Magic circle law firms breaking away from the pack.  City of London based Law Firm 1 and City of London Law Firm 2 were lacking critical mass in certain practice areas and needed more capital to invest in Europe expansion.

How did we do it?

A detailed prospectus was prepared for partners (equivalent of shareholders in a public company) to vote.  Many partner meetings were held to discuss the benefits and potential downsides of the merger.

A third-party consultant (ex senior partner of a big 4 firm) was hired to project manage the merger process.  Key points were:

• Major clients consulted before agreeing to proceed
• Newspapers / legal magazines offered full story to avoid prospective merger being discussed in the media ahead of the vote
• Both sides met their equivalents before merger date
• New brand established ahead of merging, by consulting the market place (clients, media), partners, legal staff and support staff. Steering group for new brand values comprised main opinion-formers in both legacy firms

What have we achieved?

Merger considered a success, primarily because European offices have been successful and partner remuneration has increased at a faster rate than rivals.

Lessons learned

Would have benefitted from more investment in partners and staff developing a greater understanding in the new brand values.