jgraham

July 18, 2011 | Texas Lawyer

When Christopher Boeck, an associate with Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell, walked into a mediator's office one Wednesday morning in March 2010, he didn't know if his client would obtain a satisfactory settlement or if he and his two colleagues would take the case to trial. The trio, working pro bono, already had spent more than a combined 100 hours on the suit.

By Jeanne Graham

3 minute read

January 27, 2011 | The Legal Intelligencer

Frederic White, dean of Texas Wesleyan University School of Law, says learning that his first novel is listed on Amazon.com is exciting news. "When I heard it was on Amazon, at least for me, it was a validation," he says.

By Jeanne Graham

2 minute read

June 07, 2010 | Texas Lawyer

Lawyers at K&L Gates' Texas offices boosted their pro bono hours by more than 115 percent in 2009, according to Texas Lawyer's Annual Pro Bono Survey. Twenty-five of the largest firms in Texas responded to the survey. Collectively they donated 209,676 pro bono hours in 2009, an increase of 14.6 percent compared to the 183,013 hours donated by the same firms in 2008.

By Jeanne Graham

3 minute read

April 13, 2010 | The Legal Intelligencer

Vinson & Elkins has sent letters to its 2010 first-year associates inviting them to begin their V&E careers Oct. 4, 2010, with base annual salaries of $160,000, said firm hiring partner Tom Leatherbury on March 29.

By Jeanne Graham

2 minute read

May 28, 2010 | Law.com

Warning to outside counsel: Don't look for increased billing opportunities from in-house clients during the coming months. Only 10 percent of 300 in-house lawyers surveyed by recruiting company Robert Half Legal say they will increase the amount of work they give outside counsel during the next 12 months.

By Jeanne Graham

1 minute read

February 03, 2011 | The Legal Intelligencer

Partnership comes with many benefits – firm ownership, prestige, higher billing rates. But at Houston-based Susman Godfrey, partnership also comes with a new pair of western boots.

By Jeanne Graham

2 minute read

October 01, 2012 | Texas Lawyer

Starting a law firm during a recession may not be easy, but Ralph Perez, a bankruptcy lawyer in Corpus Christi did just that after obtaining his Texas law license in November 2008. "I started a virtual practice and set up out of my house," he says. "It allowed me to save a lot of overhead and pocket a lot of profit. I settled on a flat $100 per hour when I started." Perez raised his rate to $125 an hour in 2009. By 2010, when his business had doubled as a result of marketing through social media and attending social media events, he raised his hourly fee to $175 and hired an administrative assistant who worked from her home.

By Jeanne Graham

47 minute read

February 04, 2013 | Texas Lawyer

Keith Head knows energy deals from beginning to end. As vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary for Harvest Natural Resources Inc. in Houston, he's been on the front end of deals identifying and valuing potential acquisitions.

By Jeanne Graham

11 minute read

June 10, 2013 | Texas Lawyer

While a Yale Law School student, Texas native Christian A. "Chris" Garza says he never imagined he'd be doing the work he does today. "In law school, you didn't really know what in-house practice was," says Garza, director, general counsel and secretary for Cosentino North America in Houston. "At Yale, most aspire to become politicians or professors or law firm partners."

By Jeanne Graham

9 minute read

December 03, 2012 | Texas Lawyer

'Tis the season for bargain hunting, which means that Lou Agnese, general counsel and corporate secretary for WhaleShark Media Inc., is in high gear, advising sales and management teams at his company on marketing and trademark issues and promotional campaigns with merchants.

By Jeanne Graham

10 minute read