Allen & Overy and Shearman & Sterling are poised to create a Biglaw behemoth, A&O Shearman, if their proposed merger is approved by the partnership of both firms. Once combined, the firm will have nearly 4,000 lawyers with approximately 800 partners, spread across 49 offices. A&O Shearman’s combined revenue will total $3.4 billion.
The global fanfare over this planned merger began in May, and after several months of A&O and Shearman senior partners Wim Dejonghe and Adam Hakki glad-handing with partners across continents, a vote on the combination is now upon us.
As noted by the American Lawyer, a two-week partnership voting window started today, and will last through October 13. Here’s some more:
Partners at both firms said they expected their respective partnerships to achieve the required 75% threshold to vote through the combination to create one of the world’s biggest law firms, to be called Allen Overy Shearman Sterling, or A&O Shearman for short….
One Shearman partner said “everyone” at their firm was in favour of the deal. Another, at Allen & Overy, said the deal “is going to happen.”
Best of luck to both firms as this merger vote moves forward. Next month, it’s highly likely that congratulations will be in order, as we’ll have a new top Am Law firm on our hands!
Partners at A&O, Shearman Begin Merger Vote, With Approval Widely Expected [The American Lawyer]
Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter and Threads or connect with her on LinkedIn.
