Mergers

The Law Society Gazette predicts that merger activity will remain high for UK law firms for the near future. The 2022 Lexis Nexis annual Bellwether report identified 16% of small firms taking part in the survey as actively considering merger as a growth tool and to address succession issues of retiring partners.

So, what is driving the merger activity in the legal profession? Mid-sized firms being squeezed by larger firms, PII premiums becoming more expensive and for smaller firms’, succession can be a huge issue with older partners wishing to retire but younger lawyers not wishing to aspire to equity, are all major factors driving merger activity.

A merger is not a strategy; it is a tactic that supports your strategy. A successful merger needs a clear purpose and vision to succeed. The vision needs to be better than both legacy firms, with new values and goals for the newly merged business.

Whilst a merger can advance the execution of a firm’s growth strategy and address succession issues in a relatively short time frame, mergers should be given a lot of thought and approached with caution – not all mergers achieve what the firm/partners hoped for and can sometimes have the opposite result than was anticipated, Approach with absolute clarity as to its purpose, vision and what you aim to achieve – act in haste, repent at leisure.

The Law Society Gazette predicts that merger activity will remain high for UK law firms for the near future. The 2022 Lexis Nexis annual Bellwether report identified 16% of small firms taking part in the survey as actively considering merger as a growth tool and to address succession issues of retiring partners.

So, what is driving the merger activity in the legal profession? Mid-sized firms being squeezed by larger firms, PII premiums becoming more expensive and for smaller firms’, succession can be a huge issue with older partners wishing to retire but younger lawyers not wishing to aspire to equity, are all major factors driving merger activity.

A merger is not a strategy; it is a tactic that supports your strategy. A successful merger needs a clear purpose and vision to succeed. The vision needs to be better than both legacy firms, with new values and goals for the newly merged business.

Whilst a merger can advance the execution of a firm’s growth strategy and address succession issues in a relatively short time frame, mergers should be given a lot of thought and approached with caution – not all mergers achieve what the firm/partners hoped for and can sometimes have the opposite result than was anticipated, Approach with absolute clarity as to its purpose, vision and what you aim to achieve – act in haste, repent at leisure.

How I Can Help

If you are considering a merger with another law firm, I can assist by:

Preparing a business case for a merger for your partners to consider so they have clarity as to the benefit of merging and what success looks like. In any merger project it is about making 1 + 1 = 3 and the business case should be about how competitive advantage can be achieved by putting the two firms together
Assist with due diligence on the suitability of joining forces
Offer support throughout the merger process assisting with the difficult issues that will need to be addressed.
Set out and oversee integration programme and timing, including internal and external communication messaging and channels; and
Assist on post-merger integration delivery

Let’s Talk!

Your first consultation is free.

How I Can Help

Let’s Talk!

+44 79166 69095 | ih@hopkinslegalconsulting.co.uk