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May 22, 2023 - Economy & Business

Law firms Allen & Overy and Shearman & Sterling agree to megamerger

Dan Primack
Illustration of a scale with colored shapes and images of dollars.

Illustration: Gabriella Turrisi/Axios

Allen & Overy, a London-based law firm founded in 1930, has agreed to merge with New York-based rival Shearman & Sterling.

Why it matters: This would create one of the world's largest law firms, to be called A&O Shearman, with around $3.4 billion in combined revenue and 3,900 attorneys.

  • The combined firm also would have over 240 years of experience, as Shearman was founded in 1873 and Allen & Overy was founded in 1930.
  • Partners of both firms still need to approve the proposed merger.

The bottom line: This is a bit of a Plan B for both firms. Allen & Overy tried and failed to merge with Los Angeles-based O'Melveny & Myers in 2019, while Shearman earlier this year sought a tie-up with Hogan Lovells.

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