Are Freehills and Herbert Smith the next merger for 2012?
Rollonfriday is reporting that partners at Freehills and Herbies will be meeting to discuss closing a deal to make the outfits yet another super-sized firm.:
“Suggestions of a union between the pair have been doing the rounds for a while. Back in December, RollOnFriday reported that Freehills and Herbert Smith may be looking to hook up. A source depicted the potential merger in less than flattering terms, pronouncing Freehills as “desperately seeking a date” and Herbies as “the last thing left on the dance floor which Freehills has a chance of getting off with.”
But obviously the first dance went well, as the two firms are now engaged in more serious talks, according to a Legal Week report. It seems that partners at Freehills gave the go-ahead to ramp up of discussions with the UK firm at the end of last year and Herbies has circulated an internal memo about future plans in Australia. But it’s not yet clear whether the firms are looking at a full merger or a looser association.”
Well, the move makes sense given both firm’s need to expand into Asia, but as we saw last year, there are plenty of hurdles to clear before this latest megrer is a done deal.
To see what’s on offer from these firms and others in Asia, please visit Law Alliance.
