Lawyers Go to Austin, Texas for Business, Stay for the Lifestyle

Large law firms are flocking to Austin, Texas, lured by tech companies such as Tesla Inc., Apple Inc., and Oracle Inc., and the realization that lawyers want to live there.

In 2021 alone, large firms Kirkland & Ellis, Quinn Emanuel, Urquhart & Sullivan, and O’Melveny & Myers announced Austin office openings, as did Silicon Valley tech firm Gunderson Dettmer. Eight others have opened offices in the city since 2018.

“It’s a fantastic place for not only recruiting talented lawyers—and people can have a great quality of life—but it’s also a place where a lot of our clients are ...