K&L Gates in Merger Talks with Australian Firm Middletons

K&L Gates confirmed Thursday that it is in merger talks with the 200-lawyer Australian firm Middletons. In a joint statement published Thursday by the Am Law Daily, K&L Gates chair Peter Kalis and Middletons national managing partner Nick Nichola said, “Our leadership teams believe that the client-driven consolidation and globalization…

Aug 17, 2012 2:38 PM CDT

Kentucky’s Wyatt Absorbs 9-Member Memphis Firm, Expands Estate-Planning Practice

Louisville-based Wyatt, Tarrant & Combs announced this week that it’s merging with a 45-year-old firm in Memphis. Wyatt’s merger with Williams McDaniel means a significant expansion of Wyatt’s estate-planning practice, according to the firm and Business First. “Our strategic plan calls for growth, and when we looked around in the…

Aug 16, 2012 12:48 PM CDT

Ex-Client Sues Duane Morris, Says Senior Partner’s Failure to Disclose Conflict Cost Him $92M

A former chief executive officer of SecureNet has sued Duane Morris for malpractice, contending that a senior partner of the over 700-attorney law firm failed to disclose a conflict when representing him in his 2010 sale of a controlling interest in the credit card processing company. Plaintiff Marc Potash says…

Jul 18, 2012 3:45 PM CDT

Jacoby to Merge with Bankruptcy Firm in Combo Dubbed Most Significant in Consumer Law History

Jacoby & Meyers is merging with Macey Bankruptcy Law as part of a plan to expand into new practice areas. The merger will create a 300-plus lawyer firm with more than 135 offices. A press release calls the combination “the most significant merger for consumer law in U.S. history.” Macey…

Jul 11, 2012 11:59 AM CDT

Merger Momentum: 2010 Turnaround Continues in Firms’ Urge to Merge

Jun 1, 2012 7:10 AM CDT

Dewey Settled Malpractice Suit in February; Insurance Regulators Initially Sought $3B

As troubles were mounting at Dewey & LeBoeuf earlier this year, the law firm settled a $3 billion suit filed by Missouri insurance regulators that claimed malpractice by predecessor firm LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae. The amount of the settlement, reached in February, has not been disclosed, the Am Law…

May 21, 2012 11:39 AM CDT

Top M&A Partner Exits Dewey & LeBoeuf for White & Case as Tally of 2012 Departed Partners Nears 100

Updated: As additional partners announce their departures from Dewey & LeBoeuf, the total of those leaving the approximately 1,000-attorney and 300-partner firm in 2012 is moving toward 100. Among the latest to announce a planned exit is mergers and acquisitions ace Morton A. Pierce, a former chairman of Dewey Ballantine…

May 3, 2012 6:26 PM CDT

Greenberg More Likely to ‘Cherry Pick’ than Merge with Dewey, Partner Says; Calif. Meetings Reported

Will Dewey & LeBoeuf be able to pull off a prepackaged bankruptcy and merger? A top partner at potential suitor Greenberg Traurig tells the Am Law Daily that a full merger is unlikely. The anonymous partner said that Greenberg is more likely to “cherry pick internationally” from Dewey to increase…

Apr 26, 2012 2:30 PM CDT

Zuckerberg Reportedly Negotiated Instagram Deal Without Lawyers and Board Input

Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg feared Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom would be put off if he approached him through lawyers. On April 5, Zuckerberg picked up the phone himself to call Systrom about buying the photo sharing service, the Wall Street Journal reports. In three days of meetings in Zuckerberg’s home, the…

Apr 18, 2012 1:34 PM CDT

Nelson Mullins Opens Office in Nashville

A 400-attorney South Carolina-based law firm is planting its flag in Nashville, Tenn. Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough has leased an office there and hired former Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz shareholder Laurence M. “Larry” Papel to lead it, the Nashville Business Journal reports. Papel previously headed the mergers…

Apr 17, 2012 11:08 PM CDT

4-Lawyer M&A Team Exits Dewey for DLA Piper; Leader Will Co-Chair US Finance Practice There

Updated: A four-lawyer mergers and acquisitions team is exiting Dewey & LeBoeuf for megafirm DLA Piper, bringing to 40 the number of partners known to have left Dewey since the beginning of 2012. The team, which practiced in Dewey’s office in New York, joined DLA Piper on Tuesday and is…

Apr 3, 2012 6:34 PM CDT

McKenna Long and Luce Forward Complete Merger

McKenna Long & Aldridge completed its merger with California-based Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps on Tuesday. The combined firm will continue under the name McKenna Long & Aldridge, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune and the Washington Post’s Capital Business Blog. It will have more than 575 attorneys and public…

Mar 7, 2012 12:33 PM CST

Pillsbury and Fulbright Merger Talks Reportedly Off ‘Fast Track’; Unfunded Pension an Issue

Merger talks between Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman and Fulbright & Jaworski have reportedly slowed amid questions about an unfunded retirement plan at Fulbright. The pension plan is one of two issues cooling down the talks, two sources tell the Daily Journal (sub. req). The other: questions about the successor to…

Feb 21, 2012 11:30 AM CST

Pillsbury and Fulbright Are Reportedly Discussing a Merger

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman is reportedly discussing a possible merger with Fulbright & Jaworski. Three sources told the Daily Journal (sub. req.) about the merger talks, though neither firm confirmed the report. Pillsbury has held merger discussions with other law firms as well, including Nixon Peabody; Chadbourne & Parke; and…

Feb 13, 2012 12:49 PM CST

Baker Donelson Adds Seven Lawyers Through Third Merger

Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz has merged with a second law firm in Houston, its third combination in less than four months. Baker Donelson announced today that it has acquired seven lawyers through a merger with business litigation firm Drucker, Rutledge & Smith. The Memphis Business Journal and a…

Feb 1, 2012 3:56 PM CST