On the heels of reports earlier this month that the surge in law firm mergers that marked 2011 would continue in 2012, further evidence suggests that tie-up talks are indeed slowly returning to prerecession levels.

Exhibit A: Am Law 100 McKenna Long & Aldridge announced Tuesday that it will merge on March 1 with Am Law 200 shop Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps, creating a 600-lawyer firm with offices in 13 cities, according to sibling publication the Daily Report in Atlanta.