Foley Chairman Daljit Doogal Talks Strategic Growth, Expansion into Three New Markets on Podcast
Foley & Lardner LLP Chairman and CEO Daljit Doogal joined an episode of the On the Merits podcast with Bloomberg Law to tell the story of Foley’s successful strategic expansion into three emerging legal markets within the last four years.
Doogal discussed the firm’s entry into Salt Lake City, Raleigh, and Nashville — markets exceptionally aligned with the firm’s Energy & Infrastructure, Health Care & Life Sciences, Innovative Technology, and Manufacturing Sectors.
“We’re not looking at growth for growth’s sake,” said Doogal. “We’re looking to be in markets that really align with [the firm’s] sectors of focus [that are] very important areas of our firm and areas we have significant strengths.”
Describing the motivations for the 2021 launch of Foley’s Salt Lake City office, Doogal shared how the firm was attracted to city’s burgeoning technology industry and impressive talent pool. “Looking at the clients and where the clients were moving, we thought it was important for us to be there to service them,” he explained. “Also, it’s a market that has an incredibly robust amount of talent. It was a natural fit for us to be thinking about that market because it aligned with our strategy,” he added.
That vision of thoughtful growth also guided Foley’s entry into Raleigh in 2024 and the recent 2025 opening of the firm’s Nashville office, given these cities’ vibrant health care and life sciences environments, as well as strong ties to the technology and manufacturing industries.
Doogal noted that Raleigh “was a market that made a lot of sense, given our focus on middle-market [and] upper-middle market companies” and “Nashville is a health care hotbed” so “given the strength of our health care practice, it was just a matter of time before we moved into that market.”
Regarding the firm’s overall recent growth, he said, “when we go into a market, we want to deeply root ourselves in that market, service clients in that market, and bring on people in that market,” underscoring that “we’re all about people and this is what our business is as a law firm.” He went on to say it’s important to “be where our clients are” and “hire local people who are committed to local clients in that market and ingrained in the community.”
As these newer offices continue to expand, Doogal noted, “we view ourselves as a national law firm that’s fully integrated,” emphasizing that “the culture is the most important. Our business is around our people.”
Reflecting on the firm’s performance at the midyear mark, Doogal is optimistic. “So far so good this year, we’re doing well. We have a strong corporate practice, strong litigation, [and] strong intellectual property group…that balance each other out.”
Listen to the full interview for more on Foley’s innovative approach to growth and culture across all major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Audible, and Spotify.