Partners at Winston & Strawn and Taylor Wessing have voted through their transatlantic merger, with the newly combined Winston Taylor set to go live this May.
The tie-up will create a firm with more than 1,400 lawyers and revenues of around $1.65bn, with Winston’s 2024 revenues of $1.27bn (£950m) boosted by Taylor Wessing’s UK turnover of £284m.
The merged firm – which will be led by Winston chairman Steve D’Amore as chair, with Taylor Wessing UK managing partner Shane Gleghorn taking a role as Europe and Middle East managing partner – will likely sit just outside the top 50 in the Global 100 revenue rankings, and will have particular focus on major litigation, critical transactions, strategic IP, and private wealth.
The deal will see Taylor Wessing’s UK operation split from its international verein, with the French and German arms of the firm retaining the Taylor Wessing brand and operating under a cooperation and referral arrangement.
However, Taylor Wessing’s Netherlands and Belgium arms have agreed a deal to operate under the new Winston Taylor brand, and in the statement confirming the merger, the firm said that it was ‘anticipated that the Netherlands and Belgian regions will, over time and subject to approvals, fully integrate into a single firm with the US and UK operations of Winston Taylor’.
Taylor Wessing’s UK-led business also includes the firm’s teams in Ireland, Dubai and San Francisco.
In a statement announcing the deal, D’Amore said: ‘The decisive, overwhelming support from our partnerships reflects a shared passion and commitment to meeting our clients’ desire for a unified team across the Atlantic.’
Gleghorn added: ‘This combination creates a transatlantic law firm in the major hubs of innovation and capital in the US, Europe, and the Middle East. Our clients require a firm with premier teams in those hubs in relation to critical transactions, litigation, IP and private wealth.’
‘Our partners, therefore, voted in favour of the combination because both firms have an absolute commitment to achieving our clients’ objectives, and that focus will be the foundation of our shared success.’
D’Amore previously told LB that he saw the deal as ‘a consummation of what I have been saying for a long time, which is that Winston needed to be bigger and stronger in London, which is a hugely important market.’
The two firms have very distinct geographical footprints, with overlap in only four locations around the world: London, Brussels, New York and San Francisco.
Both firms have small bases in Brussels, while in the US, Taylor Wessing has had a presence in San Francisco and New York since 2014. In London, Winston has a relatively low headcount relative to most US firms, with just 26 lawyers.
The two firms do have a wide gap in profits per equity partner (PEP), with Winston posting PEP of $3.5m (£2.6m) for 2024, more than double Taylor Wessing’s UK PEP of £1.1m.
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