News From Law.com
Small and midsize firms continued to play a significant role in law firm M&A in 2023 as larger firms sought to enter new markets via acquisitions and regional and boutique practices looked to broaden the scope of their services and geographic reach. The majority, 69%, of the 48 law firm tie-ups completed in 2023 involved firms with five to 20 lawyers. That's an increase from 66% in 2022, though the legal industry also saw an uptick in M&A activity in which both parties had more than 100 lawyers in 2023, according to a report surveying the year's merger activity by Fairfax Associates. "If you're not a certain size, it's hard to compete for talent and it's hard to retain," said consultant Chris Ryan, executive vice president of client engagement at Harbor Global. "Firms are saying we need to be at a certain scale and we need to do this for certain practice groups that will round out our three- to five-year strategic plan."
January 04, 2024, 10:38 AM