Only days after DLA Piper's long-awaited merger with DLA Phillips Fox became official, six of the firm's Canberra partners have decided to quit.
It's certainly one way to signal dissatisfaction with DLA Piper's merger. Wait until all the canapés have been nibbled and all the warm champagne supped at the Australian opening and just as the firm's basking in the full glow of its new status as the world's largest law firm - hand in your resignation letters en masse. And in one fell swoop the firm's Canberra office has been reduced to just two partners.
DLA Piper has insisted that the partners supported the merger. They just didn't want to hang around and see what that meant in practice. So the six will be moving to HWL Ebsworth. And it seems likely that a hefty number of their prestigious government clients will move with them, leaving the fate of the Canberra office very much in the balance.
And despite DLA Piper trying to smooth things over by pointing out over 50% of the firm's work for the government is done outside Canberra, the departures must be a bitter blow for the firm which, pre-merger, already lost a nine-strong Brisbane-based team. Could it be that DLA Piper's reputation as the World's Tightest Law Firm - hard won through lack of salary increases and cheap redundancy packages - has preceded it?
A spokesman for the firm, not wishing to comment on the status of the Canberra office, said: "These partners have indicated that while they agreed overall with the integration with DLA Piper they themselves do not wish to be part of a global business law firm. Instead, they would prefer to retain and support their existing client bases and local practices elsewhere."
Tip Off ROF
It's certainly one way to signal dissatisfaction with DLA Piper's merger. Wait until all the canapés have been nibbled and all the warm champagne supped at the Australian opening and just as the firm's basking in the full glow of its new status as the world's largest law firm - hand in your resignation letters en masse. And in one fell swoop the firm's Canberra office has been reduced to just two partners.
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DLA Piper's canberra office yesterday |
DLA Piper has insisted that the partners supported the merger. They just didn't want to hang around and see what that meant in practice. So the six will be moving to HWL Ebsworth. And it seems likely that a hefty number of their prestigious government clients will move with them, leaving the fate of the Canberra office very much in the balance.
And despite DLA Piper trying to smooth things over by pointing out over 50% of the firm's work for the government is done outside Canberra, the departures must be a bitter blow for the firm which, pre-merger, already lost a nine-strong Brisbane-based team. Could it be that DLA Piper's reputation as the World's Tightest Law Firm - hard won through lack of salary increases and cheap redundancy packages - has preceded it?
A spokesman for the firm, not wishing to comment on the status of the Canberra office, said: "These partners have indicated that while they agreed overall with the integration with DLA Piper they themselves do not wish to be part of a global business law firm. Instead, they would prefer to retain and support their existing client bases and local practices elsewhere."