White & Case Closes Doors at Last Italian Office
White & Case, in a move to become the first major international firm to abandon its legal practice in Italy, will close its Milan office Nov. 30, Legal Week reports.
The 15-lawyer office, including one equity shareholder and six local partners, is the U.S. firm’s sole presence in Italy. According to Legal Week, White & Case closed its Rome and Turin offices three years ago.
“White & Case has periodically reviewed its position in the Italian market since opening there,” the firm said in a statement, Legal Week reports. “It was concluded in the most recent of these reviews that the level of investment required to reach the position in Italy that the firm requires of its operations in any market was beyond that which is in the best interests of the firm as a whole.”
Many international firms have struggled to build practices in Italy, the publication notes. White & Case states that the move is unrelated to the ongoing review of its worldwide business by management consultancy McKinsey.
Equity partner Sean Geary will relocate to White & Case’s New York City office, and the remaining lawyers will leave the firm, Legal Week reports.
