Locke Lord and Edwards Wildman to merge into 1,000-attorney firm
The partners of Locke Lord and Edwards Wildman Palmer have OK’d a merger, effective Jan. 10, that will put the melded 1,000-attorney firm among the county’s 50 highest-grossing law partnerships.
A joint announcement Monday says the new firm will be known as Locke Lord Edwards.
Locke Lord chair Jerry Clements will be at the helm.
Alan Levin, the managing partner of Edwards Wildman, will serve as one of three vice-chairmen, along with Dan Schlessinger and Bill Swanstrom. They are, respectively, a Chicago partner of Locke Lord who specializes in business and insurance litigation and a Houston partner who co-chairs Locke Lord’s energy practice group.
The merged firm will have 23 offices throughout the world. In the U.S., they include a 150-attorney presence in Boston; increased depth in Chicago, where the two firms currently show a total of 168 attorneys on their rosters, New York and Washington, D.C.; and operations in Atlanta, California, Florida, New Orleans, Texas and a number of Northeast locations.
Globally, the firm will have offices in London, where expansion is planned, Hong Kong, Istanbul and Tokyo.
“This combination will enhance our position in the top tier of U.S. law firms and significantly strengthen our position and product offerings in the middle market,” said Clements in the announcement. “It will allow us to brand that identity in the global marketplace with a major presence in the Northeast and a stronger footprint in the Midwest, West Coast and Southeast regions of the United States, as well as in Asia.
Hat tip: Legal Business
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Locke Lord and Edwards Wildman OK letter of intent to merge into 1,000-attorney firm”
ABAJournal.com: “Bingham and Edwards Wildman shed lawyers ahead of potential mergers”
