The former managing partner of Andersen Legal in Italy is overhauling the structure of Ernst & Young's Italian legal arm after the two firms merged.
US firm Reed Smith is set to get the go-ahead for a merger with California's Crosby Heafey Roach & May.
The firms are understood to have agreed terms, which the partners will vote on by the end of the month.
In the past three years, Reed Smith has recruited 26 lawyers from the New York office of Parker Duryee Rosoff & Haft, merged with UK firm Warner Cranston, added New York City intellectual property practice McAulay Nissen Goldberg & Kiel and merged with Virginia's Hazel & Thomas.
The merger is one of the largest in the US this year, with the combined firm housing 990 lawyers.
