Denton Wilde Sapte has still not served its official notice of withdrawal from Denton International (DI), as the European alliance now looks set to collapse.


A source at one DI firm said it was unlikely the network would continue following the departure of Dentons and Spanish member Denton Lupicinio.

Deputy chief executive Steven Blakeley said the firm had not served formal notice of its withdrawal as it was “confident a sensible arrangement as to when to end the alliance could be reached”.

Following the 8 April meeting, at which all except the Spanish firms were present, the members are now individually discussing who they will continue to work with and on what basis.

Meanwhile, Denton Lupicinio senior partner Lupicinio Rodriguez confirmed that although the firm was currently talking to Field Fisher Waterhouse and other European networks, he thought it unlikely that it would join another network. “If we sign to exclusiveness it would probably be in the context of merger, not otherwise,” he added. A number of Dentons insurance lawyers based in Spain will remain.

It is understood that German member Heuking Kühn Lüer Wojtek is holding partner meetings at its various offices to decide what is best for the firm as a whole.