In December, we noted merger talks between K&L Gates and Bell Boyd & Lloyd.
As of today, the merger is official. From the press release:
Partners of the law firms K&L Gates LLP and Bell, Boyd & Lloyd LLP (Bell Boyd) today voted overwhelmingly in favor of a combination of firms, effective March 1, 2009. The combined firm will comprise approximately 1,900 lawyers in 31 offices throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia, and expands K&L Gates’ domestic offerings to include the strategically significant legal markets of Chicago and San Diego…
The combined firm will have offices in Anchorage, Austin, Beijing, Berlin, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Fort Worth, Frankfurt, Harrisburg, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New York, Orange County, Palo Alto, Paris, Pittsburgh, Portland, Raleigh, Research Triangle Park, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Shanghai, Spokane/Coeur d’Alene, Taipei, and Washington, D.C.
…with two dozen Bell Boyd lawyers joining the already formidable Washington, D.C., office of K&L Gates, the combined firm’s presence in the U.S. capital will grow to approximately 250 lawyers and policy professionals…
K&L Gates’ entry to the Chicago and San Diego markets expands the firm’s domestic footprint to 23 U.S. offices – now including the world’s fourth-largest legal market in Chicago – and creates greater opportunities for current and prospective clients of both firms. With more than 200 lawyers in Chicago, K&L Gates’ Chicago office will be among the largest of any non-Chicago-based firm.
K&L Gates LLP employs over 1700 attorneys worldwide, large enough to be ranked as the 10th largest law firm in the world. It was formed on January 1, 2007, by the merger of Pittsburgh-based Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Nicholson Graham with Seattle-based Preston Gates & Ellis.
Via ATL.