Balch Partner Philip Dunlap Named 2020 ‘Texas Trailblazer’ by Texas Lawyer

Philip Dunlap, managing partner of the firm’s Houston office and member of the Corporate Practice, has been named a 2020 Texas Trailblazer by Texas Lawyer and is recognized in the publication’s October/November issue for becoming the firm’s youngest office managing partner and for leading Balch’s strategic growth plan in Texas. 

The opportunity was very exciting,” Philip told Texas Lawyer. “I was content where I was, but it was very safe. The move to Balch was a chance to lead a historic 100-year old firm into the Texas market.

The Texas Trailblazer is an annual honor extended to attorneys who are recognized as innovators and thought leaders who have made significant marks on the practice, policy and technological advancement in various aspects of legal practice.

With a longstanding history of serving clients in Texas, Balch opened its Houston office in January of 2020. The office includes attorneys with significant experience in domestic and international oil and gas and energy transactions, mergers and acquisitions, regulatory and corporate compliance, securities transactions, creditors rights and bankruptcy, real estate and domestic and cross-border commercial lending.

The publication noted that while the pandemic threw Philip into the fire in ways he did not expect, it has also allowed him to hit pause and focus on staying in touch with clients and thinking about the importance of diversity in growing a new office. 

I want our office to reflect the diversity of the city itself and the clients we serve. It’s important for our people to have different ideas and perspectives. You can’t serve your clients and communities well if you’re just seeing them through one person’s point of view,” Philip said.

Philip represents private equity funds, private equity portfolio companies, entrepreneurs and privately held businesses in mergers and acquisitions transactions across all industries. He has extensive experience in the healthcare industry, including telemedicine, micro-hospitals and freestanding emergency departments, industrial gas industry, mid-stream and oilfield services sectors of the energy industry, and multifamily and student housing industries. Additionally, he counsels private companies, private equity funds and their portfolio companies in connection with strategic investments, joint ventures,  and general corporate matters and represents clients in raising capital through private securities offerings and debt transactions.

Philip and the other honorees are featured in this month’s Texas Lawyer.