£1.6bn law firm: Herbert Smith Freehills to merge with US firm Kramer Levin

Australian-British Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) is set to merge with US law firm Kramer Levin to create a £1.6bn “global legal powerhouse”.

HSF was formed in 2012 when the Australian law firm Freehills merged with Herbert Smith, a British firm based in London. Headquartered in Sydney and London, the firm’s strategy focuses on Asia, Australia, EMEA, and the UK.

While Kramer Levin is a New York-based law firm with offices in Silicon Valley Washington DC and Paris, France.

HSF revealed in July its turnover rose by over 10 per cent to hit £1.3bn. Its profit jumped 14.5 per cent in FY24 hitting £444.5m, while profit per equity partner (PEP) jumped over 12 per cent to £1.3bn.

While Kramer Levin reported earlier this year its gross revenue rose by over 3 per cent to $435.2m (£338m). Its PEP rose by 1.2 per cent to $2.41m, but its equity pool was short of three partners.

The firm will be known as Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer, with the vision to “accelerate growth in the US” across sectors HSF is forced on.

The planned combination will have over 2,700 lawyers including around 640 partners across 25 offices globally, and will be in the top 20 largest law firms by headcount. Additionally, with a combined £1.6bn in revenue, it will be one of the top 20 in the world.

Commenting on the planned merger, Rebecca Maslen-Stannage, chair and senior partner of HSF, said: “This is transformational. We have long been committed to expanding our offering in the US and Kramer Levin is the perfect fit.”

While Howard Spilko, co-managing partner of Kramer Levin stated that “joining forces with HSF is a one-of-a-kind opportunity that helps us achieve our vision and potential for strategic growth.”

The combination provides us with a significant competitive advantage by bolstering our destination practices with a deeper bench, broader geographic reach and sector expertise, while providing the opportunity to collaborate to achieve great outcomes for clients internationally,” he added.

This announcement comes on the heels of magic circle firm Allen & Overy (A&O) and US firm Shearman & Sterling completing its merger in May, to become a $3.5bn law firm.