Just a dozen years ago, a handful of lawyers in Texas breached the $1,000 hourly rate barrier. The $1K lawyers were the best of the best in their practice areas: trial lawyers Steve Susman, Tom Melsheimer, Charles Schwartz and Harry Reasoner for bet-the-company litigation, or deal lawyers like Jeff Chapman, Andy Calder, Tom Roberts or Michael Dillard to lead mega-billion-dollar transactions. This year, a handful of Texas lawyers broke through another billing barrier: $2,000 an hour. Dozens more are expected to start charging clients $2K next year.
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Litigation Roundup: Hogan Lovells to Defend Against FTC’s Texas Anesthesiology Monopoly Suit, Houston Jury Awards Defendant $32.5M in Construction Dispute
In this edition of Litigation Roundup, the former general counsel of the Houston Housing Authority has her qui tam False Claims Act suit partially revived by the Fifth Circuit, an allegedly undisclosed personal relationship between a magistrate judge and a plaintiff attorney who secured a $124.5 million award in her court gets a second look, and a former CEO of a software company loses his bid to keep a $20 million suit in Texas courts.
Judge Dropped the Ball by Upping Disabled Ex-Player’s Benefits, NFL Pension Plan Tells 5th Circuit
The league’s retirement plan is appealing a Dallas federal judge’s 2022 ruling in favor of former running back Michael Cloud, who said he was denied the benefits he deserved after concussions and other injuries cut his playing career short. The judge wrote that Cloud’s case fits a pattern by the pension plan of nickel-and-diming retired players “suffering from the devastating effects of severe head trauma.”
Houston Judge Orders Ethics Training, $525K Sanction Against 2 Attorneys
Harris County District Judge Elaine Palmer has ordered attorneys Michael D. Sydow and Chidi D. Anunobi to take 10 hours of legal ethics education classes each year for the next five years after finding they filed for a lawsuit for an improper purpose on behalf of their litigation management company client, Iron Oak. The lawsuit was brought in an attempt to collect $10 million from inventors Michael E. Porter and John T. Preston and their company Continuum Energy Technologies.
P.S. — A Golf Classic, A Virtual Lottery, A Cavernous Case
This week’s edition of P.S. features an upcoming golf classic that will support the operations of a nonprofit fighting homelessness, a cluster of Holland & Knight lawyers moving up the ranks of the National Hispanic Bar Association, a Dallas lawyer who has joined Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas’ board, a successful virtual fundraiser benefiting legal aid and the dates in October that Dallas-area clients to receive pro bono legal advice by phone. Plus: Kentucky cave trivia involving a legal battle and “One-Eyed Joe.”
2023 CDT M&A Lawyer Rankings – Deal Values
Only three Texas lawyers so far in 2023 worked on M&A deals with a combined deal value of $25 billion or more, according to The Texas Lawbook’s exclusive Corporate Deal Tracker. See their numbers and those of more than 300 Texas lawyers here.
Texas M&A Lawyers Ranked by Value
List as of Aug. 31, 2023
2023 Texas Lawyer M&A Transaction Deal Counts
Below is a tabulation of M&A and Funding transactions by Texas-based lawyers reported to The Texas Lawbook for 2023. This list is designed to grow as new deals are reported. So if
P.S.S. — 30 Charities to Donate to on North Texas Giving Day
Last week, we gave you 21 charities to consider donating to on North Texas Giving Day. Now that the nation’s largest community giving day is here, we have expanded that list to include a handful of additional nonprofits, including some founded by Texas business lawyers and Lawbook staff picks. This updated version of P.S. has your donation inspo.
Pictured: Lawbook publisher Brooks Igo’s brother, Austin, at an annual gala hosted by the H.E.R.O.E.S. nonprofit
Perkins Coie, MoFo Lawyer Up in DEI Lawsuits
Within the last week, lawyers from Lynn Pinker Hurst & Schwegmann, Jenner & Block and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher appeared on the dockets of federal lawsuits filed against Perkins Coie and Morrison Foerster alleging discriminatory practices related to their diversity fellowships. Both firms operate in Texas and one of the lawsuits is in Dallas. Natalie Posgate has the latest.