By her own admission, antitrust lawyer Veronica Moyé can’t sit still. She faces challenges head-on and she likes to build things from the ground up.
“Sometimes I feel like I have a condition where I can’t just sit still. I have to have the next challenge,” Moyé said. “I probably need to work on that.”
Still, the nationally recognized trial lawyer wasn’t looking to make leaps when international firm King & Spalding recently approached her about launching its Dallas office. But her restless nature kicked in the more she met with the firm’s lawyers and heard their vision for the future.
“It just became more and more exciting,” Moyé told The Lawbook. “And I just love the idea of building something new. I really want to try to do something transformative.”
King & Spalding announced Monday its Texas expansion to Dallas with Moyé as its “anchor hire.”
Moyé joins King & Spalding from Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, where she co-chaired its global litigation practice and served on the executive committee. She called it a “torturous” decision to leave Gibson Dunn.
King & Spalding has long been suspected of eyeing a Dallas office as it has steadily grown in Texas. The firm launched its Houston office in 1995 and added an Austin office in 2008. About a dozen lawyers already work in the Dallas area and more hires are anticipated in the near future, the firm noted.
The firm’s recent Texas hires include Sean Royall, global practice head of the antitrust and consumer protection practice, and Alfonso Chan, partner in the trial and global disputes practice group – both of whom joined King & Spalding in the last six months.
Moyé and Royall have long been friends, and he was instrumental in her decision to join King & Spalding.
“Veronica is a terrific anchor hire for the office, and we are confident it will expand quickly with additional talent,” Robert D. Hays, Jr., chairman of King & Spalding, said in an announcement.
A leading national trial lawyer, Moyé was critical to Apple’s defense in the 2021 Epic Games v. Apple trial – regarded as one of the biggest antitrust cases in decades. Moyé direct examined Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook and key Apple witness Trystan Kosmynka. She also conducted the cross-examination of one of Epic’s key experts and gave much of the closing arguments.
After the trial, Moyé told The Lawbook that direct and redirect examination of witnesses are her favorite to work on.
“When you’re dealing with a senior executive, you have to realize that every word they say, the company will have to live with forever,” Moyé said then. “[Direct-examination] requires you to really learn about and understand your client’s business in-depth as well as get to know your individual witness well personally. Direct is the chance for your client to finally tell their story, and it needs to be authentic to be persuasive. Redirect is a particular challenge because you have to make split second decisions on what you cover and how your witness is likely to respond to potentially new areas.”
In 2022, the Dallas Bar Association named Moyé “Trial Lawyer of the Year.”
“Veronica is a star first-chair trial lawyer with valuable in-house experience and a passion for mentoring and developing the next generation that aligns with our commitment to clients and associates,” Hays said.
Moyé earned her law degree from Harvard Law School. She has a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Moyé started her career at Cravath, spent several years at Vinson & Elkins, was a general counsel for a couple of years at a medical supply company, and then moved to Gibson Dunn in 2011 with a group of lawyers that included Rob Walters, Bill Dawson, Jeff Chapman and Rob Little.
Dallas was a “sleepy” legal market, Moyé said, when she began her career. Now, the growth of Fortune 500 companies in the city has made it a “client rich environment.”
“Who’s not in Dallas,” is the question these days, Moyé said.
King & Spalding’s Dallas office will concentrate on corporate, finance and restructuring, business litigation, government investigations, real estate and funds, and product liability and mass torts, according to the firm’s announcement.
“We want to have a full-service offering, both on the transactional side and on the litigation side,” Moyé said.
Moyé said she is looking for “the next generation of unique talent.” Mentoring younger lawyers is one of her passions, she added, particularly women and people of color. This new role with K&S, she said, gives her the opportunity to continue that mission.
“One of the things that’s always been important to me, but especially at this point in my career, is really helping to develop that next generation of young lawyers,” she said. “I’m a Black woman. I have an obligation to try to improve the profession, try to make more opportunities available, for women and people of color.”
Moyé said she was drawn to an “esprit de corps” culture that K&S has maintained during its impressive growth over the last decade.
“It’s just a combination of a great culture, a great governance structure, a great management structure and the opportunity to build something new,” Moyé said. “It was just a compelling package for me.”