Merger talks between Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis and Texas firm Hughes & Luce have reached an advanced stage, it was announced yesterday (26 July), with a deal now set to be concluded by the end of the year.
Discussions began in the spring and, if successful, could lead to formal proposals being presented to the respective partnerships in the autumn. The combined firm would boast over 1,500 lawyers in 24 offices in the US, Europe and Asia.
The merger would be hand a major boost to Kirkpatrick in Dallas, with the firm currently numbering just 35 lawyers in Texas’ main commercial centre. Hughes & Luce has around 150 lawyers in offices across Dallas, Fort Worth and Austin.
Commenting on the proposed deal in a statement, K&L Gates chairman Peter Kalis said: “More than 10% of the Fortune 1000 call Texas home. Hughes & Luce is one of the preeminent law firms in the state and thus a very attractive potential partner.”
An agreement would continue a run of recent tie-ups for Kirkpatrick. The Pittsburgh giant merged with 400-lawyer Seattle firm Preston Gates & Ellis at the beginning of 2007, having landed a major UK presence via a merger with mid-tier City outfit Nicholson Graham & Jones in 2005.
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