Houston

Launched in early 2016, our Houston office brings together Texas practitioners who are recognized by Chambers USA, Chambers Global and Chambers Latin America for Energy & Infrastructure, Latin America, M&A and Private Equity, and Litigation.

As The American Lawyer notes, "The group includes well-known transactional, energy and project finance lawyers in the city, as well as IP and commercial litigators and Latin America and public finance specialists." Our Houston energy team counsels on market-leading transactions in the oil and gas, electric power, and renewable energy sectors, across the U.S. and globally, with deep experience throughout Latin America. Our sophisticated Public Finance team – with long-standing ties to the Texas market – is part of our dominant national Public Finance practice, consistently ranked No. 1 by The Bond Buyer. And our trial and appellate lawyers litigate all types of commercial claims, including IP, in the energy, finance and technology sectors.

Since the opening of our Houston office, our team has already experienced tremendous growth and ranks among the top dozen AmLaw 50 firms in Houston by size.

Energy & Infrastructure

Our team’s deep understanding of the commercial and legal issues impacting the energy industry has developed over years of industry-specific focus and experience. We represent a wide range of clients in sophisticated projects, transactions and financings across the energy value chain in the U.S., Latin America and beyond. We’ve completed projects in 95 countries and all 50 U.S. states. As part of our 145-lawyer global Energy & Infrastructure platform, we are a recurring Law360 Project Finance Group of the Year, and our team is Chambers-rated in 24 different Energy & Infrastructure categories globally.

Oil & Gas
Providing the cornerstone for our worldwide oil and gas practice, Houston serves a broad selection of clients – ranging from supermajors, national oil companies, independent exploration and production companies, and LNG project developers to private equity funds and master limited partnerships (MLPs) and financial institutions – across the upstream, midstream and downstream market segments. Our Houston Oil and Gas team also works closely with our national Restructuring team on oil and gas restructuring matters.

Power
From the development, construction and financing of electric power projects to buying and selling power plants and structuring complex equity and debt investments, our Houston team has guided independent power producers, global energy companies, private equity funds and financial institutions through industry-shaping power projects across the U.S. and Latin America. We were named Power Firm of the Year by Chambers USA in 2017.

Renewables
Texas is a top 10 solar energy market and the No. 1 wind energy market in the U.S. For this reason, and because of Houston’s proximity to Mexico and broader Latin America, our Houston office is a strategic center for our Band 1 Chambers-ranked Renewables practice to assist clients with the development, financing, acquisition and disposition of renewable energy assets at a time of considerable growth in the sector in the U.S. and Latin America.

Corporate and M&A

Our Houston team includes top-rated talent in M&A, private equity, capital markets and tax, connecting with our global platform to handle major local and international deals. We also create and support MLPs in the energy sector, from M&A, asset dropdowns, capital markets, finance and governance advice to tax structuring, qualifying income determinations and private letter rulings from the IRS.

Latin America

In what Latin Lawyer described as a "coup for Orrick," we brought a team of Latin America practitioners to our Houston office to provide clients world-class M&A, private equity, corporate finance and project development, and finance capabilities as well as local market insight, complementing our global coverage.

Recognized by Chambers Global, Chambers USA, Chambers Latin America and Latin Lawyer, our team counsels clients in cross-border matters that are shaping the future of a region ripe for substantial international investment. We have experience working on transactions in almost every country in Latin America. Additionally, our Houston team includes lawyers licensed in Mexico, who are engaged in cutting-edge deals arising from Mexico’s recent energy industry reforms.

Litigation and IP

Our Litigation team includes one of Law360’s "20 Most Influential Women in IP Law," who is among several seasoned first-chair Texas trial lawyers, appellate advocates and strategists in the Houston office. We bring a particular focus on the energy sector, and our global Litigation and IP practices are highly acclaimed. The American Lawyer has named us Intellectual Property Litigation Department of the Year and a finalist for Litigation Department of the Year. In addition, our Houston team handles complex commercial litigation in other key areas, including technology and finance.

Public Finance

Our Public Finance team has long-standing relationships with Texas state and local governmental entities, nonprofit organizations, private entities, financial institutions, developers and other public finance market participants. Our Houston team is an integral part of our nationally dominant Public Finance team. In addition to offering deep expertise in Texas public finance, the Houston team provides access for Texas market participants to our bond counsel and related tax practices, consistently top-ranked by Thomson Reuters and The Bond Buyer.

Our Office and Our Community

Our Houston office is located at 609 Main Street. Our team is committed to the local community and participates in awareness-raising events, such as the MS150 Bike Ride, and actively supports young talent through our leadership in the Rice Business Plan Competition. We also bring our energy and experience to bear for our pro bono clients. For example, we are counseling a nonprofit impact investing client on a pioneering loan to promote a solar project in the U.S. As part of an innovative transaction to benefit nature conservancies and game reserves in Kenya, we counsel a major environmental nonprofit on the development of a series of solar power plants in Kenya, which will provide annual payments from revenues to nature conservancies and game reserves. And our associates are among the happiest in the nation – our Houston office ranked #1 regionally in The American Lawyer’s 2016 Midlevel Associate Survey.