Title: Partner
Firm: Locke Lord LLP
Age: 38
Adam Harden, partner in Locke Lord’s Austin office, was introduced to the concept of public finance when his father called to say his hometown wanted to use tax-exempt bonds to build its first public high school.
"At that time, I was in the process of earning my master in professional accounting at the University of Texas at Austin," Adam said. "Due to my accounting and tax background, my father thought I would know or at least enjoy hearing about tax-exempt bonds."
“The ballot measure passed 53% to 47%, and our school district is now one of the top emerging fast growth districts in the state,” said Adam, whose father was an undercover narcotics officer and whose mother was a social worker.
“The process allowed me to witness firsthand the positive, tangible benefits that tax-exempt bonds can bring to communities, and I have never questioned for a moment whether our work in the public finance industry has a positive impact on those around us,” Adam says.
Playing football at Trinity University in San Antonio, Harden's team won four consecutive conference championships and played in the Division III National Championship Game on ESPN.
Adam, who has provided tax advice on more than 600 bond counsel transactions valued at more than $25 billion, credits his late University of Texas law professor Loftus Carson for steering him toward education and public service.
“We would sit together in the faculty lounge for hours absorbing and discussing articles and studies about educational outcomes of students from various backgrounds,” Adam recalls. “I was fascinated with the subject of improving educational outcomes and life trajectory, which had been a dinner table topic for my family for many years.”
At Locke Lord and among his clients, Adam is known for his collaborative and entrepreneurial approach to public finance.
He is vice chair of the Tax-Exempt Financing Committee of the American Bar Association’s Section of Taxation, and co-chair and former vice chair of the Tax-Exempt Finance Committee of the State Bar.
