Free Speech, Due Process and Trial by Jury
The Texas legal market is so hot right now that law firms have discovered the economic theory known as supply and demand. Corporate lawyers are stretched and in danger of burnout. Law firm leaders want to hire more attorneys and are even offering huge signing bonuses. But there's a problem: There just aren’t enough lawyers in Texas to do the job.
While there has been great focus lately on the Austin legal market, Dallas and Houston still dominate the corporate law world in Texas. But figuring out which market is doing better depends on the measuring stick. One city has more lawyers at corporate law offices. The other generates more revenues from business clients. Find out which city is the unofficial kingpin of Texas corporate law – Dallas or Houston? Or is it a feud running on fumes? This is part four in The Texas Lawbook series on Texas-based law firms.Note: The chart in this story has been updated to correct revenue figures for Locke Lord.
The pandemic has resulted in a number of interesting twists and turns in legal recruiting; most recently, the increasing number of companies and law firms requiring new hires to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19. Pye Legal Group President Stacy Humphries surveys the lay of the land and shares best practices for landing top candidates.
Our Gang of 10 Texas-based corporate law firms are an under-the-radar success story. These firms do nearly all their work inside the state, and they beat the overall Texas Lawbook 50 in revenue growth and new lawyer jobs. Most Gang of 10 firms are small, but two big legacy firms confine operations to Texas – Jackson Walker and Winstead.
They bear storied names in Texas corporate law: Vinson & Elkins, Baker Botts, Haynes and Boone, Akin Gump, Locke Lord and Bracewell. National firms continue to expand their Texas market share, but the big legacy firms still carry considerable weight in Texas corporate law. They’re not giving in without a fight and busy growing revenues and hiring lawyers in 2021. Editor's note: The Lawbook article has been updated to show that Baker Botts' 2020 revenue in Texas was $361.9M in Texas - not $336M as originally reported.
Don’t write the obituary for Texas-based corporate law firms just yet. There are fewer than a decade ago, but most are doing quite well financially. In fact, 10 scored record Texas revenues in 2020 despite the pandemic and economic slowdown. Even more of the Texas-based firms say they’re doing better in 2021 than last year. And all of them are hiring more lawyers to handle the increased legal work clients are sending them.
Newly released data from the Small Business Administration reveals the full extent to which Texas law firms relied on Payroll Protection Plan loans to stay afloat while adjusting to the widespread disruptions of the Covid-19 pandemic. But the data also shows that law firms in Texas rebounded enough to leave a fair amount of federal money on the table. The Texas Lawbook has the numbers.
Sunday night's merger of Thompson & Knight and Holland & Knight appears to have gone seamlessly. The combination meets the needs of each - H&K to thrive in Texas and TK to just survive. The managing partners of the two firms - now partners of the same firm - gave The Texas Lawbook an exclusive interview on how the merger came together and why they both think it will be a huge success.
William Thompson and R.E.L. Knight became partners in 1914 and created a corporate law firm that lasted 107 years. Its lawyers handled some of the biggest and most important M&A deals and litigation for some of America's largest companies. Today is the last day of existence for Thompson & Knight, as it merges with Miami-based Holland & Knight. As The Texas Lawbook explains, the loss of TK is disheartening because the firm's history mirrors the history of corporate law in Texas.
The Texas Lawbook has long documented the battle between Texas corporate law firms and those that invaded the Lone Star state from across the country. The Lawbook has now conducted an analysis of the 11 out-of-state cities with multiple firms operating in Texas. It’s New York v. Chicago v. Los Angeles v. Atlanta v. Kansas City. While bigger may be better for many corporate law firms, roots are significant, too.
© Copyright 2026 The Texas Lawbook
The content on this website is protected under federal Copyright laws. Any use without the consent of The Texas Lawbook is prohibited.
