Willkie Forms Alliance With UK's Dickson Minto
New York-based Willkie Farr & Gallagher is forming a strategic alliance with the U.K.’s Dickson Minto, a corporate boutique known for its private equity expertise.
Together, the two firms can each help the other expand their business abroad, although both will continue to operate independently of each other, reports Legal Week.
“Willkie’s global network consists of eight offices, including London, Paris and Frankfurt, [Germany], housing a total 650 lawyers,” the British legal publication reports. The Minto firm, which was established in 1985, has offices in London and Edinburgh and lists 17 partners on its website.
Willkie says in a press release (PDF) that “the alliance will result in a stronger London presence for Willkie to support the continued growth of its European offices. In particular, the alliance will provide the firm with enhanced access to the U.K. law expertise of Dickson Minto in key areas including private equity, mergers and acquisitions, acquisition finance, equity capital markets and restructuring, which are complementary to Willkie’s practices in the U.S. and Europe.”
The senior partner at the Minto firm has ruled out the possibility of a merger with Willkie, reports the Lawyer: Alastair Dickson says any change that led to the firm’s “complete autonomy and independence being compromised in any way” would not be acceptable.
The two firms have already been working together for several years on a range of matters.
