Phelps Dunbar, the New Orleans-based firm that has focused on establishing itself as a regional firm in the south and mid-south, will further build on that strategy by expanding into Tennessee by combining with Farris Bobango, a 28-lawyer firm with offices in Memphis and Nashville.

Phelps managing partner Marshall Redmon said the Am Law 200 firm has long had Tennessee in its sights. But the strategic plan that focused on building a regional firm, which has been in the works for several years, has also called for the firm to grow more vertically than horizontally by adding strength to strength while staying within the firm’s Southern footprint.