Houston law firms expand out of state to follow the oil

Enlarge Photo

Richard Burleson, managing partner at Burleson LLP, wants to tap more offshore legal services with the expansion into New Orleans.

15 photos

Home of the Day

Sponsor Listing

Suzanne Edwards

Reporter- Houston Business Journal

Email  |  Twitter

Two major Houston law firms and one boutique firm are reaching new oil and gas frontiers beyond the great state of Texas.

Houston-based Burleson LLP, a law firm specializing in oil and gas, opened a new office and a new practice in New Orleans on Oct. 21. The new branch will focus on offshore, energy and marine litigation. The new office is headed by New Orleans-based Mark L. Clark and Lisa Africk.

Got Energy? Sign up for our Energy Inc. newsletter here

"A strategic location in New Orleans gives us a footprint throughout the Gulf region," new Burleson Partner Clark said in a statement, adding that the firm will go "wherever oil and gas companies have a presence."

Burleson Managing Partner Rick Burleson said the move is about adding offshore litigation to its repertoire.

"We will now be able to handle a more diverse range of client needs in offshore matters," Burleson said in the statement.

The New Orleans office marks Burleson's second out-of-state expansion. The first was a play to tap the legal action surrounding the Marcellus Shale in the Appalachian Basin in Pittsburgh in 2009.

Houston-based Porter Hedges LLP is making a shale play in Oklahoma by opening a new office in Oklahoma City, according to a company statement. In so doing, the Houston firm poached Ray Lees, formerly a principal at Commercial Law Group in Oklahoma City, to be a new energy partner, along with three others from his team.

Tax attorneys are also getting in on the out-of-state action. Houston-based tax law practice Looper & Ballew PC gained a partner and a foothold in New Orleans in September when it recruited oil and gas lawyer Paul Goodwine. The practice now goes by Looper Goodwine & Ballew PC.

Suzanne Edwards covers money and law for the Houston Business Journal.