry.
Holland & Knight’s plans for Texas are not limited to Dallas.
“Houston is very much of interest to us,” Sonberg says. “While we understand the market in Houston is very competitive, we believe our focused growth strategy in the U.S. and Latin America will be of interest to many lawyers in the Houston market, as it was to our new partners in Dallas.”
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