Fulbright & Jaworski TX Forum

[Anonymous User]

Can someone tell me a bit more about this firm? I know it's one of the Big 3 but what is its reputation and how does it compare to the other big firms in Texas?

Thanks in advance.

[Anonymous User]

Different poster, but same question. Particularly how it compares to Baker Botts, McKool, V&E and some of the other big names in Texas.

[Old Gregg]

My impression is that the Big 3 firms are roughly equal. But if you had to rank them, it would be something like:

1) V&E
2) BB
3) F&J

mckool smith is a notch below, but is great for intellectual property. The boutiques like Susman are a notch above for litigation, of course.

[Anonymous User]

OP here: Why is there a discrepancy between the general reputation of the firms versus the Vault rankings which have the order at BB, F&J, and then V&E? Also should there be concern that Fulbright was one of the few firms that decided to defer its 2010 class till January?

[Old Gregg]

OP here: Why is there a discrepancy between the general reputation of the firms versus the Vault rankings which have the order at BB, F&J, and then V&E? Also should there be concern that Fulbright was one of the few firms that decided to defer its 2010 class till January?

I don't know. I'm just saying my general impression from what I know of practitioners who work at those firms.

[Anonymous User]

Always a classic.

Fulbright is known for its litigation work, but you really can't go wrong with any of the Big 3. Although there are some key distinctions between the work the firms do, it's more of a matter of fit.

[Stanford4Me]

From Texas (though not in school there). I received an offer from F&J but rejected it after a few of my friends who are at school in Texas told me they've experienced some financial difficulties. This was reinforced when I talked with a few other people in my summer class at the firm I worked with. I've also been told that the Dallas office is Houston's bitch. I which I could provide sources, but this is all speculation/hearsay on my part.

[hesitantstyle]

[quote="Anonymous user"]Always a classic.

180

[turbotong]

Where does Kirkland Ellis rank in comparison in Texas?

[Anonymous User]

Where does Kirkland Ellis rank in comparison in Texas?

much lower i suppose. didnt know they had a branch office in TX...

[Anonymous User]

Where does Kirkland Ellis rank in comparison in Texas?

How does Akin fit into the Texas hierarchy? Are they a whole tier below the "BigTex" firms?

[Anonymous User]

from what i know and have heard and researched:

big 3 are all pretty similar but F&J is most financially-unstable of the 3. V&E has the best finances, but is the largest in size (~300) and has the largest SA class of the three as well. i get this just from nalp and amlaw research, with V&E being below B&B in gross revenue in 2009 (i believe) but surpassing B&B in 2010 by a good margin (while BB dropped a tad). they also have had ~40 ppl sized SA classes the last couple of years with 90%+ offer rates. B&B has had smaller class sizes of like 15 and 35 ish in 2010 and 2011 respectively i believe, also with offer rates upward of 90%. F&J im not too sure about their offer rates, but as another poster mentioned, some may have been deferred or cut in size.

another slight concern I got from the amlaw numbers is that V&E seems to have let more people go than B&B in the last few yrs (just a few more), while F&J is supposedly the worst off of the 3 in those regards. ive also heard (anecdotal evidence) that V&E has a work mill sort of mentality. i dont know if that is true or not, or whether you're seen as more fungible, but you are possibly expected to churn out more hours (possibly why gross revenue shot up as well last year...maybe). from what my friends and i have seen, there is a greater variability in personalities at V&E as well.

F&J leans toward litigation work. im not too sure how the work at B&B and V&E really differs. i mean, if we're splitting hairs, V&E and F&J have very new and very nice offices while B&B inhabits one of the first skyscrapers in houston (read: old), BUT i have also heard that they are doing a complete remodeling of their floors within the next year.

what else...um V&E has a reputation for being more 'social' than B&B, which is more family/conservative (though by no stretches of the imagination is it overly conservative). even the offices at V&E are conducive to this social nature, with office entrances being glass and facing hallways, so people who walk by will see you and become more likely to talk to you, etc.

that's it for my random ramblings! hope that helps.

[Anonymous User]

Where does Kirkland Ellis rank in comparison in Texas?

How does Akin fit into the Texas hierarchy? Are they a whole tier below the "BigTex" firms?

office in Dallas is decently large I believe, but not the top dog. I would say the big 3 in the houston market has always been B&B, V&E, F&J (w/ FJ being the furthest from the pack, like a reverse YHS situation haha). but of course, they are all so close that it is nothing like you should definitely choose one over the other for work/client purposes (cept, as i mentioned in my post above, F&J is more litigation-y focused out of the 3).

different story in dallas: Haynes and Boone has been one of the biggest there (its HQ is there), and even Thompson & Knight, while smaller, has had a very long presence there as it is, I believe, 2nd or 3rd oldest firm in TX (B&B being the oldest) and T&K started in Dallas.

[DoubleChecks]

sry, above 2 posts were me. accidentally started hitting anon post and i hate anon abuse unless im offering sensitive information (above mostly from anecdotal evidence, internet research, and personal interviewing experiences) so yeah...

[Anonymous User]

How does Locke Lord fit into this hierarchy or does anyone have information on them? I have done my own research, I would just like to hear more.

[DoubleChecks]

How does Locke Lord fit into this hierarchy or does anyone have information on them? I have done my own research, I would just like to hear more.

lol why exactly is this anonymous? afraid to be outted as someone who has expressed any interest in locke lord at some point in time? anon abuse needs to be made more clear...

i dont know what the actual rankings go, and im sure it various between dallas and houston...but for houston (which i can speak better to), it would be the big 3, then the ones that come to mind (in no relative order) would be bracewell, haynes boone, locke lord, and andrews kurth.

[Old Gregg]

Where does Kirkland Ellis rank in comparison in Texas?

much lower i suppose. didnt know they had a branch office in TX...

They don't.

[lightbulb1986]

.

[DoubleChecks]

doublechecks are you talking about houston? what do you know about austin/san antonio?

almost everything i have said (save the few comments on the dallas market) are about houston. i know next to nothing about austin and absolutely nothing about SA. sorry.

[Anonymous User]

I summered in Dallas last year, and the general sentiment from partners I talked to was that Fulbright Dallas is hurting financially. They also had only a six week summer program (first half only) last year, which seemed strange considering how few quality second half firms there are in Dallas now.

I would recommend picking BB or V&E over FJ in Dallas. Personally, I'd probably do V&E for litigation and BB for corporate (or IP). V&E did lose several litigation (and a couple corporate) partners to Gibson Dunn Dallas recently, though, which might be a consideration.

Also, from knowing people that summered at both, I wouldn't say that V&E is any more "social" than BB in Dallas. I have no idea about Houston, though.

[turbotong]

What about Sidley Austin - Dallas? Sorry I don't know why I was thinking there was a K&E in Texas.

[Anonymous User]

I summered in Dallas last year, and the general sentiment from partners I talked to was that Fulbright Dallas is hurting financially. They also had only a six week summer program (first half only) last year, which seemed strange considering how few quality second half firms there are in Dallas now.

I would recommend picking BB or V&E over FJ in Dallas. Personally, I'd probably do V&E for litigation and BB for corporate (or IP). V&E did lose several litigation (and a couple corporate) partners to Gibson Dunn Dallas recently, though, which might be a consideration.

Also, from knowing people that summered at both, I wouldn't say that V&E is any more "social" than BB in Dallas. I have no idea about Houston, though.

Will you be going back to FJ? How was the overall summer program? And was there a particular practice group that you felt would be more enjoyable to work in? Thanks.

[Anonymous User]

I summered in Dallas last year, and the general sentiment from partners I talked to was that Fulbright Dallas is hurting financially. They also had only a six week summer program (first half only) last year, which seemed strange considering how few quality second half firms there are in Dallas now.

I would recommend picking BB or V&E over FJ in Dallas. Personally, I'd probably do V&E for litigation and BB for corporate (or IP). V&E did lose several litigation (and a couple corporate) partners to Gibson Dunn Dallas recently, though, which might be a consideration.

Also, from knowing people that summered at both, I wouldn't say that V&E is any more "social" than BB in Dallas. I have no idea about Houston, though.

Will you be going back to FJ? How was the overall summer program? And was there a particular practice group that you felt would be more enjoyable to work in? Thanks.

Sorry for the confusion--I didn't summer at Fulbright, I summered at another Dallas firm (not BB or VE either). I got the information from talking to partners at my firm and at another firm about FJ since I'd gotten a bad vibe there during a callback last year.