Norton Rose is in talks to form a new alliance in Saudi Arabia, with the news coming after it emerged that the firm ended its previous local tie-up and closed its Riyadh branch more than six months ago.

The firm ended its alliance with 13-lawyer local firm Abdulaziz Al-Assaf on 31 December last year, with Norton Rose’s only partner based in Riyadh – corporate finance specialist Darran McGlinchey – subsequently relocating to Dubai.