One of the biggest legal news stories in December was the announcement of a merger between Lovells and Ekelmans Den Hollander, a Dutch firm with 13 partners and about 110 fee earners.

The UK-based global giant started merger talks with its Dutch ally about 18 months ago and, according to Lovells’ chief operating officer Nick Cray, the firm’s IT director and his second in command were party to the discussions from the outset. “IT does not exist in a vacuum here,” Cray said.