Brisbane-based Shine Lawyers and Melbourne-based Slater and Gordon, the second- and third-largest plaintiffs law firms in Australia, recently discussed a possible merger, according to The Australian Financial Review.

Senior board members of the two publicly traded Australian law firms, including Shine chairman Tony Bellas and Slater chairman James MacKenzie, met in a cafe in Brisbane for more than an hour two weeks ago to discuss a tie-up, the newspaper reported after its reporter overheard the discussions.