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Law Firm News Stories

Bond Pearce and Dickinson Dees plan merger
14 September 2012
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Bond Pearce and Dickinson Dees have confirmed that they are considering a merger.

The firms have identical turnover at £46m apiece, and profits are also broadly similar. So a new Pearce Dick LLP seems feasible although it's a deal that's unlikely to agitate its competitors greatly.

Bond Pearce has been in the headlines recently for having failed to merge with Scots firm Maclay Murray Spens. Twice. It had a crack at it a couple of years ago, and then again earlier this year. Talks were abandoned in March and the firm has been casting about ever since.


   The new firm - how it might look

And it seems Dickinson Dees has risen to its bait. The firm has not had an easy couple of years: it lost its 16-strong family team in 2010, ditched two thirds of its trainees in 2011 and has seen turnover fall off a cliff since 2007-08 when it pulled in £60m. And while things do seem to be improving (turnover increased slightly this year to £46.1m and retention was up), it doesn't seem that's enough to placate its staff. The firm won RollOnFriday's prestigious Golden Turd award 2012 after it was panned for being "penny pinching" and for offering chances of partnership that were "significantly lower than my chances of being killed by an escaped walrus". The firm's PR team subsequently went into overdrive, re-writing its Wikipedia entry, thus proving that if you can't polish a turd you can at least roll it in glitter.

Managing partners at both firms were keen to talk about strategic goals, value drivers and geographic footprints.

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anonymous user
14/09/2012 01:33
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Oh dear, typo in the first line! I reckon they're considering a 'merger' as opposed to a 'margar'
anonymous user
14/09/2012 07:41
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Dickinson Dees & Bond Pearce announced these talks without having carried out any due diligence into each other. Would either firm ever advise their M&A clients to announce a deal before checking the financials? Surely not. The merger is still just a concept, but already they look like they don't know what they're doing.
anonymous user
14/09/2012 11:39
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A major shake up in the Brown Circle tier of law firms.

This is bluesky thinking. Deliberately merge with a firm that is also too shy to make a real effort to set up big offices in the major legal heartlands.
anonymous user
14/09/2012 11:46
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Not sure about that comment regarding no due diligence. Odds are pretty good they've been talking for ages, so, maybe not completed due diligence, but, I seriously doubt either firm would announce the talks if they didn't see enough to think it's going forward - especially after Bond Pearce ran screaming from MMS and its downward death-spiral.
anonymous user
14/09/2012 12:21
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Who are Bonde Pearce?

Likewise who are Dickenson Dees?
anonymous user
14/09/2012 14:24
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To that last guy who asked:

"Who are [sic] Bonde Pearce?

Likewise who are [sic] Dickenson Dees?"

Uh, I don't know who "Bonde" or "Dickenson" are, but, BOND PEARCE and DICKINSON DEES are both pretty middle-of-the-road, decent firms with quality client lists.

If you're going to ask stupid questions, at least don't look stupid doing it.
anonymous user
14/09/2012 16:17
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Anon 14.24, it's something that the older Roffers will know & understand. Don't worry about it, son.
anonymous user
14/09/2012 18:00
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To Anonymous Users 11:39 and 12:21 - Just so I am clear, you appear to be trying to:

1. make out you are so important you have never heard of either of these firms; and
2. infer your own superiority by using the phrase "brown circle"?

Are you in the magic circle, or dare I say it the slightly less good silver circle? If so well done you even if it's only the silver circle (not quite as good as the magic circle but still a good effort and at least you are in a legitimate circle).
anonymous user
14/09/2012 22:22
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I think brown circle is a fairly standard roll on friday term. You might want to take that up with the previous 100 posters who have used it.

Has anybody else noticed the trend here? On this site & the Lawyer website a series of uber-supportive messages began appearing at about the same time. Could it be... no surely not!

It's all a bit Orwellian.
anonymous user
14/09/2012 22:49
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Anon 18:00,

Just out of fairness are you also going to comment on whether the following peachy quote in any way is meant to infer superiority:-

"If you're going to ask stupid questions, at least don't look stupid doing it."

No? I thought not. Anyway, back to the story, what do you think the partners at Bond Pearce will get out of this merger?
anonymous user
15/09/2012 15:07
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This kind of idea is how they earned the golden turd award.
anonymous user
06/02/2013 20:37
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Bad luck Bond Pearce.

If this was kerplunk you just drew the straw that all the marbles are resting on. Woeful decision making.