O’Melveny adds PE lawyer Johnston as partner for Houston office

• From 2019 to 2021, Johnston served as counsel in the Houston office of Willkie Farr
• Since June 2021, O’Melveny has added a total of nearly 60 lawyers—including 23 partners—to its Austin, Dallas, and Houston offices
• O’Melveny was founded in Los Angeles in 1885

Law firm O’Melveny has hired Garrett Johnston as a partner for its M&A practice group. He will be based in the firm’s Houston office.

Since June 2021, O’Melveny has added a total of nearly 60 lawyers—including 23 partners—to its Austin, Dallas, and Houston offices.

Johnston comes to O’Melveny from the Houston office of McGuireWoods, where he was a partner in the firm’s corporate & private equity department.

From 2019 to 2021, Johnston served as counsel in the Houston office of Willkie Farr and is reuniting with three former Willkie Farr colleagues who joined O’Melveny’s Houston office in April: Partners Angela Olivarez, Steven Torello, and Ryan Cicero.

“We are delighted to welcome Garrett to O’Melveny. His significant knowledge and connections throughout the middle-market private-equity arena will support our rapidly expanding presence in Texas and help serve our clients across the country,” said O’Melveny Chair Bradley J. Butwin, in a statement.

Johnston earned his J.D. from Boston College Law School and his B.A. from Stanford University.

O’Melveny was founded in Los Angeles in 1885.