The prospect of the introduction of multi-disciplinary partnerships (MDPs) in the US looks extremely remote this week after the American Bar Association’s (ABA’s) House of Delegates rejected the recommendation of its own commission to allow them.

As Legal Week went to press, the ABA’s policy-making body, the 532-member House of Delegates, voted on two rival proposals – one calling for the outright rejection of MDPs and the other for a delay in any decision – at its annual meeting in New York.