M&A in the oil and gas sector reached $65 billion in the second quarter. Even though $57 billion of that was the Occidental purchase of Anadarko, the remaining $7.6 billion was four times the $2 billion logged in the first quarter. The bad news: it’s still far lower than the $19 billion quarterly averages just a few years ago. Claire Poole clarifies.
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Baker McKenzie Announces Leadership Changes in Texas
The changes include a new leader of the global firm’s Houston office.
CDT Roundup: 23 Deals, 15 Firms, 154 Lawyers, $8.29B
It’s S-L-O-W out there in the global M&A market. Deal value reached $842 billion in the second quarter. But that’s down 27% from last year. Deal count is the lowest since 2008. Dealmakers have the jitters. And yet…The first half was the third strongest on record. And U.S. dealmaking hit its first $1 trillion half. Claire Poole deciphers these seeming contradictions in her weekly Roundup, and balances out the week that was.
State Bar Discipline: Two Judges, 20 Lawyers
The State Bar of Texas has released its monthly tally of disciplinary actions. This month’s list of actions includes one resignation, 18 suspensions, three public reprimands and one appellate opinion confirming disciplinary action against a state judge accused of groping three women and behaving injudiciously in open court. The full list is in The Texas Lawbook.
Seventeen Law Firms in Texas Hit Elite Status
There are many ways to judge the financial success of a law firm, including head count, total revenues, net profits and profits per partner. The Texas Lawbook uses revenue per lawyer. A new Texas-based law firm crashed into the group of elite firms that had RPLs of $1 million or more in 2018. The Lawbook has the exclusive rankings.
Language Edges Custom in SCOTX Farmout Case
AUSTIN – SCOTX held to its preference for plain language over industry custom, rejecting a $27.7 million verdict in a closely-watched farmout dispute. But the narrow 5-4 decision generated two very vigorous dissents. Janet Elliott reports.
A Safe Place, A Serial Killer and A ‘Chickenshit Move’
Six families who lost elderly relatives – presumably at the hands of an accused serial killer – filed lawsuits against the upscale senior living community that had pledged to protect them. The suits didn’t have to happen; but a seemingly ham-handed legal maneuver changed everything. Lawbook litigation writer Natalie Posgate explains.
Orrick Partner Becomes GC of ROX Financial
Orrick partner David Ronn is moving in-house, becoming general counsel of a company that plans to create exchange-traded securities that will allow investment in single-property real estate.
Houston Company Defeats Berkshire Hathaway in Nebraska Supreme Court
The ruling is a slam-dunk win for Houston firm Gibbs & Bruns, which essentially defeated billionaire Warren Buffett in the case. Gibbs & Bruns’ courtroom opponent is an Omaha-based company owned by Berkshire Hathaway.
Get Your Popcorn Ready: ETP & Enterprise Are Headed to the TX Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Texas will consider whether a business version of common law marriage exists when companies do deals with each other in the Lone Star state, according to a ruling Texas’ high court issued on Friday. The case has been viewed by the Texas legal community as the most important business dispute since Joe Jamail’s $10 billion win against Texaco in the 1980s.