More than 600 Texas lawyers during the past five years have left local based firms to start or grow the Texas practices of national law firms. About 30 out-of-state law firms have opened in Dallas, Houston and Austin since Feb. 2010. Virginia-based LeClairRyan and California-based Quinn Emanuel opened Houston offices in July.
The national law firms have offered multimillion-dollar guaranteed contracts to senior partners with large books of business. Even mid-level associates with no portable business were offered signing bonuses as high as $75,000.
