UK legal publication The Lawyer has published an investigation into recent departures from legacy Herbert Smith’s disputes practice.

The report noted that six disputes partners had left the team since the merger and said that the exodus included “some of the chief rainmakers of legacy firm Herbert Smith.” The departures include senior litigation partner Ted Greeno and financial services regulatory chief Martyn Hopper.

The Lawyer also quoted an anonymous source who said that some litigators had been disgruntled, prior to the merger, at the firm’s profitability being undermined by “underperforming departments” and this malcontent had been aggravated by the merger. “ Some big litigation players maintained it wasn’t worth effectively doubling the firm’s size just to get into one more jurisdiction - and a relatively small one at that,” the source told The Lawyer’s  Lucy Burton.

Burton also canvassed a third explanation for the departures, namely the willingness of U.S. firms to offer exceptionally generous remuneration packages in order to shore up their disputes ranks. Firms such as Quinn Emanuel,  Latham & Watkins and  Dechert have accounted for many of the Herbert Smith departures.