Veteran Dallas Appeals Lawyer Anne Johnson Jumps to Norton Rose

Norton Rose Fulbright hired Anne Johnson as a partner and US head of appellate in the Dallas office, the firm announced Tuesday.

Johnson, a prominent appellate lawyer, has represented AT&T Inc. and Exxon Mobil Corp. among other clients and is known for convincing a Texas appeals court to overturn a $110 million fraud verdict against BBVA SA. She made waves in 2022 when she left Haynes Boone after three decades to join Tillotson Johnson & Patton in Dallas as a name partner.

She’s bringing along a team of appellate lawyers that includes senior counsel Kelli Bills and counsel Megan Coker to Norton Rose’s Dallas office. Stephani Michel also will join as a senior associate in the global firm’s Houston post.

The move comes at as the large Texas appellate system booms. Baker Botts, Jackson Walker, and King & Spalding have robust appellate teams for state and federal courts. Hunton Andrews Kurth hired Ryan Clinton, a former assistant solicitor general for the state, in September 2025 as a partner to lead its appeals practice in Austin.

She’s returning to Big Law in the role at Norton Rose because “its brand in Texas litigation is just unmatched,” Johnson said in an interview. “There are not a lot of firms that have as deep and as talented a bench of trial lawyers that will really support and help grow an appellate practice as this firm does.”

Texas appellate lawyers are seeing two trends, Johnson said. There has been an increase in litigation arising out of the oil patch and a proliferation of enormous “nuclear verdicts” coming out in personal injury and wrongful death cases.

Norton Rose’s litigation trends survey, which drew on hundreds of corporate counsel responses, also identified nuclear verdicts as a critical emerging hotspot, the firm said in a statement. Johnson’s ability to integrate appellate strategy early in the process is particularly important, Norton Rose said.

The hires show Norton’s “commitment to building a litigation and disputes practice that serves clients at every stage in every market,” Jeff Cody, Norton Rose’s Houston-based global and US managing partner, said in a statement.

The firm now has 11 appellate lawyers across the country, including four in Dallas, the firm said in email. It has 127 total lawyers in its Dallas, making it one of the largest legal practices in the fast-growing metro area.

The firm plans to expand its appellate team this year, Johnson said. In February, Cody told Bloomberg Law that Norton had added 12 US partners so far in 2026 and expected the count to hit 25 to 30 new partners by the end of the year.

Norton Rose saw its US revenue increase by more than 23% to $1.2 billion in 2025 and profits per equity partner jump by nearly 32% over the year. The firm brought in more than $2.8 billion in global revenue, a 16% increase from the previous year.