Grant Walsh is the co-founder of CM Law, and he is one of the finalists of Texas Lawyer's Managing Partner of the Year award. Read a Q&A with him below.

What was your route to the top?

After law school, I joined a law firm and got great real-world experience with clients and in the courtroom. I happily put in the hours until my wife went into labor with our firstborn while I was in mid-litigation. The firm loved the idea that I was becoming a dad and threw me a brief 30-minute party. Then they told me to go to the hospital, have the baby, and come right back. And I did. And I missed so much, that when my second child was born, I swore I would not repeat this pattern. I started to think about how lawyers and law firms might do this work/life balance thing better—to find a better way to meet the needs of the client, the needs of the firm, and the needs of the attorney. So I took an unconventional route to the top. I joined up with three colleagues, and together we founded Culhane. In 10 years, we've grown it into what is now: the largest, full-service, women-owned and managed law firm in the nation.