The pursuit to establish a Houston office for Paul Weiss has temporarily stalled, as the firm’s recruitment efforts were met with rebuff from major rival firms. Equity partners from Kirkland & Ellis, Latham & Watkins, Sidley Austin, and Baker Botts concluded their negotiations about joining the possible new branch, even some rejecting offers amounting up to $10 to $15 million guaranteed for several years, according to insiders.
These partners, as informed by three people familiar with the matter, remain comfortable with their current firms which already have significant establishments in Houston. As per their request, these sources chose to remain anonymous due to the sensitive nature of the reported private discussions.
Scott Barshay, Partner at Paul Weiss, has been leading the initiative to establish a Houston office, an effort to consolidate the firm’s standing amidst the rising competition in the region. Houston’s strategic importance is largely attributed to its vicinity to major oil, gas, and private equity firms. Requests for comments from Barshay and Paul Weiss remained unanswered.
Despite the initial fracas, Paul Weiss is unlikely to abandon their intentions to open an office in Houston, as expressed by the sources. This effort was first documented by
Bloomberg Law in December 2021.
In the meantime, Paul Weiss has shown success in its branch in London, adding 140 lawyers to its staff, 21 of whom are partners, including some top players from rival firm Kirkland. As part of accommodating high-priced new hires, the firm has
made adjustments to its compensation system, shifting to a ‘black-box’ model where partners remain uninformed about their colleagues’ earnings.
Notable names in the list of partners approached by Paul Weiss include Justin Stolte from Latham, Sean Wheeler from Kirkland, and Jason Bennett from Baker Botts. Moreover, discussions were held with two partners from Sidley Austin. Stolte, Wheeler and Bennett were all considered to head the prospective Houston office. However, as per the report, these prominent legal professionals have chosen to remain with their current firms.
It remains to be seen if and when the firm will renew efforts to establish a presence in Houston. For the moment, however, it seems Paul Weiss’ ambition of setting foot in the city is on hold.