APAC firm King & Wood Mallesons is to split in two, with the China and Australia partnerships set to separate 14 years after the merger of King & Wood and Mallesons Stephen Jacques.
The partnerships will formally split on 31 March 2026, at which point the China business will return to practising as King & Wood, with the Australia partnership practising as Mallesons.
Following the split, King & Wood will comprise the firm’s offices in mainland China, Hong Kong, Japan and the US, while Mallesons will be made up of five offices across Australia and a base in Singapore.
The decision comes after the two firms combined in March 2012 in a deal that created a 2,100-lawyer Asia-Pacific giant, before going on to agree an ill-fated union with legacy UK player SJ Berwin in late 2013. The UK arm of the business subsequently collapsed into administration in January 2017.
Announcing the split earlier today (9 December), the firms said the decision to separate reflected the two partnerships’ differing strategic priorities and future aspirations.
In a statement, KWM said that all client work would continue on a business-as-usual basis, with joint matters unaffected. Going forward, the pair will work together on a non-exclusive basis.
KWM global chairman Wang Junfeng said: ‘This development reflects the different strategic horizons of our firms. We thank the Australian firm for the years of teamwork and partnership. We sincerely appreciate the long-term support and trust shown by our clients. We will continue to put clients first while striving for excellence in everything we do.’
‘We remain committed to our international strategy and will continue to expand our geographic coverage through both organic growth and collaboration with other leading firms globally. King & Wood’s Hong Kong office, the largest law firm in Hong Kong by number of lawyers, will continue to take on a strategic role in this effort.’
Renae Lattey, chief executive partner for Australia, said: ‘We thank the partners and colleagues of KWM China for their professionalism, collegiality and friendship over the past 14 years. Mallesons is a trusted and respected brand with nearly two centuries of legal excellence and 50 years of international experience and relationships. We will continue to build on this proud legacy as we become the only top tier independent firm operating from Australia with the flexibility to collaborate more broadly with global elite firms to meet the needs of our clients and our people here, across the region and around the globe.’
Following the collapse of legacy SJ Berwin in 2017, KWM maintained a limited European presence, and in July 2023, reached a formal cooperation agreement with Eversheds Sutherland that saw KWM agree to refer all international work to the firm, with Eversheds agreeing to refer any clients in need of PRC legal counsel to KWM.
KWM lawyers in London, Frankfurt, Milan and Dubai subsequently transferred over to Eversheds, while Addleshaw Goddard took on a 13-partner team in Madrid.
In a statement, Eversheds Sutherland confirmed that its cooperation agreement with KWM’s China arm was not impacted by the news of the split, and would ‘continue to operate as it has done historically.’
