Mike Androvett was making pretty good money as an investigative TV reporter for NBC 5 in Dallas in 1995 when he decided to start his own media consulting business advising lawyers.
“My hope was to get a client or two and just figure out a way to make a living,” he said in a recent interview.
Androvett got lucky right away when Tom Melsheimer, a federal prosecutor turned trial lawyer, called seeking his services. The two had met during Androvett’s time as a journalist.
Mike Lynn, Steve Stodghill and Melsheimer had started a litigation boutique two years earlier that was scoring extraordinary courtroom successes, and the partners wanted to do something very few law firms at the time dared do: publicize those successes and their legal expertise to potential clients.
Within days, Androvett had Melsheimer on multiple media outlets as a regular legal analyst discussing developments in the O.J. Simpson trial and other major cases.
“We needed to find a way to distinguish ourselves from all the lawyers and law firms in Dallas, and Mike showed us how we could do that,” said Melsheimer, who is now co-chair of global litigation for King & Spalding. “I can comfortably say that I would not be where I am today without Mike’s help. His marketing ideas and the opportunities he provided elevated my standing and stature in the Dallas legal community and beyond. Mike has been a fixture at every firm with which I’ve been associated. He has been a key component in the success of all those firms in the Dallas community.”
Lynn, Stodghill & Melsheimer was Androvett’s second client. Even though Melsheimer and Stodghill left the firm in 2000, Androvett still represents all three trial lawyers today.
“I remember his advice early on where he explained to a skeptical Mike Lynn that I needed to work with reporters and respect what they were doing,” said Lynn, founding partner of what is now Lynn Pinker Hurst & Schwegmann. “I came from a culture of not talking to reporters at all. He also helped the firm and, in particular, me get publicity for early wins that set the firm off in the right direction. I doubt we could have survived as well without Mike’s advice and help.”
Thirty-one years later, Androvett Legal Media is the largest and most dominant player in Texas legal public relations today with 20 employees and offices in DFW, Austin, Houston and San Antonio.
His client list includes some of the most prominent and successful lawyers — Mark Lanier, Charla Aldous, Frank Branson and Rusty Hardin, to name a few — and major law firms, including Ahmad, Zavitsanos & Mensing, Hicks Thomas, Jackson Walker and Bradley Arant.
Androvett’s operations have expanded beyond traditional public relations to creative marketing services such as law firm branding, website development and digital advertising.
“I never thought I would build an agency. I thought I would bounce around from case to case and lawyer to lawyer,” he said. “The success we have achieved has far exceeded my expectations.”
Androvett — a former news reporter with a law degree — and his team have worked behind the scenes on behalf of lawyers and clients involved in some of the biggest and highest-profile legal disputes in Texas over the past three decades, including:
- Representing the plaintiffs’ lawyers opposing Johnson & Johnson’s bankruptcy efforts to end thousands of talc powder-related product liability and wrongful death lawsuits against the healthcare giant;
- Counseling Melsheimer and Mark Cuban when the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission accused the former Dallas Mavericks’ owner of insider trading;
- Advising Rusty Hardin and the prosecution team in the impeachment case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton;
- Working with the UNT Dallas College of Law in its fight to retain its provisional accreditation and gain its full accreditation;
- Advising Dallas trial lawyer Frank Branson in representing several people hurt in the collapse of the Dallas Cowboys training facility;
- Guiding the lawyers involved in the Texas A&M bonfire case on behalf of victims who died in the 1999 fire; and
- Working with lawyers representing former Enron Corp. employees in their successful attempt to gain a voice in the bankruptcy process.
“We have been involved in some of the most significant legal issues over the past 30 years. I treasure our role in each one,” Androvett said. “I’m also proud of all of the clients we have helped shine a light on great lawyers and great law firms and help them win new clients.”
The biggest challenge in the early years was “acceptance,” he said.
“Thirty years ago, law firms were not knocking down my door for help with PR and marketing,” he said. “Now, and over the past 20 years, the biggest challenge is to master new trends, techniques and technologies and doing so in an ethical way when sometimes the foundations have not been established. I think that one of the attributes that set us apart [is that] we are very protective of our clients.”
Prominent Dallas trial lawyer Charla Aldous started working with Androvett in the mid-1990s when she had a case that attracted a significant amount of media attention.
“I had no clue how to handle the news media back then, and Mike took me through the whole process,” Aldous said. “Our work with Mike and his team has been an invaluable asset to our firm and clients. Mike and Mark Annick literally did media training, helping me learn how to give an interview in a precise way that would resonate with people. I have carried that training with me for over two decades.”
Houston lawyer John Thomas hired Androvett in 1997 when he and others left Andrews Kurth to start Hicks Thomas.
“We knew that our departure would be ‘newsworthy’ in the legal community, and I wanted to capitalize on the notoriety,” Thomas said. “That is when we met Mike. It has been so long I don’t even recall how we were introduced, but we hit it off. And he has been our go-to guy on media and PR ever since.”
Thomas said he also turned to Androvett in 1998 to help him and his law firm “navigate a very difficult situation in the Houston press involving an environmental contamination case.”
“Fast forward to our 25-year anniversary in 2022. Mike developed a complete game plan for the firm, including messaging and rollout on a wide range of outlets,” he said. “Mike’s guidance has helped me feel very much at ease with the media, and his guidance has helped me avoid mistakes over the years.”
Androvett is “well positioned to help the lawyers understand what the journalist needs and how to make their job easier,” Thomas said. “And as a lawyer, he understands the legal landscape. This insight sets him apart.”
But Androvett’s path to success began five decades ago at a small New Jersey newspaper, continued with a 15-year career in TV journalism and now spans more than 31 years advising lawyers and firms on media-related matters.
Born in Manhattan, Androvett was raised in New York City and northern New Jersey. His dad was a theater manager, and his mom stayed at home to raise the children and manage the household.
“We spoke about current events and politics around the dining room table, and I grew up thinking that reporting the news was a noble profession,” Androvett said. “At 16, I got a part-time job at a small-town newspaper called Our Townin Maywood, New Jersey. All I did was set type and help draft headlines, but I was hooked.”
In 1976, Androvett became the first member of his family to go to college when he moved to Indiana to attend Ball State University, majoring in broadcast communications and political science.
After graduating in 1980, he went to work as an on-air reporter for the CBS-TV affiliate in Indianapolis — a position he held for a dozen years.
“I was drawn by the opportunity to not only use words to describe what I was seeing and reporting on but also adding in sound and visuals,” he said. “To me, there is no greater form of writing when it’s done well.”
In 1985, Androvett enrolled in law school at Indiana University because his news beat included covering the Marion County prosecutor.
“Many times, when interviewing him, I felt that I was at a disadvantage because I didn’t know the law,” he said. “I thought obtaining a law degree would ‘level the field,’ so to speak.”
“I was wrong,” he said. “He was still smarter than me.”
That being said, a law degree definitely helped Androvett as a journalist.
“It made it infinitely easier to follow proceedings inside the courtroom,” he said. “Also, I found that in covering legal issues, lawyers seemed to trust me more and be willing to take me into their confidence.”
In 1992, he moved to Dallas to work as an investigative reporter with KXAS-TV and began establishing relationships with top lawyers in the DFW community.
What led Androvett, who was 37, to start his media advisory firm in the fall of 1995?
“I could not NOT start Androvett Legal Media & Marketing,” he said. “As a reporter — with my legal background — it seemed obvious to me that lawyers and law firms needed a better understanding of the language and mores of journalists. I often covered criminal and civil matters where I felt the lawyer was missing opportunities to better represent his or her client in the court of public opinion. Sometimes, that is important.”
“What I didn’t know was if anyone would pay me to be a bridge between law and journalism,” he said. “I literally left Channel 5 on the previous Friday and started Androvett on the next Monday. Needless to say, I was very anxious but also excited to see if my idea would work.”
Early clients such as Lynn, Melsheimer, Aldous and Thomas proved the answer was yes.
In interviews, Androvett goes out of his way to point out that the “work in these cases” that made Androvett Legal Media successful was “handled instead by extremely talented co-workers” that include Mark Annick, Rhonda Reddick, Barry Pound, Alyssa Woulfe, April Arias, Jason Cunningham and Fabian Gutierrez.
Only six months after starting his business, Androvett realized he needed to expand into marketing and advertising.
“I got a call from a lawyer in Arlington who wanted my help developing an advertisement,” he said. “I had no clue what to do, and so I hired a freelance graphic designer.”
In the years that followed, he added significant experts — Pat Rafferty, Bria Burk, Verdell Christopherson and Zack McKamie — who focus on branding, digital advertising, website development and creative marketing and content initiatives.
In 2025, Androvett, who was 67, turned over management of the company to Scott Parks, who joined Androvett two decades ago as a freelancer and later became its head of marketing. In 2018, Androvett named Parks his chief operating officer.
“To show everyone I was serious about me stepping back and Scott leading, I gave Scott my office,” he said. “I have tried to find ways to not be in charge and to not be here.”
Parks said he saw Androvett’s impact on organizations firsthand when the two served on a not-for-profit board of a local private school many years ago.
“Mike has a rare ability to disarm you with humor and then, almost without you realizing it, get you to see something differently,” Parks said. “Mike always makes you laugh. And importantly, he makes you think.”
In a sign of maturity, some of Androvett’s earliest employees have left to start their own competing agencies or have joined clients. For example, Amy Hunt, his first employee, started Muse Communications in 2016 and soon hired Bruce Vincent, Androvett’s second employee, and then a third Androvett alum, Robert Tharp.
Androvett said one of the “smartest moves” he made was in 2010 when he hired Mary Flood, the highly respected legal affairs writer for The Houston Chronicle and former reporter for The Wall Street Journal.
“I don’t think I understood how much a giant Mary was in the Houston legal community,” he said. “Mary is known and respected by everyone in the legal system.”
Flood, a Harvard Law School graduate who The Texas Lawbook profiled in 2024, said Androvett and his team stood out for their professionalism and their intelligence in dealing with journalists.
“When I dealt with Mike when I was a reporter, he and his team sent me much appreciated useful, targeted opportunities and news tips,” she said. “This was a bigger breath of fresh air than you might think. Other PR folks often set me up for excruciating lunches with taciturn non-trial lawyers. Worst ever was a PR type who told me he ‘loved my stuff in the Wall Street Journal’ and asked if I wanted to cover the meeting of a scuba diving club in Galveston. No connection to Texas legal world at all.”
Q&A: Legendary Houston Journalist Mary Flood Discusses the Success of Mike Androvett
In more recent years, Androvett and his team have started representing clients outside of Texas, including lawyers representing clients suing Johnson & Johnson in the talc powder litigation.
“Journalism and law are both changing,” he said. “Digital has made both worlds more demanding and faster moving. And we are going to see the role artificial intelligence plays. One thing is certain: The future in our business is exciting.”
Fun Facts: Mike Androvett
- Favorite book: Whatever I’m reading at the time is my favorite book. Right now, it’s How to Know a Person by David Brooks. David asks you to take stock of perceptions you barely consider and to attempt to improve how you relate to others. I find that important.
- Favorite movie: Cinema Paradiso — a small Italian film about a young boy who falls in love with movies. I spent my formative years going to work with my dad at movie theaters in New York and New Jersey. I felt like this movie spoke to me.
- Favorite beverage: Non-alcoholic —milk. Nothing more refreshing. Alcoholic — Tito’s and tonic. Again, nothing more refreshing.
- Favorite restaurant: Café de Artistes in Puerto Vallarta. Food and service are impeccable and the setting — inside a garden — is lush and serene. A great environment for dining.
- Hero in life: I don’t tend to think in terms of heroes, but I’d say my father continues to provide me with inspiration and guidance. He passed on when I was only 19, so we did not have a chance to know each other as adults. However, his intentional optimism and enthusiasm for life and all that it offers has been the touchstone throughout my life.
Q&A with Mike Androvett
Texas Lawbook: Any specific mentors who play a huge role in your life and career? Or have you had any life-changing experiences that impacted your career?
Mike Androvett: Yes. My father modeled a very optimistic, intellectually curious way of life. He grew passionate and excited about ideas and taught me to approach life with enthusiasm. At Ball State University, I had an instructor by the name of Jack McQuate who taught me the nuts-and-bolts of covering news and maintaining a beat and, as a journalist himself, demonstrated the kind of drive and enthusiasm that makes fact-gathering and reporting so exciting and rewarding. Also, in my senior year, he provided me a financial lifeline that allowed me to complete my studies. Finally, Bert Knapp. Bert, a NYC radio news legend, took me under his wing when I interned at WMCA radio in New York the summer of my junior year. He injected me with the confidence that I could pursue journalism as a lifelong endeavor.
Lawbook: Is there a single trial or case or two that you handled where you think your work with the lawyer or firm made a difference in the outcome?
Androvett: We had one case many years ago where the lawyer involved had us work up and send a news release, and then that afternoon — the very same day — he called us back to say he and the other party had resolved it and they wanted to send a second release announcing the settlement. So, we did.
Having said that, I would hate to be so presumptuous as to think that our work — while excellent — influenced outcomes. I’ll leave it to our clients to assess that. What I am comfortable saying is that on a regular basis, for 31 years next month, we have made certain that our clients and their clients, and most importantly, their cases did not go unnoticed. And there just is no doubt that attention on a case and the people whose lives are affected certainly has an impact.
Lawbook: My understanding is that you have met the Dalai Lama.
Androvett: Indiana has a strong Tibetan community. The Dalai Lama’s brother, Thubten Norbu, was an IU professor in Bloomington, and he created a Tibetan Cultural Center south of Bloomington. I was assigned to cover the grand opening and the Dalai Lama was scheduled to attend. This was back in about 1987.
While I was waiting outside for him to arrive, I was told he was approaching in an oncoming van. As it approached, I threw out a, “Hey, would you stop for an interview?”
Much to my amazement, the van stopped and the side door opened. Inside, the Dalai Lama greeted me and sitting alongside was Richard Gere. This was back in the time when the Dalai Lama was also traveling the U.S. seeking support for an independent Tibet. We interviewed about that and, at this time, Gere’s allegiance to the Dalai Lama was not well-known, so my questions to him were mostly of the “What are you doing here?” variety.
He was a very nice man and very gracious in his answers. You could almost feel the serenity emanating from the Dalai Lama. Richard Gere wasn’t so bad either.
Lawbook: How have lawyers changed in their needs and demands for PR/media relations and business development?
Androvett: Lawyers who are emerging as current leaders grew up in digital environments. Intuitively, they better understand the need to distinguish themselves from competitors and to find ways, ethically, to stand out in the marketplace. Also, the competition is so much more intense. And legal consumers are more aggressive about researching and interviewing their legal representatives, and they have an insatiable demand for relevant information.
Lawbook: In turn, how has the media changed in how it covers lawyers and the law?
Androvett: This is just my opinion, but it seems that many news executives — facing leaner budgets and less manpower — have ruled out coverage of the law as too expensive and time-consuming. The remaining reporters who continue to cover legal issues, prominent court cases and legislation are better trained, more savvy and better than they’ve ever been before.
Lawbook: What has been your single best day at Androvett Legal Media?
Androvett: I don’t know if “best” is the most accurate description, but for the first five years, we struggled to carve out a niche in the marketplace and to gain acceptance. There was a day about five years in when I realized that it was at least possible that Androvett Legal Media & Marketing could survive 10, 20 or even 30 years. That was a very meaningful day, and in some ways changed how I approached my work and the direction of the company.
Lawbook: What are your biggest worries or concerns related to the legal and journalism professions?
Androvett: I am concerned that our judiciary loses its independence under the weight of political pressure and indifference by members of the general public. For journalism, I’m concerned that economically, excellent news organizations get “hollowed out” and are not able to perform meaningful journalism. Also, legitimate news organizations are under fire from virtually every direction. I hope that the leaders of those organizations stand firm and continue to call ‘em as they see them and not hold back.
Lawbook: What are the nonprofit and pro bono efforts that Androvett Legal Media and you personally champion?
Androvett: Roughly once every year or so, we offer our services for a deserving cause or organization. Most recently, we assisted the Dallas Women Lawyers Association revamp their website to better fulfill its mission to elevate the standing of women in the legal profession.
Lawbook: Why join the Lawbook Foundation board?
Androvett: I view Texas Lawbook as one of Texas’ “pure” journalistic organizations alongside the Texas Tribune and, locally, the Fort Worth Report. The Lawbook covers the news but also seeks to make the (legal) world a better place. I’d like to be part of that.
Lawbook: Why is the mission of The Lawbook‘s pro bono, public service and diversity journalism important?
Androvett: It feels like public service has been marginalized due to economics and the current political climate. The pendulum may swing, but in the meantime, existing work on behalf of public service and diversity is even more important.
Lawbook: Do you have any final objectives or goals left to achieve?
Androvett: Final? Sounds so, well, final. Seriously, while it may be something to conceive of a PR and marketing firm for lawyers and to build it, it’s not nothing to nurture and develop the next generation of leadership that can make the company better and more adaptable.
I’m really, really enjoying working with Scott [Parks] and my other firm leaders and watching them grow, take head-on some of the same — or different challenges and opportunities — that we face. I want to see us continue our trajectory of serving our clients, in a variety of industries, across the country. I’ve been told that Androvett maintains a good reputation for ethics and solid work.
I’ll fight every day with all my being to continue to earn that reputation. The future in our business is exciting and I’m looking forward to being a part of it. And I’d like to learn to play the piano.