Mayer Brown and Simmons Decide Against Merger
Mayer Brown and U.K. law firm Simmons & Simmons have decided against a merger after holding preliminary talks.
The law firms released a joint statement today announcing the decision, according to Legal Week and the Lawyer.
The statement said: “Simmons & Simmons and Mayer Brown have held preliminary discussions with regard to the potential for a merger. Mergers are complex and present a number of issues which need to be resolved before discussions can proceed. We have concluded that a combination between our firms is not the right option. There is, however, considerable goodwill and continuing respect on both sides.”
Management teams from the two law firms had held talks last month “in a secret off-site location,” according to published reports. If the two firms had merged, the new entity would have had 2,400 lawyers in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
The firms did not give a reason for the no-merger decision. According to Legal Week, some partners had expressed misgivings about combining London practices “which they found less complimentary.” Some Simmons partners also were reluctant to merge with a larger and more profitable firm, the story says.
