Tragesser: How law firm expansion fuels growth in existing markets

When my law firm, Quarles & Brady, combined with a labor and employment boutique firm in San Diego last January — more than 2,000 miles from Indianapolis — it may not have initially seemed especially newsworthy to people locally.

But over the past year, I have seen repeatedly the impact a thoughtful, strategic expansion can have not just for clients in or near the new market, but for existing clients of the firm’s other offices.

In addition to the combination with the former Paul Plevin Sullivan & Connaughton in San Diego, Quarles combined with Denver-based intellectual property boutique Adsero IP in March and opened a St. Louis office last month after the addition of several attorneys and business professionals in the market earlier in 2023.

In each case, the firm’s decision to expand was driven by a desire to build upon our existing strengths, a commitment to meeting the growing needs of our clients and a focus on finding people who would mesh seamlessly with our well-established culture — one that is all about client service, collaboration and collegiality.

For those of us in the Quarles Indy office, these recent additions have enabled us to offer greater value and new opportunities to our clients in Indiana and elsewhere.

Labor and employment is a vast, complicated, constantly evolving area of the law, especially in a state like California. It is also a practice in which Quarles is especially strong. With the addition of our colleagues in San Diego, we now can provide valuable, on-the-ground counsel to local clients with business operations in California, rather than serving their needs in the state from afar or referring them to another firm. My clients often have cases in California, and I was able to work with our new Paul Plevin Quarles colleagues immediately after the merger.

And our new colleagues in St. Louis have a focus on labor and employment as well as employee benefits. Not only can we now better serve Indianapolis clients with operations in Missouri, but the establishment of a St. Louis office gives us a powerful regional network with offices also in Chicago, Milwaukee, Madison and Minneapolis. This type of geographic connectivity is increasingly important to clients who often have interests beyond their home state.

Intellectual property, a priority at Quarles for more than 100 years, is another area that is critical to the success of any business, small or large. It is the focus of my practice, and I have been working with my new colleagues in Denver on opportunities to better support the IP needs of clients. In addition, Denver serves as an effective bridge between our Midwest offices and our teams in Arizona and California.

Of course, the “what” — legal proficiency, client relationships, knowledge of multiple industries — is an important aspect of any successful law firm combination or expansion. But just as important from our perspective is the cultural fit.

Last year’s expansions were the first new office additions for Quarles since we opened our doors here in Indianapolis in May 2014. This was not for lack of opportunity; rather, it underscores the importance our leadership places on maintaining and strengthening the culture that has set Quarles apart from other large firms for decades. And we will soon celebrate our 10th anniversary in Indianapolis having grown to more than 30 attorneys.

At Quarles, we have a history of more than 130 years of delivering superior service to clients at a great value while simultaneously investing in the ongoing growth and development of our people, including a true commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. With the teams in San Diego, Denver and St. Louis, we have been fortunate to find new colleagues who share these values.

That has been the best part of our growth over the past year: The opportunity to build relationships with new colleagues who are as committed as I am to helping our clients succeed and doing so in a way that makes it a wonderful experience for everyone involved.

Quarles is proud of the success we have achieved over the past several years, and looking ahead, we have invested in several key initiatives to build on our momentum, with last year’s expansions headlining these investments.

With these moves, we are ideally positioned when it comes to delivering results for our clients and attracting top-tier people because we offer a much-desired balance of size, financial performance, quality and culture that few of our peers can match.•

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Joel Tragesser is the Indianapolis office managing partner at Quarles & Brady. Opinions expressed are those of the author.