Christina Marshall, a partner at Haynes and Boone, Dallas/courtesy photo

M&A lawyer Christina Marshall has returned to Haynes and Boone as a partner in Dallas after spending a few years working as general counsel for a Dallas company and then managing her own small firm.

Marshall, who rejoined Haynes and Boone last week, said not a second of her time away from the firm was wasted because she learned so much from the client's perspective while in-house, and also about firm management as an owner of her firm, Keating Marshall. But when Haynes and Boone asked her to consider returning to the firm, she jumped at the opportunity.

“To be honest, I've missed the people here since I left. And since I've been back, it's been so much fun,” she said.

Marshall joined Haynes and Boone's M&A practice group and will focus on advising companies in middle-market M&A and other strategic transactions.

Jennifer Wisinski, an M&A partner in Dallas, said in a statement that Marshall helps the firm strengthen its middle-market M&A practice, and is a “proven mentor” who can help train younger lawyers in M&A work.

“Having worked in-house, Christina has a keen understanding of what clients expect from their lawyers,” Wisinski said.

Marshall said that she went to work at Haynes and Boone right out of college, in the business development department. She was also a summer associate at the firm, and returned as an associate after she graduated from law school in 2006.

She was named a partner in January 2015, but immediately afterward a client in the restaurant, hotel and real estate business—Chalak Mitra Group of Dallas—asked her to come on board as general counsel, in part to manage a large transaction. She said she decided to take the in-house opportunity because of her entrepreneurial streak.

The in-house job was a big change from big-firm life, she said, largely because she oversaw not only the legal department, but others, including human resources and risk management.

“It was a fascinating time. It gave me, quite frankly, an understanding of what our clients go through. It made me a 10-million-times better lawyer,” she said.

But Marshall said she figured out pretty quickly that she missed firm life and being around other lawyers, so she left the company in March 2017 and joined Patrick Keating, another former Haynes and Boone lawyer, at Keating Marshall.

Marshall said she enjoyed practicing at Keating Marshall but she got very busy there and didn't staff up quickly enough. At the time Haynes and Boone reached out to her this year, she was thinking about adding more lawyers to Keating Marshall.

Marshall said that after talking with clients during her time at Keating Marshall, she became convinced that a big firm such as Haynes and Boone can work for companies of all sizes.

“As an M&A lawyer, I actually don't believe I'm going to be priced out of any transactions, even though we are a big firm and our rates are higher than some other firms. If you are efficient … even a large law firm can do a very small M&A transaction,” she said.

Marshall's former partner, Keating, who does litigation and corporate work, said he will stay solo at Keating PLLC in Plano. He said he will continue to work with Marshall on matters for mutual clients.