Mergers

Rural business and agricultural law specialists Eden Legal Limited has announced that it has acquired the business of Perth-based private client firm McKean Gardner Limited. Craig Harvie, director, said: “We are delighted that this merger has now been completed. Our firms have worked closely t

Allen & Overy and Shearman & Sterling have announced a planned merger to create Allen Overy Shearman Sterling. A&O Shearman, as the firm will be known, will have about 3,900 lawyers and and some 800 partners across 49 offices. Allen & Overy and Shearman & Sterling have 250 years

Hodge Solicitors LLP of Blairgowrie and Watson + Lyall Bowie in Coupar Angus have merged.

A merger between Shearman & Sterling and Hogan Lovells has been neither confirmed nor denied by the firms. A tie-up between them would be one of the biggest in recent years, creating a $3.6 billion (£3.43bn) practice.

Dickson Minto has been acquired by US law firm Milbank, The Lawyer reports. The firm's Edinburgh office will remain independent, while the London team will be joining Milbank’s City operations early next year.

Fraser & Mulligan, Solicitors has merged with Mackinnons Solicitors LLP. Many of the Fraser & Mulligan partners, solicitors and support staff have transferred over to Mackinnons, which will provide continuity of service to the Fraser & Mulligan existing clients. The firm's office in Ball

Drummond Miller and Peacock Johnston have merged. The 11-strong Peacock Johnston team – six lawyers and five other staff – will join the Glasgow office of Drummond Miller, which has 14 partners and 100 other employees across five offices, including headquarters in Union Street, Edinburgh

Partners at global law firm Clyde & Co and UK-headquartered BLM have voted in favour of merging this July to create a combined entity with a global revenue of over £700 million per year.

Glasgow law firm Campbell Riddell Breeze Paterson LLP will become part of Holmes Mackillop Limited on 1 October. The merged business will trade initially as “Holmes Mackillop Solicitors incorporating Campbell Riddell Breeze Paterson” and then as “Holmes Mackillop Solicitors”.

Simpson & Marwick has acquired Glasgow-based firm Alston Law part of its expansion across Scotland. Alston Law is best known for its lender services, in particular remortgages and debt and asset recovery, which will remain a distinct specialism.

Charities may have to merge to survive the cash crisis caused by the pandemic, a lawyer has said. Alastair Keatinge, partner and head of charities at Lindsays, said the Scottish government must play a key role in reforming the third sector.

McDonald Johnson Lawyers, a full service law firm based in Newcastle, Australia, has joined DWF, which has offices in Glasgow and Edinburgh. The deal will see 16 people, including eight lawyers join DWF in Australia. With over 100 years of practice, McDonald Johnson Lawyers specialises in insurance,

Anderson Strathern has struck a deal which will see specialist law practice Hardy Macphail merge its operations with the Scottish legal firm's Glasgow office. Glasgow-based Hardy Macphail has a headcount of 10, including three partners, and has a mix of SME and private clients and specialises in lit

Hastings Legal has announced a merger with Berwickshire firm Doughtys WS. Doughtys WS practised in Ayton for over 150 years and in 2011 the firm moved to Eyemouth.

Five years on from Dundas & Wilson’s combination with CMS, we should not mourn the loss of Scottish law firm brands, writes Allan Wernham. The number of elite Scottish law firm brands have diminished over the last decade, but we should not feel sentimental about the passing of historic nam