Dallas Corporate Culture (for someone with zero Texas ties) Forum

(On Campus Interviews, Summer Associate positions, Firm Reviews, Tips, ...)
Forum rules
Anonymous Posting

Anonymous posting is only appropriate when you are revealing sensitive employment related information about a firm, job, etc. You may anonymously respond on topic to these threads. Unacceptable uses include: harassing another user, joking around, testing the feature, or other things that are more appropriate in the lounge.

Failure to follow these rules will get you outed, warned, or banned.
Post Reply Post Anonymous Reply  
Anonymous User
Posts: 432497
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Dallas Corporate Culture (for someone with zero Texas ties)

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Aug 25, 2014 2:13 am

I go to a T6 school, and have no Texas ties. I actually like the thought of spending the rest of my life there, as well as the mix of tech and energy work. I do have prior work experience in the energy sector.

I have upcoming callbacks this week with Haynes & Boone, Vinson & Elkins, and Baker Botts, all in Dallas.
The alternative would be the New York V5 firms, which I've already interviewed with.
  • I went to a Vinson & Elkins reception during my school's OCI program and loved who I met, but the 8-10 people I met were almost all from the Houston office (with the remainder from the New York office). Zero Dallas. I've been talking to other students interested in Texas at my school, but it's hard to sort out what they've heard about the firm generally versus the Dallas and Houston offices specifically. Is there a big cultural difference?
  • If I know I want corporate work, am I shooting myself in the foot by not looking at Houston offices? I do want a decent amount of technology work, which is why I opted for Dallas.
  • I've heard Haynes & Boone described as much more of a lifestyle firm, with Baker Botts Dallas as a bit snobbier. The only real contact I've had with each firm has been through their recruiters, and Baker Botts has actually been pretty offputting. I definitely won't make my firm decision based on a recruiter though.
  • I have a Jones Day callback I haven't scheduled, because I wasn't sure about a New York office in Texas. I figured that if I was going I should go all-in. How does it compare to the Texas firms on the corporate side? Is it great at a certain type of work (public company M&A + securities), whereas the Texas firms tend to run the gamut more, or is it very even with native firms across the board transactionally?
  • Any reason to do 3-4 years in New York then move to Texas, versus starting directly in Texas? I'd lose the benefit of being able to pay down loans quicker and still live extremely comfortably, but I actually want to work in a firm long term, so if there was a real payoff I'd do it.
Top
Anonymous User
Posts: 432497
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: Dallas Corporate Culture (for someone with zero Texas ties)

Post by Anonymous User » Mon Aug 25, 2014 10:58 am

In terms of culture, Houston and Dallas offices for V&E and BB are very different (although JDs' seem to be fairly similar). My impression is that V&E Houston and BB Dallas are relatively more outgoing than their counterparts. You should be able to get a pretty good feel for V&E vs. BB on a CB though.

No doubt that more corporate for V&E and BB is going on in Houston, but they definitely staff people in Dallas on Houston deals. Dallas seems to have more variety and I personally would way rather live in Dallas than Houston, especially if you're thinking long-term. Plus people move between the two very regularly if you end up not liking the situation.

I've heard Hayboo is really trying to shed this lifestyle reputation, so I wouldn't put much stock in it. Hours at any of these three will be pretty similar. I don't view BB Dallas as snobby, although I have heard people use that term to describe BB Houston.

Definitely take the JD CB (and I wouldn't describe them as a NY firm). It's at least good to compare the two models. JD doesn't do a lot of TX work but JD Dallas is staffed on lots of big JD firmwide deals and they're really trying to make a push in Texas. Not sure how JD hours or compensation stack up against the others because it seems to vary wildly from attorney to attorney.

I asked this same question, particularly because the group I'm in has had NY laterals making partner recently. I suspect your partnership prospects are about the same whether you start in NY or start in TX. NY you may have a more valuable skill set but if you're in TX you can develop relationships. What personally worried me was that if you work in NY 3-4 years, work in TX a couple of years, suddenly you're a 6th year associate. You've only been in TX for two years so you (and the firm) may not know whether or not you're on track for partner, but it's already time to have an exit ready if you aren't. Another thing is that if you're in Dallas at BB or V&E, you're depending on their Houston office supporting you for partner, and it may be hard to grow those relationships in a shorter time frame. I don't think you can really go wrong starting in NY though, so it's really just a personal choice.
Top
Post Reply Post Anonymous Reply  

Return to “Legal Employment”