Philip Berry
Berry is most proud of the role he played in the completion of the roughly $2.6 billion transaction with TPG Pace-Magnolia Oil and Gas Corp. (MGY). “The transaction was the most complex I have worked on and included traditional purchase and sale agreements, corporate securities-related issues and documentation, and a non-conventional long-term service and operating agreement between MGY and EnerVest,” he says. Berry served as the lead negotiator and managed multiple sets of outside legal counsel while working with internal cross-functional teams from execution of the transaction through closing.
Advice for young professionals: “There is no substitute for hard work and discipline. Success—whether in your career, your personal life or your education—is not based on talent, intellect or natural skill alone, but requires consistent hard work, practice and perseverance.”
Career path: Berry has worked at EnerVest for the past 10 years, serving in various leadership positions on EnerVest’s legal and business development teams. Prior to EnerVest, from September 2005 to May 2008, he was an associate at McClanahan & Clearman LLP law firm. He was a judicial intern for the Hon. Kerry P. FitzGerald at the Texas Court of Appeals from May to July 2004. Before attending law school, he was an analyst at Enron Corp. from July 2000 to December 2001.
On industry: “The motivated and creative people in all facets of the oil and gas industry drive the continued success and technological innovation that keep our industry relevant. I enjoy the complexity and challenges that exist both in the operational and transactional sides of the industry. I am most passionate about working through complex transactions and finding elegant solutions that move all parties in the same direction.”
Goals: Berry, who for a decade at EnerVest has “sourced investment opportunities, negotiated transactions and managed strategic corporate projects,” says, “We still have work to do, and I look forward to serving a major role in that process, in addition to focusing on value creation by growing our existing platform and improving our core strengths.”