Retired Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan Hecht has joined the Dallas-based law firm Jackson Walker as a partner in its Austin office, the firm announced Friday.
Hecht, the longest-serving member of the Texas Supreme Court in history, was first elected to the court in 1988 and won reelection six times before he was required to retire in December at the age of 75. Voters in 2023 rejected an amendment to the state’s constitution that would have raised the mandatory retirement age to 79.
In an interview with The Texas Lawbook Friday morning, Hecht said he would be focusing his work at Jackson Walker on appeals, naturally.
“Jackson Walker is a great firm that I’ve known for years and years and years. My good friend Chip Babcock is there and that helped,” he said. “I looked around and talked to a few firms and I spent some time thinking about what I want, and Jackson Walker seemed like a good fit.”
Hecht said in a statement that he is “honored to join Jackson Walker and to work alongside so many talented attorneys who share my commitment to excellence and service.”
“Throughout my career, I have been dedicated to upholding the rule of law and ensuring access to justice for all Texans,” Hecht said. “I look forward to contributing my experience to the firm and its clients, and to continuing to advance the legal profession together.”
The firm’s managing partner, C. Wade Cooper, issued a statement welcoming Hecht to the firm.
“His legacy of leadership, integrity, and innovation in the Texas judiciary is unmatched,” Cooper said. “Justice Hecht’s experience and vision will be invaluable to our clients and our firm as we continue to serve clients across Texas and around the world.”
During his time on the state’s high court, Hecht was a champion of expanding access to civil legal services for low-income Texans. He was also the longest-serving president of the Conference of Chief Justices and served on the Advisory Committee on Civil Rules of the Judicial Conference of the United States.
He told The Lawbook he intends to continue focusing on access to justice issues, as well as law school accreditation and said Jackson Walker “is amenable to me doing those thing.”
“And I want to spent time mentoring younger lawyers and the firm wants me to do that,” he said.
Jackson Walker partner Chip Babcock issued a statement praising Hecht’s “deep understanding of the law, commitment to fairness and dedication to improving the administration of justice.” And firm partner David T. Moran said the former chief justice will be a “tremendous asset to our appellate section and the entire firm.”
“He has seen and done it all over his distinguished career, and he will make us all better,” Moran said.
Hecht holds a bachelor’s degree from Yale University and is a graduate of the Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law.
Jackson Walker’s hiring of the high-profile former chief justice comes at a time when it is fending off a bankruptcy practice scandal involving one of its former partners, Elizabeth Freeman, and ex-bankruptcy judge David Jones, who resigned his bench after a secret romantic relationship with Freeman came to light. The U.S. Trustee is attempting to clawback millions in fees awarded to the firm in more than two dozen cases where Jones served as judge or mediator.
Mark Curriden contributed to this report.