Willkie Farr & Gallagher announced the launch of its Dallas office Monday, including the addition of three lawyers from Haynes Boone.
The announcement marks the firm’s second in Texas and 15th global location.
Tom Tippetts, Brandon McCoy and Chase Proctor, well-known in their private equity and M&A practices, are moving to Willkie from Haynes Boone. They will be joined/supported by partners currently in other Willkie offices: Archie Fallon (Houston), Tony Johnston (Houston), Sarah McLean (Houston) and Jessica Sheridan (New York).
The additions of Tippetts, McCoy and Proctor make eight lateral partners hired by Willkie in Texas since the start of 2023.
Fallon, who is managing partner of Willkie’s Houston office, said the firm has long contemplated a second Texas location.
“Dallas clients have been encouraging us to open a Dallas office for some time,” said Fallon, in a release. “Tom, Brandon and Chase know the Dallas market well, and their stellar track record and experience will complement our strong M&A and private equity capabilities in Texas and across the Firm.”
Said Willie chairman Thomas Cerabino: “Texas is a dynamic and thriving market, and an important pillar of our global strategy. While we’ve been in Texas for more than a decade, the decision to open a second Texas office in Dallas reflects Willkie’s commitment to the region, as well as the needs of our clients. Our Texas platform is focused on private equity, M&A and transactional work, in the energy sector and non-energy related sectors.”
Tippetts, who had joined Haynes Boone as a 2006 University of Texas Law School grad, called Willkie “an elite corporate firm with one of the most active private equity practices.”
“The platform is a perfect fit for our practices now and into the future,” said Tippetts. “We are thrilled to join Willkie at such an exciting time of growth for the firm and in the Dallas area.”
In the past year or so, Tippetts:
- Represented Blucora, Inc. in the $720 million sale of its tax software business, TaxAct, to an affiliate of Cinven Ltd., a UK-based private equity fund.
- Represented Trive Capital in the sale of its interest in Iowa Northern Railway Company, a short line railroad operating approximately 275 miles of track in eastern and northern Iowa.
- Counseled Breck partners, a Dallas based private equity firm, in its acquisition of substantially all of the assets of Alloy Wheel Repair Specialists, a provider of light vehicle alloy wheel repair, remanufacturing, and wholesale services.
- Represented GFInet, Inc. in its acquisition of Trident Brokerage Services, a commodity brokerage and research firm specializing in energy and environmental products.
Echoing Tippetts, McCoy said, “Willkie has long been known as a private equity and M&A powerhouse, and we have been impressed by the firm’s collegiality and entrepreneurial spirit.”
McCoy, a Wharton-trained accountant with a Penn J.D., has:
- Advised Woudenberg Enterprises, LLC in the asset sale of Trench Shore Rentals (TSR) and Trebor Shoring Rentals to Sunstate Equipment Co., LLC, a provider of trenching rentals in the US.
- Represented RP Foods LLC, an international food and beverage distributor, in the sale of a majority of its equity interests to Benford Capital Partners.
- Counseled Trive Capital-backed Forward Slope in its acquisition of Soar Technology Inc.
And 2014 UT Law grad Proctor, who spent a year at Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York before joining Haynes Boone, also has broad corporate and private equity experience. Recent deals include representations of:
- Lifecycle Biotechnologies, a provider of critical life sciences reagents and innovative custom solutions, in its December sale to TCP Analytical, and
- Irving-based Commercial Metals Company in a series of acquisitons — Its July acquisition of EDSCO Fasteners from MiddleGround Capital; its acquisition last May of all the assets of BOSTD America and its March acquisition of all the assets of Roane Metals Group.