Victor Vital remembers a swelling of joy and gratification when he thinks back on the first time he made partner. He was a young lawyer at Haynes Boone who found a solid support system at the firm.
The trial lawyer left Haynes Boone in 2007 and led groups at Baker Botts, Greenberg Traurig and, most recently, Barnes & Thornburg. But Vital remained connected to Haynes Boone through its alumni program and, on Monday, he returned to the firm that handed him the first big milestone of his career.
Vital rejoins Haynes Boone as global chair of Haynes Boone’s trials practice group, where he’ll oversee about 60 lawyers in the U.S., Mexico and England. Vital is based in Dallas.
“My return really is a story of the strength of Haynes Boone’s alumni relations,” Vital said. “It was because of my connection through the alumni community that I essentially am completing a homecoming journey and returning to the ranks of the firm where I first made partner.”
Vital said he was drawn to the robust growth Haynes Boone is experiencing in litigation and the firm’s response to that demand. The firm has increased its number of litigators by 36 percent in the last five years to about 180, a spokesman said.
“The goal from the highest levels of the firm was to identify, locate and bring aboard strategic leadership of the firm’s already outstanding litigation talent to leverage that momentum,” Vital said, adding that high stakes and bet-the-company trials are his passion.
Last year, Vital obtained a full defense verdict from a federal jury in Manhattan on behalf of a multinational manufacturer of engine, filtration and power products that was facing a breach of contract lawsuit in which plaintiffs sought more than $86 million.
Vital is often brought in just before trial, as he was in 2016 to represent two entrepreneurs who sued a YouTube gaming channel for breach of contract in federal court in Dallas. The jury in that case returned a verdict of over $30 million.
Last year brought Haynes Boone a “record-high demand” for litigation work, Litigation Department Chair Leslie Thorne said in an announcement of Vital’s hire.
“Having him aboard is a massive boon to our clients, and we are excited to join forces with him as we meet the growing demand for litigation across the firm,” Thorne said.
Vital also serves on the boards of directors for the Dallas Education Foundation and the Dallas Regional Chamber. He obtained his law degree from Texas Southern University’s Thurgood Marshall School of Law.
The following interview between Vital and The Texas Lawbook has been added for clarity.
What is your vision for your tenure as global chair?
My vision is to enhance the outstanding trial capabilities that already exist at the firm, and to enhance it in terms of providing even stronger results to clients in bet-the-company cases and high stakes cases. The trial practice of which I am taking the helm as global chair has had some big trial wins over the past couple of years, including a $70 million arbitration award, a huge renewable energy-related litigation matter led by an all woman New York trial team, some back-to-back trademark and patent verdicts in California, and more. So I’m going to build on that momentum and increase the ability of the firm to achieve those types of results across the country.
What does this mean for the number of cases that you’ll be able to try?
It will not take away from the number of cases I’m able to try. I have maintained an active trial practice, even though I’m the current office management partner and a management committee member of my present firm. As a matter of fact, by developing and building trial teams across the country, I’ll have the ability to, through that leverage, increase the number of cases that I’m a part of. Trying big cases takes time. It takes effort. It takes focus. But when you have the type of talent that I’m going to be leading, it will enhance and increase my ability to jump into cases and do the thing I love, which is to try big cases for good clients.
What is your philosophy on leadership?
I think a leader has to be a servant and has to be somebody who is a good listener. A leader has to be somebody who is in the trenches. I believe my leadership is marked by listening and serving, and some of the best growth I’ve had in my life has been through the challenges and the opportunities that come with leadership.
What kinds of trends are you seeing in your practice areas?
The biggest trend that I’ve seen is a rising demand for litigation services across various industries. And with that rise in demand that I’m personally seeing, I am seeing an increase in complexity of the legal disputes that clients are giving to me to handle in courtrooms. The biggest thing that is coming with those disputes of increased complexity is the potential for whopping verdict outcomes. Given the increasing complexity of legal disputes, as well as the potential for whopping verdict outcomes, the need for highly experienced and skillful trial lawyers is paramount.