Hogan Lovells and Cadwalader Announce Merger to Form Worlds Fifth Largest Law Firm by Revenue

Hogan Lovells, the United Kingdom’s sixth highest-earning law firm, is set to merge with Cadwalader, the oldest legal practice on Wall Street. This deal will create an organisation with an annual revenue of £2.7 billion and will become the world’s fifth largest law firm by revenue. The announcement was made by partners in London, following an agreement with their counterparts at Cadwalader.

This merger is part of a series of transatlantic consolidations within the legal industry. Taylor Wessing recently revealed plans to combine with Winston and Strawn in Chicago, while Ashurst agreed to a deal with Perkins Coie, which is based in Seattle. In April, Herbert Smith Freehills acquired New York rival Kramer. Prior to the Hogan Lovells and Cadwalader arrangement, the largest UK-US law firm merger was last year’s combination of Allen and Overy with Shearman and Sterling, creating A&O Shearman with an annual revenue of £2.87 billion.

The newly merged Hogan Lovells and Cadwalader entity is forecast to employ 3,100 lawyers. Although this is about 800 fewer than A&O Shearman, partners assert that their deal is the largest law firm combination in history, promising service to clients in every major financial market. The move highlights renewed British ambition to expand into the US legal market, the largest in the world.

Previous attempts at cross-Atlantic law firm integration have faced challenges. For instance, Clifford Chance’s acquisition of Rogers and Wells in 2000 was hampered by ongoing partnership disputes and difficulties in reconciling remuneration structures between the two firms.

Cadwalader, established in 1792, brings a longstanding Wall Street legacy to the merger. The success of the deal is contingent on both firms securing the approval of their respective partnerships, with votes scheduled for the coming year.

This latest merger underscores the shifting dynamics of the global legal landscape and the increasing focus of UK firms on broadening their reach in the US market.