Norton Rose Fulbright and Australian firm Henry Davis York are set to merge later this year, creating the second-largest international law firm in the country, with about 160 partners across offices in Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney. 

The merger, which was approved by an overwhelming majority of partners at both firms, will commence later this year. The combined firm will be known as Norton Rose Fulbright. 

The two firms said in a joint statement that the combination will “provide a powerful new offering to clients who will benefit from the increased scale and depth drawn from two highly compatible firms,” particularly in financial services, government, infrastructure, and other key sectors. A core focus will be assisting corporate and government clients to manage their exposure to risk. 

“We see that the Australian legal market is ripe for the next phase of consolidation and we are satisfied that this combination will bring us another first-mover advantage that will significantly strengthen our brand and footprint in the market,” said Wayne Spanner, Norton Rose's Australia managing partner.

“There is a sense of real momentum in our global business right now,” noted Peter Martyr, Norton Rose’s global chief executive. “The combination proposal in Australia with Henry Davis York is occurring as we join forces with premier New-York based firm Chadbourne & Parke and continue to integrate into our business our new colleagues from Vancouver-based firm Bull Housser.”