Hammonds' Hong Kong arm splits ahead of transatlantic tie-up

The Hong Kong arm of UK firm Hammonds is set to split from the firm ahead of the merger with US firm Squire Sanders & Dempsey on 1 January 2011. It is unclear whether the six-partner Hong Kong office will make a formal split with the firm, and whether the partners intend to strike out on their own with an independent firm, or will join with another firm. In a joint statement, the firms said: "As is common with large law firm combinations, even in circumstances such as ours where the vast majority of the voting partnership approved the combination, a small handful of partners in Hong Kong have taken the view that they do not want to be part of a fully integrated global firm with established offices throughout China and have decided to leave. "We wish them well. Regardless of this, the merger has significantly strengthened our ability to serve clients across the globe, and the collective energy of our two legacy firms is focused on the successful integration across our platform, including Asia."

Hammonds' Hong Kong arm splits ahead of transatlantic tie-up legalweek.com Mon, Nov 29, 2010