Washington firm McKenna Long in merger talks with California firm Luce Forward

Washington DC-based firm McKenna Long & Aldridge has initiated merger negotiations with Californian firm Luce Forward Hamilton & Scripps. Luce was founded in 1873 and has 104 lawyers working across six offices in California. If the merger goes ahead the combined firm would have a headcount of 620 attorneys around the country. Luce’s chairman Kurt Kicklighter said that the merger talks were initiated on the basis of the firm’s strong performance: “Because we’ve done so well, especially in 2010, in San Francisco in particular, we’ve had a lot of inquiries (about mergers) from national firms this year,” he said. “When you get approached by national firms and you start looking at things, if there’s a better opportunity for you out there, I think every managing partner has to look at it.”

Washington firm McKenna Long in merger talks with California firm Luce Forward bizjournals.com Thu, Nov 17, 2011