Daily Briefs (Oct 7)

Law firm merger market sags in 3rd quarter to only five
There were only five new law firm combinations announced in the U.S. in the third quarter of 2010 according to Altman Weil MergerLine, all of which were acquisitions of small law firms.

Total law firm combinations in the first three quarters of 2010 are off by 47% compared to the same time period in 2009. Year to date there have been 24 deals announced versus 45 last year at this ti

“Although the economy was arguably worse last year, there was a long tail of deals in the pipeline that kept the 2009 numbers up to some degree,” said Altman Weil principal Ward Bower. “What we’re seeing today reflects the fact that many firms put mergers on hold last year and are only now starting to reinstate plans for strategic growth.”

“There are a number of deals in the works that may signal a turn in the trend, including some highly-publicized discussions between US and UK firms,” Bower commented.

Of the five acquisitions in the third quarter of 2010, four were apparently driven by strategies to extend or strengthen the geographic presence of the acquiring firm.

Cozen O’Connor, a 530-lawyer firm headquartered in Philadelphia, announced the acquisition of 13-lawyer Sher & Blackwell in a move reported to double the size of its Washington DC office. Lathrop & Gage, a 300-lawyer Kansas City based firm acquired 24-lawyer Denver firm, Kamlet Reichert. Detroit’s Dickinson Wright added a 3-lawyer Las Vegas boutique, Gibson Lowry Burris. Philadelphia-based Saul Ewing acquired Ruben & Aronson, a 4-lawyer Bethesda, Maryland firm.

A complete list of law firm mergers and acquisitions announced to date in 2010, as well as an archive from prior years and a three-year trend summary are available online at www.altmanweil.com/MergerLine.

Attorney cards an ace at Birmingham course
In sports terms, Bob Forrest enjoyed a good weekend.

A tax attorney with Kerr, Russell & Weber in Detroit, Forrest is a 1971 graduate of Northwestern University in Evanston and on Saturday his alma mater ran its record to a perfect 5-0 with a heart-stopping win over Big Ten rival Minnesota. The win helped propel the Wildcats into the top 25 rankings for the first time this season, a point of pride for any Northwestern alum.

That was nice, but Friday was ever so much better for Forrest, a former trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice.

On October 1 at Springdale Golf Course in Birmingham, Forrest crossed paths with perfection, scoring a hole-in-one on the par-three sixth hole. He used an eight-iron to ace the 124-yard hole, a notoriously devilish par-three dotted with traps and featuring a large, undulating green. His playing partners were fellow attorneys Joe Papelian of Delphi Corp. and Rod Kinghorn of General Motors.

Forrest may owe a debt of golfing gratitude to his son, Matthew, an assistant prosecuting attorney for Wayne County. The Taylor Made club that Forrest used for the hole-in-one shot was a gift from his son.

Holiday Hours

Please be advised that the Wayne County Probate Court will be closed in observance of Columbus Day on Monday, Oct. 11 and will reopen on Tuesday, Oct. 12 at 8 a.m.
The Wayne County Clerk’s Office will be closed on Monday, Oct. 11 in observance of Columbus Day.

––––––––––––––––––––
Subscribe to the Legal News!
http://www.legalnews.com/Home/Subscription
Full access to public notices, articles, columns, archives, statistics, calendar and more
Day Pass Only $4.95!
One-County $80/year
Three-County & Full Pass also available