Haynes Boone is an international corporate law firm headquartered in the Harwood Historic District of Dallas, Texas. It is among the largest law firms based in the United States and provides services for more than 40 major legal practices. The firm has 20 offices including in Austin, Houston, San Antonio, New York City, San Francisco, Charlotte, Denver, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Shanghai, London, and Mexico City.
History Haynes Boone was founded in 1970 by partners Richard D. Haynes (1936–2001),"Richard Haynes Obituary" The Dallas Morning News, August 3, 2006. Retrieved November 19, 2025. and Michael Boone, who had been his student at Southern Methodist University."Dallas' Most Respected Lawyer" D Magazine, April 19, 2007. Retrieved November 19, 2025. The firm offers full legal services across multiple sectors, including energy, financial services, private equity and technology.O'Donnell, Paul "Haynes and Boone names new managing partner, only the fourth in law firm’s 50-year history" The Dallas Morning News, July 20, 2020. Retrieved November 19, 2025. Noted attorney Nina Cortell joined the firm after graduating law school in 1976, as its 13th attorney.Curriden, Mark "Nina Cortell: A Lion with the Bloodline of Albert Einstein" The Texas Lawbook, October 24, 2017. Retrieved November 19, 2025.Dewey, Katrina "Lawdragon 2019 Hall of Fame Inductions Announced" Law Dragon, February 19, 2019. Retrieved November 19, 2025.
Haynes and Boone built their office from a securities practice, handling IPOs in Dallas from the late the 1960s onward.Putnam, Margaret "DALLAS' FAT CAT LAW FIRMS" D Magazine, June 1, 1983. Retrieved November 19, 2025. In 1984, the firm opened a second office in Fort Worth, followed by a third office in Austin two years later. Haynes Boone expanded to Houston in 1990 through a merger with Watt, White & Craig. The Brief SMU Scholar, Fall 1990, page 63. Retrieved November 19, 2025.
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) spurred the firm's next expansion. In 1994, it opened its first two offices outside of Texas: a cross-border branch in Mexico City and an out of state branch in Washington, D.C. At that time, the firm had established seven offices and had over 300 lawyers, 30 of whom were international lawyers. The firm continued to grow, adding offices in New York City in 2004,"Haynes and Boone Taps Finance Partner for NY Office Head" Law.com via Yahoo!Finance, January 14, 2019. Retrieved November 19, 2025. Orange County and Palo Alto in 2009, Shanghai in 2013, Chicago and Denver in 2015, London in 2016, the Woodlands in 2018, Charlotte in 2019, San Francisco in 2020 and Northern Virginia in 2023.
Notable clients/cases
The firm advised then-incoming President George W. Bush prior to his sale of Harken Energy stock, in 1990.Behr, Peter"Bush Sold Stock After Lawyers' Warning" The Washington Post, November 1, 2002. Retrieved November 19, 2025.
In 1993, the firm won $420 million for Exxon in an insurance coverage case against Lloyd's of London over the Exxon Valdez tanker spill in Alaska.
In 1997, it negotiated a settlement for the Catholic Dioceses of Dallas involving sexual molestation charges and its priests.
In 1999, it oversaw the merger between Exxon Corp and Mobile Oil Corp.
In 2001, Haynes and Boone led a constitutional challenge to Texas' school finance system in West Orange-Cove C.I.S.D. v. Neeley, which ultimately persuaded the Texas Supreme Court to strike down the state's school finance system.
In 2011, it negotiated AT&T Corp's agreement to buy cell carrier T-Mobile USA.
In 2016, the firm defended Abbot Laboratories in a whistleblower case.
In 2017, it was among several firms that represented Trinity Industries to obtain a reversal of a $663 million verdict in federal court for an employee who claimed his company had hidden the fact that its highway guardrails did not meet federal standards."Ruling reverses guardrail judgment" Tank Transport News, November 8, 2017. Retrieved November 19, 2025.
In 2018, amid an immigration crackdown on the South Texas border, the firm represented many immigrant families pro bono.
In 2019 and 2020, the firm oversaw cases that upheld pension rule changes designed to preserve the liquidity of the Dallas Police and Fire Pension system.
In 2023, Haynes and Boone represented a coalition of news organizations seeking a release of records from the 2022 mass shooting in the City of Uvalde.
In 2025, the firm served as lead counsel for a coalition of booksellers and publishers that successfully challenged the READER Act, which a federal court in Texas permanently blocked on First Amendment grounds.
Recognition Haynes received the Justinian Award for Public Service, in 1989, for ongoing service to the Dallas community. Boone received the Justinian Award in 2004."Past Recipients of the annual Fellows Award (renamed Fellows Justinian Award in 2014)" Dallas Bar Foundation, 2023. Retrieved November 19, 2025.
Michael M. Boone Elementary School in Dallas was named for the firm co-founder, by the Highland Park Independent School District, in 2019, recognizing for his on-going support. In 2024, Boone was inducted into the Texas Business Hall of Fame.
Alumni Eric Johnson, Dallas mayorSime, Peter "Invisible Man: A Hard Look at Mayor Eric Johnson"D Magazine, April 22, 2021 Salman Bhojani, U.S. Representative, Texas' 92nd District Don Willett, U.S. Court of Appeals Judge, 5th Circuit Leigha Simonton, Former U.S. Attorney, Northern District of Texas Jeremy Kernodle, U.S. District Judge, Eastern District of Texas Wendy Davis, Former U.S. Senator, Texas' 10th District Will O’Neill, Newport Beach mayor Jason Villalba, Former U.S. Representative, Texas' 114th District David Crump, Law professor, legal scholar and writer David Epstein, University of Richmond School of Law professor Sarah Saldaña, Fourth director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
References