John Davis has been on both sides of the in-house attorney hiring fence. He was general counsel of three different public companies in Dallas–Carreker Corp., a software and consulting company; Dave & Buster's Inc. restaurant chain; and Cameron Ashley Building Products Inc. He also was an in-house counsel for Electronic Data Systems and earlier, a law firm attorney.

In his new role, he recruits lawyers for senior in-house positions as a managing director based in Dallas for legal search firm Major Lindsey & Africa. He draws on his own career experiences both to help companies set expectations for the candidates they consider and to help motivate good candidates to make a career change.

“I understand how business people think and what they are looking for in a lawyer and I understand how candidates think and what they are looking for in a career move,” Davis says.