The leadoff roster of Texas dealmakers who led the most and the most expensive mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures in 2023 includes a slew of — apologies to Joan Jett, Billy Idol, Oswald Osbourne and Gary Clark Jr. — rockstars.
Rob Little, Ryan Maierson, Victor Zanetti, Mike Blankenship, Steven Torello, Brittany Sakowitz and Sarah McLean rocked The Texas Lawbook’s exclusive Corporate Deal Tracker ranking of Texas lawyers who led the most M&A transactions in 2023.
Tull Florey, Sean Wheeler, Debbie Yee, Steve Gill, Mingda Zhao, Kevin Richardson and Jeremy Kennedy ranked at or near the top of Texas lawyers for total deal value in 2023.
The Lawbook’s CDT has released the official 2023 list of 491 Texas lawyers who were the lead or co-lead legal advisors for buyers, sellers and targets — also called principals — for deals announced last year. In all, these 491 Texas dealmakers were the lead or co-lead on 1,326 transactions with a combined deal value of $889.5 billion.
The CDT top lead dealmakers include those regulars who always make the list — Robert Kimball, Andy Calder, Christopher May, John Goodgame, Bill Finnegan, Hillary Holmes and Alain Dermarkar.
There are some definite surprises on the CDT lead dealmakers list — none bigger than SMB Law partner Kevin Henderson (see accompanying profile, “Who the Hell is Kevin Henderson?”). Henderson worked on 30 M&A transactions — more than any other Texas attorney — in the small and middle market range.
But the CDT lead lawyer rankings also include 25 associates who led or co-led M&A transactions for the principals in 2023. Lowrie Reniger, a Dallas associate at McGuireWoods, co-led five deals. Houston associate Shumaila Dhuka of Locke Lord and Dallas associate Josh Powers, also of McGuireWoods, each co-led three M&A transactions.
There are 282 deal lawyers from Houston on the list, compared to 161 from Dallas and 40 from Austin.
The CDT Texas lead deal lawyers are calculated by total deal count and total deal value. A maximum of two lawyers per deal can be counted as leading or co-leading a transaction.
Dealmakers in Texas
Dealmakers in Texas
| Name (Office) | Firm | Count | Value | Gender | Office |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agarwal, Kris | Willkie Farr | 1 | 189 | Male | Houston |
| Alexander, Alan | Vinson & Elkins | 2 | 75 | Male | Houston |
| Ali, Elizabeth | Morgan Lewis | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Allison, Daniel | Sidley Austin | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Anderson, Lauren A. | Latham & Watkins | 5 | 2,891 | Female | Houston |
| Anderson, Will | Bracewell | 3 | 3,841 | Male | Houston |
| Arora, Shubi | Kirkland & Ellis | 6 | 350 | Male | Houston |
| Bacon, Douglas | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 1,100 | Male | Houston |
| Balduzzi, Francisco | Womble Bond Dickinson | 1 | 106 | Male | Houston |
| Balestri, Ray | Bell Nunnally | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Ball, Erin | McGuireWoods | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Barron, Benji | Vinson & Elkins | 3 | 1,125 | Male | Houston |
| Barton, Chad | Holland & Knight | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Becker, Will | O'Melveny | 8 | 610 | Male | Dallas |
| Beckert, Brent | Haynes and Boone | 6 | 100 | Male | Dallas |
| Bell, Jerry | Norton Rose Fulbright | 1 | 797 | Male | Austin |
| Benitez, Bill | Kirkland & Ellis | 10 | 1,720 | Male | Houston |
| Benloulou, Jonathan | Kirkland & Ellis | 5 | 100 | Male | Dallas |
| Bennett, Chris | Simpson Thacher | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Bennett, Jason | Baker Botts | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Benton, Henry | Locke Lord | 2 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Berber-Thayer, Valisa | Haynes and Boone | 5 | 222 | Female | Houston |
| Bernell, Brent | DLA Piper | 1 | 50 | Male | Austin |
| Bernhisel, Preston | Baker Botts | 4 | 1,669 | Male | Dallas |
| Betts, Jesse | Akin | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Bielby, Mike | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | 255 | Male | Dallas |
| Bland, Doug | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | 335 | Male | Houston |
| Blankenship, Mike | Winston & Strawn | 14 | 2,458 | Male | Houston |
| Boardman, Kevin | McGuireWoods | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Bobo, Kellie | Haynes and Boone | 4 | 39 | Female | Austin |
| Bogdanow, Alan | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | 1,400 | Male | Dallas |
| Bogdanow, Peter | Katten | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Bogucki, Jacqui | Simpson Thacher | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Boone, Stephen | Akin | 4 | 1,175 | Male | Houston |
| Boyar, Bill | BoyarMiller | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Brandt, Thomas | Latham & Watkins | 2 | 200 | Male | Houston |
| Branigan, Abby | Vinson & Elkins | 5 | 70 | Female | Dallas |
| Bredthauer, Cole | Akin | 1 | 500 | Male | Fort Worth |
| Brett, Clay | Baker Botts | 2 | 2,100 | Male | Houston |
| Bridges, Trent | Sidley Austin | 1 | 80 | Male | Houston |
| Brooker, Jeffrey | McGuireWoods | 6 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Brown, Corey | Porter Hedges | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Browning, Marc | Kirkland & Ellis | 3 | 3,336 | Male | Austin |
| Bruce, Banks | Sidley Austin | 3 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Buck, David | Sidley Austin | 1 | 112 | Male | Houston |
| Burnett, Zach | Haynes and Boone | 4 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Burns, Will | Paul Hastings | 1 | 160 | Male | Houston |
| Butkus, Molly | Bracewell | 2 | 669 | Female | Houston |
| Buxbaum, Steven | Haynes and Boone | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Byrd, Michael | Porter Hedges | 1 | 54 | Male | Houston |
| Cadis, Daniel | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 179 | Male | Austin |
| Cagle, Kim | King & Spalding | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Calder, Andrew | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 18,400 | Male | Houston |
| Califano, Thomas | Sidley Austin | 1 | 400 | Male | Dallas |
| Camp, Steve | Husch Blackwell | 1 | 67 | Male | Dallas |
| Cardone, Robert | Shearman & Sterling | 4 | 8,900 | Male | Dallas |
| Carper, Cody | Skadden | 1 | 70 | Male | Houston |
| Castro, David | Kirkland & Ellis | 11 | 8,592 | Male | Houston |
| Centrich, Christopher | Akin | 3 | 1,157 | Male | Houston |
| Chambers, Michael | Latham & Watkins | 1 | 39 | Male | Austin |
| Chandler, Tim | Sidley Austin | 6 | 1,400 | Male | Houston |
| Chandler, Trina | Latham & Watkins | 3 | 7,039 | Female | Houston |
| Chapman, Jeffrey | Gibson Dunn | 4 | 65,080 | Male | Dallas |
| Choi, Emery | White & Case | 2 | 1,600 | Male | Houston |
| Clark, Ben | Pillsbury | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Clark, Dusan | Sidley Austin | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Cohen, Arthur | Haynes and Boone | 1 | 60 | Male | Houston |
| Cole, Jim | Latham & Watkins | 2 | 1,835 | Male | Houston |
| Colvin, Michael | Egan Nelson | 2 | 10 | Male | Dallas |
| Conneely, Paul | Norton Rose Fulbright | 5 | 17 | Male | Dallas |
| Considine, Michael | Kirkland & Ellis | 4 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Cook, Sally | O'Melveny | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Cowen, James | Porter Hedges | 1 | 306 | Male | Houston |
| Cox, Kristen | Meadows Collier Reed | 1 | 41 | Female | Dallas |
| Craig, Scott | Latham & Watkins | 1 | 30 | Male | Austin |
| Crews, Kevin | Kirkland & Ellis | 8 | 4,625 | Male | Dallas |
| Crispin, Samantha | Baker Botts | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Crosby, Shamus | Simpson Thacher | 4 | 13,000 | Male | Houston |
| Cross, Christopher | Latham & Watkins | 1 | 243 | Male | Houston |
| Cuclis, Jay | White & Case | 1 | 550 | Male | Houston |
| Cuellar, Cassandra | Shearman & Sterling | 2 | - | Female | Austin |
| Daly, Jon | Sidley Austin | 2 | 385 | Male | Houston |
| Daniels, Edmund | McGuireWoods | 1 | 1,750 | Male | Houston |
| Darden, Michael | Gibson Dunn | 1 | 591 | Male | Houston |
| Davidson, James | HuntonAK | 1 | 1,400 | Male | Houston |
| Davidson, Josh | Baker Botts | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Davis, Janice | Morgan Lewis | 1 | 700 | Female | Dallas |
| Davis, Laurie | O'Melveny | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Davis, Lee | HuntonAK | 1 | 3 | Male | Houston |
| DeAngelis, Nick | Sidley Austin | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Delaney, Scott | Weil | 1 | 50 | Male | Dallas |
| Denney, Karen | Haynes and Boone | 1 | - | Female | Fort Worth |
| Dermarkar, Alain | Shearman & Sterling | 13 | 3,270 | Male | Dallas |
| Descoteaux, Gemma | Sheppard Mullin | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Devine, Alex | Gunderson | 1 | - | Male | Austin |
| Dhesi, Nick | Latham & Watkins | 9 | 4,774 | Male | Houston |
| Dhuka, Shumaila | Locke Lord | 3 | - | Female | Houston |
| Diaz, Carlos | White & Case | 1 | 390 | Male | Houston |
| Diffen, Becky | Norton Rose Fulbright | 3 | - | Female | Austin |
| Dinerstein, Jeff | Morgan Lewis | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Dobbs, Jeff | Mayer Brown | 3 | 4,350 | Male | Houston |
| Dodd, Jeff | HuntonAK | 2 | 3 | Male | Houston |
| Dodson, Sarah | Baker Botts | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Dominguez, Rodrigo | White & Case | 4 | 200 | Male | Houston |
| Dougherty, Robert | Holland & Knight | 2 | 674 | Male | Dallas |
| Downs, Nettie | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Dybala, Kelly | Sidley Austin | 4 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Eiland, Will | Kirkland & Ellis | 5 | 6,214 | Male | Dallas |
| Einbinder, Matthew | Simpson Thacher | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Elam, Austin | Haynes and Boone | 4 | 894 | Male | Houston |
| Ericksen, A.J. | White & Case | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Everett, Grant | Baker Botts | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Falcone, Matt | Vinson & Elkins | 6 | 1,650 | Male | Houston |
| Fallon, Archie | Willkie Farr | 5 | 835 | Male | Houston |
| Faulkner, GeraldC.J. | McGuireWoods | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Fedorko, Zach | Baker Botts | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Fenimore, Chet | Fenimore, Kay, Harrison & Ford | 1 | - | Male | Austin |
| Fenn, Tim (Houston ) | Latham & Watkins | 1 | 106 | Male | Houston |
| Fenske, Brian | Norton Rose Fulbright | 7 | 69 | Male | Houston |
| Ferazzi, Chris | Winston & Strawn | 2 | - | Male | Houston |
| Ferguson, Lindsay | Sheppard Mullin | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Finger, Jon | McGuireWoods | 9 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Finnegan, Bill | Latham & Watkins | 2 | 13,100 | Male | Houston |
| Fitzgerald, Rachel | Locke Lord | 2 | 80 | Female | Houston |
| Flack, Joe | Jackson Walker | 1 | 513 | Male | Houston |
| Florey, Tull | Gibson Dunn | 8 | 68,448 | Male | Houston |
| Folmsbee, Chris | Sidley Austin | 2 | - | Male | Houston |
| Fontana, Angela | Sidley Austin | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Fore, Joseph | DLA Piper | 4 | 986 | Male | Austin |
| Foster, Holt | Sidley Austin | 2 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Foster, Sakina | Haynes and Boone | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Frank, Katherine | Vinson & Elkins | 2 | 1,430 | Female | Dallas |
| Franklin, Jamie | White & Case | 3 | 18,400 | Male | Houston |
| Fry, Matt | Haynes and Boone | 1 | 358 | Male | Dallas |
| Frye, Richard | Weil | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Fullenweider, William | McGuireWoods | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Furlow, John | Kirkland & Ellis | 2 | 250 | Male | Houston |
| Gail, David | Weil | 4 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Garcia-Duran, Sara | Sidley Austin | 3 | 356 | Female | Dallas |
| Garcia-Moreno, Ricardo | Haynes and Boone | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Garmezy, Adam | Kirkland & Ellis | 7 | 611 | Male | Houston |
| Garrett, James | Latham & Watkins | 10 | 3,637 | Male | Houston |
| Gasser, Jennifer | Kirkland & Ellis | 5 | 1,865 | Female | Houston |
| Gaver, Taylor | BoyarMiller | 1 | 34 | Female | Houston |
| Gerisch, Brad | DLA Piper | 1 | 800 | Male | Austin |
| Gibson, Michael | Vinson & Elkins | 3 | 190 | Male | Austin |
| Giggs, Ryan | Willkie Farr | 1 | 34 | Male | Houston |
| Gill, Steve | Vinson & Elkins | 5 | 29,177 | Male | Houston |
| Girardeau, Emerson | Willkie Farr | 2 | 3,234 | Male | Houston |
| Glaccum, J.A. | HuntonAK | 1 | 385 | Male | Houston |
| Glover, Wade | Katten | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Gnaim, Habeeb "Hobbs" | Chamberlain Hrdlicka | 3 | 43 | Male | Houston |
| Gonzalez, George | Haynes and Boone | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Goodgame, John | Akin | 6 | 1,490 | Male | Houston |
| Goodin, Robert | Kirkland & Ellis | 8 | 4,033 | Male | Houston |
| Gordian, Carmelo | Shearman & Sterling | 2 | 6 | Male | Austin |
| Goulding, Matthew | Latham & Watkins | 1 | 25 | Male | Houston |
| Graffum, Rob | O'Melveny | 8 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Grahmann, Kraig | Haynes and Boone | 2 | 1,130 | Male | Houston |
| Grand, John | Vinson & Elkins | 4 | 2,121 | Male | Dallas |
| Grandio, Emilio | White & Case | 5 | 541 | Male | Houston |
| Grant, Stephen | Haynes and Boone | 1 | 67 | Male | Houston |
| Greer, John | Latham & Watkins | 7 | 14,822 | Male | Houston |
| Griffin, James | Weil | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Grimley, Jared | Latham & Watkins | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Grunert, Matthew | Bracewell | 2 | 4,421 | Male | Houston |
| Gutmann, Lytch | Bracewell | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Haag, Charlie | Winston & Strawn | 2 | 121 | Male | Dallas |
| Haire, Breen | Simpson Thacher | 5 | 13,000 | Male | Houston |
| Hall, Larry | Baker Botts | 3 | 2,910 | Male | Dallas |
| Hammett, Donald | Alston & Bird | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Hamrick, Mark | Egan Nelson | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Hanchey, Patrick | Alston & Bird | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Hansard, Catharine | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Harder, Troy | Bracewell | 1 | 2,300 | Male | Houston |
| Hardison, Ben | Kirkland & Ellis | 2 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Harmon, Melanie | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 960 | Female | Houston |
| Harris, Tom | Haynes and Boone | 3 | 440 | Male | Dallas |
| Hatter, Debra | Norton Rose Fulbright | 1 | 500 | Female | Houston |
| Heasley, Chris | Kirkland & Ellis | 7 | 2,399 | Male | Houston |
| Heintz, Alia | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 11 | Female | Houston |
| Heller, William | Mayer Brown | 1 | 450 | Male | Houston |
| Henderson, Bryan | Baker Botts | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Henderson, Kevin | SMB Law | 30 | 192 | Male | Dallas |
| Herzog, Bruce | Latham & Watkins | 7 | 1,606 | Male | Houston |
| Hicks, Kim | Kirkland & Ellis | 2 | - | Female | Austin |
| Hidalgo, Gregory | Katten | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Hill, Greg | Hogan Lovells | 1 | 1,815 | Male | Houston |
| Hinderliter, Dean | Winston & Strawn | 1 | 104 | Male | Dallas |
| Hoffman, Joseph "Joe" | Katten | 1 | 21 | Male | Dallas |
| Holcomb, Ryan | Bracewell | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Hollins, Morgan | White & Case | 6 | 1,258 | Female | Houston |
| Holmes, Hillary | Gibson Dunn | 7 | 2,283 | Female | Houston |
| Honeycutt, Brad | Willkie Farr | 3 | 189 | Male | Houston |
| Hopkins, Erin | Baker Botts | 1 | 768 | Male | Houston |
| Horan, Sean | O'Melveny | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Howard, Jason | Egan Nelson | 2 | 23 | Male | Dallas |
| Howell, Bill | Sidley Austin | 7 | 720 | Male | Dallas |
| Hughes, Jay | Willkie Farr | 2 | - | Male | Houston |
| Hughes, Robert | Vinson & Elkins | 8 | 6,600 | Male | Houston |
| Hunsaker, Ryan | Winston & Strawn | 1 | 50 | Male | Houston |
| Hurley, Patrick | Akin | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Jacobsen, Jack | O'Melveny | 5 | 800 | Male | Dallas |
| Jaquillard, Lindsey | Kirkland & Ellis | 3 | 5,165 | Female | Houston |
| Jean, Jason | Bracewell | 1 | 621 | Male | Houston |
| Jerath, Geetika | Norton Rose Fulbright | 1 | - | Female | Austin |
| Jewell, Bob | HuntonAK | 1 | 3,800 | Male | Houston |
| Johnston, Garrett | O'Melveny | 2 | - | Male | Houston |
| Johnston, Tony | Kirkland & Ellis | 4 | 300 | Male | Dallas |
| Johnstone, Debbi | Norton Rose Fulbright | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Jones, Allison | BakerHostetler | 1 | 200 | Female | Houston |
| Jones, Brandon | Haynes and Boone | 2 | - | Male | Fort Worth |
| Jones, Cyril | Kirkland & Ellis | 8 | 5,744 | Male | Houston |
| Jones, Wes | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | - | Male | Austin |
| Jou, Albert | O'Melveny | 13 | 1,454 | Male | Houston |
| Kaercher, John | Kirkland & Ellis | 12 | 3,389 | Male | Austin |
| Kalka, Melissa | Kirkland & Ellis | 2 | 25,400 | Female | Dallas |
| Kaufman, Erin | Shearman & Sterling | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Keeley, Michael | Norton Rose Fulbright | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Kelly, Mark | Vinson & Elkins | 3 | 38 | Male | Houston |
| Kennedy, Jeremy | Haynes and Boone | 5 | 17,815 | Male | Houston |
| Kesten, Steve | BoyarMiller | 1 | 400 | Male | Houston |
| Khalifa, Miriam | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | - | Female | Austin |
| Kibby, Rob | Munsch Hardt | 2 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Kidd, Chelsie | McGuireWoods | 2 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Kiernan, Joshua | Latham & Watkins | 1 | 371 | Male | Houston |
| Kimball, Robert | Vinson & Elkins | 2 | 19,300 | Male | Dallas |
| King, Michael | Latham & Watkins | 2 | 2,242 | Male | Houston |
| Kirk, Allan | Kirkland & Ellis | 6 | 7,443 | Male | Houston |
| Kirkpatrick, Chris | Wick Phillips | 1 | 67 | Male | Dallas |
| Kleinman, Bill | Haynes and Boone | 6 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Knight, Jim | Egan Nelson | 3 | 14 | Male | Houston |
| Kuehn, Caroline | Vinson & Elkins | 2 | 885 | Female | Houston |
| Kunzman, Mark | Egan Nelson | 4 | - | Male | Houston |
| Kuperman, Shay | Vinson & Elkins | 3 | 946 | Male | Houston |
| Kwan, Michelle | Shearman & Sterling | 1 | 15 | Female | Austin |
| Lancaster, Tara | Sidley Austin | 5 | 85 | Female | Dallas |
| Lang, David | Kirk & Spalding | 1 | 400 | Male | Houston |
| Lange, David | Winston & Strawn | 2 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Lansdale, Daryl | Norton Rose Fulbright | 3 | - | Male | San Antonio |
| Larkin, Michael | Porter Hedges | 1 | 41 | Male | Houston |
| Larson, Adam | Kirkland & Ellis | 4 | 4,264 | Male | Houston |
| Larson, Eric | Locke Lord | 3 | - | Male | Houston |
| Lau, Phil | Mayer Brown | 1 | 3,900 | Male | Houston |
| Laughlin, Thomas | Kirkland & Ellis | 10 | 9,765 | Male | Dallas |
| Laurel, Joe | Willkie Farr | 1 | 92 | Male | Houston |
| Leitch, Emily | Shearman & Sterling | 1 | 249 | Female | Houston |
| Lemus, Efren | Shearman & Sterling | 2 | 601 | Female | Dallas |
| Lewis, Kevin | Sidley Austin | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Lewis, Sekou | In-House | 1 | 3,200 | Male | Dallas |
| Lichtenheld, Emily | Kirkland & Ellis | 3 | 13,800 | Female | Austin |
| Liebmann, Diana | Haynes and Boone | 1 | - | Female | San Antonio |
| Lipman, Brice | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | - | Male | Austin |
| Lipscomb, Marc | Locke Lord | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Little, Robert | Gibson Dunn | 21 | 206 | Male | Dallas |
| Lobb, Brandon | Locke Lord | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Long, James | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 2,000 | Male | Houston |
| Loocke, Bryan | Vinson & Elkins | 8 | 9,804 | Male | Houston |
| Looper, Cheryl | O'Melveny | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Lowther, Todd | Shearman & Sterling | 3 | 1,450 | Male | Houston |
| Lu, Tan | Willkie Farr | 2 | - | Male | Houston |
| Lukaszewski, Katy | Simpson Thacher | 3 | 1,100 | Female | Houston |
| Lynch, Ryan | Latham & Watkins | 4 | 3,563 | Male | Houston |
| Mabry, Cynthia | Gibson Dunn | 1 | 825 | Female | Houston |
| Macke, Jonathan | Weil | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Mahre, LeslieVaughn | Holland & Knight | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Maierson, Ryan | Latham & Watkins | 17 | 28,467 | Male | Houston |
| Malenfant, R.J. | Kirkland & Ellis | 2 | 825 | Male | Houston |
| Mann, Steve | Baker Botts | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Manzer, Alec | Kirkland & Ellis | 2 | 370 | Male | Austin |
| Marek, Mike | Vinson & Elkins | 9 | 324 | Male | Houston |
| Marsh, Joclynn | Vinson & Elkins | 2 | 764 | Female | Houston |
| Marshall, James | Baker Botts | 2 | 841 | Male | Houston |
| Marshall, Peter | Vinson & Elkins | 4 | 1,000 | Male | Dallas |
| Martin, Benjamin | Bracewell | 3 | 496 | Male | Houston |
| Massiatte, Michael | DLA Piper | 1 | 146 | Male | Dallas |
| Matthews, William | McGuireWoods | 1 | - | Male | Austin |
| May, Christopher | Simpson Thacher | 7 | 3,800 | Male | Houston |
| McCaffrey, Thomas | Akin | 2 | 43 | Male | Houston |
| McCombs, David | Haynes and Boone | 1 | 358 | Male | Dallas |
| McCombs, Sam | White & Case | 1 | 25 | Male | Houston |
| McCormick, Durham | McGuireWoods | 1 | 700 | Male | Houston |
| McCoy, Brandon | Haynes and Boone | 5 | - | Male | Dallas |
| McElroy, Frank | In-House | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| McEntee, Daniel | Vinson & Elkins | 2 | 1,000 | Male | Houston |
| McGowan, John | Haynes and Boone | 5 | - | Male | Dallas |
| McLean, David | McGuireWoods | 2 | - | Male | Dallas |
| McLean, Sarah | Shearman & Sterling | 8 | 1,450 | Female | Austin |
| McNulty, Josh | HuntonAK | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| McWilliams, Doug | Vinson & Elkins | 2 | 9,400 | Male | Houston |
| Mercer, Austin | Egan Nelson | 1 | 23 | Male | Dallas |
| Meredith, Nathan | Shearman & Sterling | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Mestre, Brook | Baker McKenzie | 1 | 1,800 | Male | Dallas |
| Metcalf, Chrissy | O'Melveny | 5 | 4 | Female | Dallas |
| Metts, Mark | Sidley Austin | 2 | 1,900 | Male | Houston |
| Michael, John | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Miller, Gary | BoyarMiller | 1 | 34 | Male | Houston |
| Miller, Scott | Latham & Watkins | 4 | 364 | Male | Houston |
| Mitchell, Ryan | McGuireWoods | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Mitchell, Victoria | Egan Nelson | 3 | 4 | Female | Dallas |
| Mize, Colin | Wick Phillips | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Mohan, Sameer | Morgan Lewis | 4 | - | Male | Houston |
| Moneypenny, Patrick | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 500 | Male | Houston |
| Monier, Nick | Haynes and Boone | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Moore, Rodney | Weil | 1 | 50 | Male | Dallas |
| Morgan, Sarah | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | 7,100 | Female | Houston |
| Morrel, Joseph | Porter Hedges | 1 | 306 | Male | Houston |
| Mulcahy, DeLaina | Locke Lord | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Muskus, Luisa | White & Case | 2 | 11,100 | Female | Houston |
| Myers, Jesse | Gibson Dunn | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Nadworny, Matthew | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 384 | Male | Houston |
| Nalley, Adam | Porter Hedges | 3 | 8 | Male | Houston |
| Nasra, Jason | Willkie Farr | 2 | - | Male | Houston |
| Neal, Drew | Kelly Hart & Hallman | 1 | 455 | Male | Fort Worth |
| Neill, Drew | Kelly Hart & Hallman | 1 | 455 | Male | Fort Worth |
| Nelson, Bill | Shearman & Sterling | 3 | 1,275 | Male | Houston |
| Nelson, Jhett | Kirkland & Ellis | 3 | 7 | Male | Houston |
| Nelson, Sarah | O'Melveny | 1 | 4 | Female | Dallas |
| Newby, Milam | Vinson & Elkins | 3 | - | Male | Austin |
| Newsome, Bruce | Haynes and Boone | 1 | 60 | Male | Dallas |
| Newton, Jonathan | King & Spalding | 2 | 700 | Male | Houston |
| Niezgoda, Brock | Gray Reed | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Noh, Stephen | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Nunn, Veronica | Pillsbury | 1 | - | Female | Austin |
| O'Brien, Sarah | Shearman & Sterling | 1 | 15 | Female | Austin |
| O'Leary, Mike | HuntonAK | 2 | 4,130 | Male | Houston |
| Oelman, David | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | 854 | Male | Houston |
| Ofner, Charlie | White & Case | 3 | 598 | Male | Houston |
| Oldham, Phillip | O'Melveny | 2 | 1,200 | Male | Austin |
| Oliver-Keymorth, Javier | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 336 | Male | Austin |
| Oliver, Craig | Norton Rose Fulbright | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Olson, Stephen | Gibson Dunn | 5 | 700 | Male | Houston |
| Orengo Lyons, Gabriella | Sidley Austin | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Orien, Joe | Gibson Dunn | 6 | 36 | Male | Dallas |
| Otness, Eric | Skadden | 3 | 5,000 | Male | Houston |
| Palmer, Heather | Sidley Austin | 1 | 85 | Female | Houston |
| Parel, Scott | Sidley Austin | 3 | 25 | Male | Dallas |
| Parish, Bill | White & Case | 6 | 11,451 | Male | Houston |
| Parker, Davis | Jackson Walker | 1 | 1,360 | Male | Houston |
| Pascal, Larry | Haynes and Boone | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Patel, Rakhee | Sidley Austin | 1 | 400 | Female | Dallas |
| Patterson, Danielle | Vinson & Elkins | 2 | 2,025 | Female | Houston |
| Pearce, Allison | Porter Hedges | 2 | - | Female | Houston |
| Peca, Samuel | Weil | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Peetz, Anne | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Peponis, Chris | Latham & Watkins | 1 | 75 | Male | Houston |
| Perrin, Harry | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Peter, Kevin | Locke Lord | 4 | 3,575 | Male | Houston |
| Peters, Jason | King & Spalding | 5 | 15 | Male | Houston |
| Pezanosky, Stephen M. | Haynes and Boone | 2 | 222 | Male | Fort Worth |
| Phaguda, Kabir | White & Case | 2 | 580 | Male | Houston |
| Piazza, Michael | Gibson Dunn | 13 | 2,377 | Male | Houston |
| Pierson, David | Chamberlain Hrdlicka | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Pinkerton, Glenn | Sidley Austin | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Pinkerton, Trevor | King & Spalding | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Pitts, John | Kirkland & Ellis | 7 | 7,768 | Male | Houston |
| Platt, Jon | Baker Botts | 3 | 2,595 | Male | Dallas |
| Polisini, Jack | Akin | 1 | 43 | Male | Houston |
| Powers, Josh | McGuireWoods | 2 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Prichard, Shalla | Gibson Dunn | 2 | 825 | Female | Houston |
| Proctor, Chase | Haynes and Boone | 4 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Pullin, Zackary | Sidley Austin | 2 | - | Male | Houston |
| Pullins, Taylor | White & Case | 4 | 25 | Male | Houston |
| Purohit, Ravi | Latham & Watkins | 4 | 2,400 | Male | Houston |
| Quattrocchi, John | Baker McKenzie | 1 | 245 | Male | Dallas |
| Rancher, Clint | Baker Botts | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Ransom, John | BoyarMiller | 1 | 400 | Male | Houston |
| Rasley, Stuart | McGuireWoods | 3 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Reardon, James | Porter Hedges | 1 | 41 | Male | Houston |
| Redwine, Blake | Norton Rose Fulbright | 2 | 213 | Male | Dallas |
| Reniger, Lowrie | McGuireWoods | 5 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Richards, Angela | Sidley Austin | 1 | 200 | Female | Houston |
| Richardson, Christopher | White & Case | 2 | - | Male | Houston |
| Richardson, Kevin | Latham & Watkins | 1 | 18,800 | Male | Houston |
| Richter, Lauren | Locke Lord | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Rigby, Aaron | Sidley Austin | 4 | 3,262 | Male | Dallas |
| Riggs, Ryan | Willkie Farr | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Roberts, Whit | O'Melveny | 5 | 1,910 | Male | Dallas |
| Robertson, James | Gibson Dunn | 2 | 900 | Male | Houston |
| Rocha, Jason | White & Case | 3 | 898 | Male | Houston |
| Rockhill, Kit | Jones Day | 1 | - | Female | Houston |
| Rodgers, Michael | White & Case | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Rose, Brian | Porter Hedges | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Rose, Marc | Sidley Austin | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Rose, Patrick | BakerHostetler | 1 | 200 | Male | Dallas |
| Rotter, Irv | Sidley Austin | 1 | 80 | Male | Houston |
| Rowley, Chris | Vinson & Elkins | 3 | 621 | Male | Dallas |
| Rubin, Steve | Wick Phillips | 1 | 67 | Male | Dallas |
| Sakowitz, Brittany | Kirkland & Ellis | 8 | 5,153 | Female | Houston |
| Salvo, Patrick | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 570 | Male | Austin |
| Samji, Omar | Shearman & Sterling | 4 | 459 | Male | Houston |
| Samos, Mario | Sidley Austin | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Samson, Tim | Holland & Knight | 2 | - | Male | Houston |
| Sanders, Ryan | McGuireWoods | 2 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Santa Ana, Randy | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Sappington, Bryn | Norton Rose Fulbright | 3 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Sauber, Elena | Vinson & Elkins | 2 | 211 | Female | Dallas |
| Savella, Aaron | Willkie Farr | 4 | - | Male | Houston |
| Savrick, Zach | Kirkland & Ellis | 3 | 768 | Male | Houston |
| Schauwecker, Jessica | Katten | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Schlegel, Jeff | Jones Day | 5 | 136 | Male | Houston |
| Schumacher, Jason | O'Melveny | 5 | 2,715 | Male | Dallas |
| Scioli, Jacqueline | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Scofield, Crosby | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | 20 | Male | Houston |
| Scofield, Ryan | Sidley Austin | 4 | 927 | Male | Dallas |
| Sears, Ryan | O'Melveny | 1 | 75 | Male | Dallas |
| Sethi, Akash | McGuireWoods | 4 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Shearer, Rob | Akin | 2 | 332 | Male | Houston |
| Sheridan, Jessica | Willkie Farr | 4 | - | Female | Houston |
| Shirley, Jack | Kirkland & Ellis | 2 | 75 | Male | Dallas |
| Shosid, Larry | Haynes and Boone | 3 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Shukla, Atman | Sidley Austin | 4 | 1,594 | Male | Houston |
| Sidik, Ahmed | Kirkland & Ellis | 6 | 3,044 | Male | Houston |
| Simmons, Jennie | Locke Lord | 4 | - | Female | Houston |
| Sizer, Brooke | Holland & Knight | 1 | 500 | Female | Houston |
| Smith, Chad | Kirkland & Ellis | 3 | 3,207 | Male | Houston |
| Smith, Creighton | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Smith, Kristen | Sidley Austin | 2 | 4,400 | Female | Dallas |
| Solomon, Mark | Katten | 4 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Spedale, Gerry | Gibson Dunn | 2 | 671 | Male | Houston |
| Speier, Anthony | Kirkland & Ellis | 3 | 300 | Male | Houston |
| Spottswood, Lande | Vinson & Elkins | 4 | 15,154 | Female | Houston |
| Standefer, Brent | Fenimore, Kay, Harrison & Ford | 1 | - | Male | Austin |
| Statham, Blaine | Haynes and Boone | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Stephens, Robert | Sidley Austin | 2 | 1,835 | Male | Houston |
| Still, Charles | Bracewell | 1 | 214 | Male | Houston |
| Stockstill, Matt | Winston & Strawn | 1 | 50 | Male | Dallas |
| Stolte, Justin | Latham & Watkins | 10 | 1,932 | Male | Houston |
| Strickland, David | White & Case | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Stringer, David | Jones Day | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Strock, Matt | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Strom, Jonathan | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 127 | Male | Houston |
| Sullivan, Shane | Porter Hedges | 1 | 54 | Male | Houston |
| Sun, Simin | Haynes and Boone | 6 | 12 | Male | Houston |
| Swanstrom, Bill | Locke Lord | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Sweeney, David | Clifford Chance | 1 | 720 | Male | Houston |
| Szalkowski, Stephen | Latham & Watkins | 6 | 1,917 | Male | Houston |
| Tatum, Mary-Wommack | Dwyer Murphy Calvert | 1 | - | Female | Austin |
| Teahen, Joshua | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Telle, Mike | Vinson & Elkins | 2 | 3,077 | Male | Houston |
| Tippetts, Tom | Haynes and Boone | 4 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Tiras, Mitch | Locke Lord | 5 | 1,655 | Male | Houston |
| Todd, Brett | Norton Rose Fulbright | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Todd, Martha | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | - | Female | Austin |
| Tomlinson, Thomas | Bracewell | 1 | 175 | Male | Houston |
| Torello, Steven | O'Melveny | 14 | 1,994 | Male | Houston |
| Totari, Rami | Kirkland & Ellis | 2 | 1,044 | Male | Dallas |
| Tredennick, Steve | White & Case | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Trisdale, Heath | Kirk & Spalding | 2 | 700 | Male | Houston |
| Usmani, Zahra | Kirkland & Ellis | 4 | 424 | Female | Austin |
| Van Syoc, Rhett | Kirkland & Ellis | 5 | 4,350 | Male | Houston |
| Varner, Enoch | Clifford Chance | 1 | 11,000 | Male | Houston |
| Vashi, Rahul | Kirkland & Ellis | 6 | 5,217 | Male | Houston |
| Verity, Thomas | Latham & Watkins | 4 | 5,028 | Male | Houston |
| Villarreal, Debra | Holland & Knight | 1 | 1,400 | Female | Dallas |
| Vlahakos, George | Sidley Austin | 2 | 1,600 | Male | Houston |
| von Merz, Carl | Mayer Brown | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Vrielink, Cliff | Sidley Austin | 7 | 534 | Male | Houston |
| Walker, Andrew | Kirkland & Ellis | 3 | - | Male | Austin |
| Washburn, David | Katten | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Watson, Kyle | Kirkland & Ellis | 6 | 3,400 | Male | Houston |
| Watts, Wes | Gunderson | 2 | 4 | Male | Austin |
| Weinstock, Peter | HuntonAK | 2 | 86 | Male | Dallas |
| Wessel, Kevin | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | 384 | Male | Houston |
| Wetzel, Susan | Haynes and Boone | 2 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Whalen, Jonathan | Gibson Dunn | 5 | 900 | Male | Dallas |
| Wheeler, Sean | Kirkland & Ellis | 5 | 34,830 | Male | Houston |
| Whitaker, Beth | HuntonAK | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| White, Lauren | Haynes and Boone | 1 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Whitehouse, Adam | Gibson Dunn | 1 | 700 | Male | Houston |
| Whitlock, Brad | Egan Nelson | 1 | 3 | Male | Dallas |
| Wilde, Alexandra | Jones Day | 3 | 50 | Female | Houston |
| Wilhelm, David | Locke Lord | 1 | 1,815 | Male | Houston |
| Williams, Eric | Akin | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Williams, Wes | Akin | 1 | 82 | Male | Dallas |
| Willson, Kate | Kirkland & Ellis | 1 | - | Female | Austin |
| Wilshusen, Bill | Haynes and Boone | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Wilson, Larry | BoyarMIller | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Wisinski, Jennifer | Haynes and Boone | 2 | 145 | Female | Dallas |
| Wofford, Travis | Baker Botts | 1 | 1,600 | Male | Houston |
| Wray, Kelly | McGuireWoods | 2 | - | Female | Dallas |
| Wynne, Richard | Winston & Strawn | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Xia, Edward | Sheppard Mullin | 1 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Yang, Tom | Akin | 5 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Yee, Debbie | Kirkland & Ellis | 5 | 33,322 | Female | Houston |
| Yoked, Tommer | Sidley Austin | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Zabaneh, Samer | Latham & Watkins | 1 | 835 | Male | Austin |
| Zanetti, Victor | Katten | 17 | - | Male | Dallas |
| Zenter, Thomas | Vinson & Elkins | 1 | - | Male | Houston |
| Zhao, Mingda | White & Case | 3 | 20,000 | Male | Houston |
CDT Lawyer Ranking — Deal Count
Eighty-three lawyers in Texas were lead or co-lead counsel on five or more deals in 2023.
Twenty-two of those 83 lawyers practice at Kirkland & Ellis.
Latham & Watkins and O’Melveny & Myers each had eight Texas lawyers lead or co-lead five or more deals in 2023. Haynes Boone and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher both had seven lawyers on that short list and Vinson & Elkins had six, according to CDT data.
Henderson ranked No. 1, followed by Gibson Dunn’s Rob Little with 21 deals, Latham’s Ryan Maierson and Katten partner Victor Zanetti, who represents a lot of family offices, each led or co-led 17 transactions.
Fifteen Texas lawyers were lead or co-lead counsel for buyers, sellers or targets in 10 or more M&A transactions in 2023. Four of those lawyers worked at Kirkland and three at Latham. Gibson Dunn and O’Melveny each had two.
All 15 of those lead lawyers with 10 or more deals were men, according to CDT data.
Only 12 of the 83 lawyers who led or co-led five or more deals in 2023 were women. Kirkland partner Brittany Sakowitz in Houston and Shearman & Sterling partner (now at Willkie) Sarah McLean in Austin each led eight transactions. Hillary Holmes, a Houston partner for Gibson Dunn, led the principals in seven deals, while White & Case partner Morgan Hollins in Houston led six transactions.
CDT Lawyer Ranking — Deal Value
The two Gibson Dunn partners — Tull Florey and Jeff Chapman — who co-led the representation of Pioneer Natural Resources in its $64.5 billion sale to Exxon Mobil top the CDT lead dealmakers chart ranked by deal value.
Two Kirkland partners — Sean Wheeler and Debbie Yee — are third and fourth, followed by Vinson & Elkins partner Steve Gill and Latham partner Ryan Maierson.
In all, 22 Texas lawyers led or co-led M&A deals for buyers, sellers and targets with a combined value of $10 billion or more. Five of the 22 are women, including Kirkland partners Melissa Kalka and Emily Lichtenheld, V&E partner Lande Spottswood and White & Case associate Luisa Muskus.
One hundred twenty-three Texas lawyers who led or co-led that had a combined deal value of $1 billion or more in 2023 — 29 of them practice for Kirkland. Latham and V&E each have 16 Texas lawyers on the list with $1 billion in deals under their belt last year.
Twenty of the 135 Texas lawyers with deal values of $1 billion or more are women, including Kristen Smith of Sidley Austin, Debra Villareal of Holland & Knight and Katy Lukaszewski of Simpson Thacher.
