Bingham and Morgan Lewis reportedly reach merger agreement
Bingham McCutchen’s managing partner Steven Browne reportedly informed partners on Friday that the firm has reached an agreement to merge with Morgan, Lewis & Bockius.
Browne revealed the tentative tie-up in a voice mail, anonymous sources told Reuters, which broke the news. The Am Law Daily and the Wall Street Journal Law Blog also had the news, based on anonymous sources.
A merger would create one of the world’s top five law firms, with more than 2,000 lawyers and $2 billion in revenue, Reuters says. A letter of intent has not yet been signed, however, according to the Am Law Daily.
Last week, 22 Bingham partners located overseas, including 18 from London, left to join Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld. Among those making the move is James Roome, who was Bingham’s London managing partner and co-chair of Bingham’s global financial restructuring group. A source told the Am Law Daily that Morgan Lewis never expected those lawyers to stay with the merged firm.
Hat tip to Above the Law.
