King & Wood Mallesons
My old firm is merging with China’s largest law firm, King & Wood. It will be called King & Wood Mallesons. I am a little sad about the possibility that the firm will no longer be called “Mallies” as the name has lost top billing, but the merger is definitely an interesting one. The firms will share everything except financials, since Chinese law prohibits financial integration.
The Australian legal services industry is changing dramatically, and all the Big Six are jumping into bed with international tie-ups. Bound to happen, I guess – the Australian market is pretty tapped out (saturated) and has been for some time.