Proskauer hitch fails to dent SJ Berwin’s American dream
SJ Berwin remains committed to securing a transatlantic merger as the dust settles on its failed attempt to pair up with Proskauer Rose last year.
Protracted talks with the US firm fell through last November due to a mismatch of profit figures. But last week the UK firm announced a 40 per cent increase in average profit per equity partner (PEP) and a 5 per cent revenue hike - figures that show a strong recovery following two years of decreases in turnover. In 2008-09 the firm’s PEP declined by 50 per cent.
SJ Berwin managing partner Rob Day said a merger was the only way to branch out into the US, adding that he frequently receives enquiries from potential suitors.
The issue was on the agenda at a recent weekend conference of partners.
Day told The Lawyer: “We still think the direction of travel of law as a whole is towards strong multinational businesses. Joining strength in Europe with strength in the US makes sense. Accessing the US is a merger-only option. We reviewed that at the partner weekend. We’ve got to get it right and at the right time.”
Day added that the firm will avoid jumping into a deal before it has had time for its financials to stabilise.
“The Proskauer discussions concluded in November,” he said, “and since then we’ve had a great set of results. The environment feels different now. Our feeling is that we still need a period of stabilisation. We’d like to [merge with a US firm], but we’re not going to go straight back into it.”
Readers' comments (7)
Anonymous | 6-Jun-2011 1:12 pm
A Proskauer-SJ Berwin merger does make strategic sense but I will believe it when I see it.
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Anonymous | 7-Jun-2011 12:43 pm
Who else would be in the picture, on the US side?
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Alan Day Volkswagen | 7-Jun-2011 1:09 pm
@Anonymous | 7-Jun-2011 12:43 pm
This should help....I have it on good authority that Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is on the hunt - only a matter of time before SJB seals the deal. (Wachtell's $4.3 PEP is understood not to be a problem as SJB are clearly on the up and up.)
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Anonymous | 7-Jun-2011 1:22 pm
@Anonymous | 7-Jun-2011 12:43 pm
My money is on Fried Frank. They are really weak in the UK and their key UK corporate partner has just left to go to Milbank. FF were pretty close to merging with Ashurst a few years ago if I recall, so they are on the lookout. SJ Berwin adds up from an FF point of view because it is like a US firm merging with a European firm. SJ Berwin are strong in UK where FF have nothing - corporate / litigation and comp / property finance. FF are one of strongest property firms in US so can you imagine if they linked with David Ryland's team. FF would bring some major US finance clients to the table for SJ and then would be able to get them to hand over more UK work which currently goes to MC firms (e.g. GS / Morgan Stanley / JPMorgan). If this happened it would dent MC firms big time and there is a case for saying that SJ Frank would be a beast of a firm.
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Anonymous | 7-Jun-2011 1:53 pm
Wachtell's $4.3m PEP is "understood not to be a problem as SJB are clearly on the up and up". Is this a joke? SJB may have put in a good performance in getting its PEP up, but even at the height of 2007 its PEP was £850k - still a MASSIVE gap away from Wachtell's PEP. If Wachtell were looking for a merger partner then wouldn'tI they go for a Travers/Macfarlanes type firm (small, high PEP, good clients, stable). I do however agree with the comments relating to FF. The merger with Ashurst fell through apparently due Ashurst being unable to concede enough ground/control. With SJB they seem more inclined to make those sacrifices. Either way, it certainly is interesting times for SJB.
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Alan Day (Psychedelic) Volkswagen Camper Van | 7-Jun-2011 3:00 pm
@ Wachtell's $4.3m PEP is "understood not to be a problem as SJB are clearly on the up and up". Is this a joke?
Absolutely not...........(alright, it is, you got me, you fell for it though....but are you smoking 'shrooms? Wachtell and Travers...........???? That's even more insane that with SJB.)
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Anonymous | 7-Jun-2011 3:55 pm
Goodwin Procter or Nixon peabody are more likely merger partners.
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