After posting extraordinary results in 2016,  Jackson Walker saw net income in 2017 drop by 10.6 percent on a slight increase in gross revenue.

The Dallas-based firm brought in $249,429,000 in gross revenue in 2017, compared with $246,647,000 in 2016, and $94,651,000 in net income—down from $105,882,000 the prior year.

Revenue per lawyer and profits per partner also declined. RPL was $694,000, down 2.5 percent from 2016's $712,000, and PPP was $942,00, down 13.7 percent when compared with $1,092,000 the prior year.

Wade Cooper, the firm's Austin-based managing partner, said 2017 financials were down largely because of the firm's extraordinary results in 2016, when the firm posted an 11.3 percent increase in gross revenue and a 26.2 percent hike in net income over 2015.

“We made a quantum leap in [2016] in terms of gross revenue, and we are very pleased that we beat that number again this year,” Cooper said. “So we feel like we've stepped up a notch and we did it different ways.”

In 2016, the firm's extraordinary financials were driven by strong performance in corporate and real estate and, particularly, in litigation, Cooper said. “This year, litigation wasn't the driver. It was continued growth and strength in our transactional areas,” he said, adding that 2017 was a year for “reloading” large litigation matters.

Cooper also said expenses were up some in 2017 because the firm invested in raises for associates, staff and nonequity partners and also for lateral hires. “We felt like we were creating the seeds for future success by investing,” he said.

The firm brought on 16 lateral partners in 2017, adding “skill sets” that Cooper said help the firm serve clients. Those lateral hires include six intellectual property partners in Houston from the IP boutique Williams Morgan and three lawyers from Hays & Owens, an energy regulatory and litigation boutique, who joined Jackson Walker's office in Austin.

Also, four partners moved to Jackson Walker offices from Andrews Kurth Kenyon, including a former federal prosecutor who launched a white-collar crime defense practice at the firm, and four laterals, including three partners, who joined the firm in San Antonio from Dykema Cox Smith.

Cooper said the firm will continue to aggressively seek out laterals. “With the turmoil in the marketplace, we are finding a lot of folks who believe our platform meets their needs in terms of lower cost, better profitability and a better culture,” he said.

The firm—the largest based only in Texas—is pursuing a regional strategy. Its offices are in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, San Angelo, San Antonio and Texarkana. The lawyer count grew a little in 2017, with a total of 359 lawyers—up 3.5 percent from 347 the year before.

Cooper said the firm continued to maintain a diverse base of clients in 2017, with only one client providing more than two percent of the firm's revenue.

While a number of other large Texas firms are currently engaged in merger negotiations, including Andrews Kurth; Gardere Wynne & Sewell; and Strasburger & Price, that's not under consideration at Jackson Walker, Cooper said. During recent strategic planning, he said, the firm's partners affirmed the decision to stay independent.

“Our folks are very comfortable with the direction we are headed,” Cooper said.