Three lawyers from Hays & Owens, an energy regulatory and litigation boutique in Austin, have joined Jackson Walker's office in the city.

John Hays and Gregg Owens joined Jackson Walker as partners, while Alicia French joined as senior counsel. They handle oil and gas matters before state and federal regulatory agencies and in court, and also do transactional work.

Hays said the group started talking to Dallas-based Jackson Walker several months ago about the move. He said they could not pass up the opportunity to join a larger firm with more resources, adding that it's nice to be able to walk down the hall to consult with lawyers in other practice areas when clients have questions outside of his expertise.