Sydney-based law firm Truman Hoyle has forged a “best friends” arrangement with Europe-based firm Vogel & Vogel.
The firm, which has offices in Paris, Brussels and Frankfurt, has more than 40 non-exclusive alliances with firms around the world. Truman Hoyle managing partner, Shane Barber, said this approach was a refreshing alternative to the rash of mergers and acquisitions currently sweeping through Australian law firms – some of which he claimed were being raced through as mid-sized law firms scurried almost as though they were afraid of being left out from the current M&A mania. “This is a far more sophisticated way of extending a global legal network,” said Barber, who added that the “best friends” network allowed participants to remain nimble and responsive to changing market conditions, but did not compromise the independence of individual firms.
Vogel & Vogel specialises in competition work, with particular experience in technology intensive manufacturing. The firm is made up of two founding partners, six senior managers and 24 lawyers. Truman Hoyle is similarly scaled, comprising 10 partners and 20 lawyers, and its practice is focused on companies operating in the new economy. “Our firms have a very similar culture; we are both specialist firms with a similar firm model that encourages particularly close relationships between senior lawyers and clients,” said Barber.
Truman Hoyle is the only Australian firm to be selected as a “best friend” in the Vogel & Vogel network of 46 law firms. The arrangement will allow Truman Hoyle clients to access global expertise from firms, which have all been hand-picked for their speciality, their approach to the law and proven capability. At the same time it will provide clients of the Vogel & Vogel network with access to legal skills in Australia.
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