Today's guest is Michael Kabat, partner and litigator at McGinnis Lochridge in Austin. Michael talks about IP cases moving to Waco, being a lawyer of your word, and what they look for in lateral hires.

His firm/practice

Full service regional firm with Austin roots (now Houston and Decatur offices); oldest law firm in Austin
Lots of oil/gas and public utility clients, but
His practice is a broad litigation practice, though the two he focuses on are business litigation and intellectual property litigation
As a Waco native, he is particularly interested in Judge Alan Albright's federal court which has a heavy IP case load
Waco could become the new East Texas/Marshall/Rocket Docket
Several firms around the state opening up new/satellite offices in Waco

COVID-19 update (as of 12/3/20)

Began operating remote in March, and has stayed that way since then.
Was an undertaking to get it implemented, but has worked well
Moved group communication to Microsoft Teams
Pretty simple/easy to use
Good chat function and project based threads
Screen sharing is okay
Good video functionality similar to Zoom
Some folks in the Houston office have returned to the office and people will occasionally pop into the Austin office
Some hearings/depos it has been better to get the tech/office support from being in the office
They were in the process of renovating a new space to move into, and COVID has given them pause to rethink the standard ways of commuting/officing
Austin continues to boom with real estate/construction/office projects


Advice for lawyers in practice

Your word is your bond; learn who does/doesn't abide by the same
Become someone others can trust
If it's a difficult call, what impact will there be on the client? Matters of scheduling/procedure are things that generally don't negatively impact the client and the lawyer can make the call. If it's more of a strategy decision then you really need to listen to the client.
Treat your partners as your client; don't lose sight that you are in a client service business with a fiduciary obligation
By impressing the partners, you will get more responsibility and opportunity

Advice for lawyers seeking a job / can you answer these questions?

What has your experience been thus far?
What do your colleagues think of you?
Do they fit into the culture of the firm?
In their firm, it's usually a specific need they are looking to fill, so that match will be important.
Could the person become a partner?
Not every firm prioritizes this; important to know/understand the firm's approach in this regard.
What is the leverage structure of the firm? Lots of associates for each partner? That might mean they aren't looking for partners.
Do they want to live in the city?
Austin is growing as a legal market
Big firms aren't for everyone and there are plenty of other great opportunities

Rapid Fire Questions

Name one trait/characteristic you most want to see in an associate: ownership/eagerness
What habit has been key to your success: calendaring deadlines and daily time entry
Favorite app/productivity tool: Snipping on Microsoft Office
Favorite social distancing activity: sleeping; Queen's Gambit (Netflix); The Boys (Amazon Prime)
Favorite legal movie: Intolerable Cruelty

Thanks again to Michael Kabat for joining us on today's show!