US firm Womble Carlyle has announced a three-partner hire from McCarter & English in Boston ahead of its merger with Bond Dickinson next month.
Danielle Herritt, Deborah Vernon and Cristin Cowles all join Womble Carlyle in Boston which is the firm’s northernmost and newest office having opened its doors on 1 September with a focus on life sciences and IP.
The three new partners all join the firm’s IP practice taking the overall headcount in IP to more than 70 lawyers.
Herritt said: “Womble may be new to Boston, but the firm’s commitment to client service is well known in the legal industry.
“That was one of the key factors that attracted us to Womble. We feel confident our clients will be well served here.”
The announcement comes less than a month before Womble Carlyle merger with UK firm Bond Dickinson to create Womble Bond Dickinson on 1 November. The addition of the Boston office means the merged firm will have 24 offices across the US and UK jurisdictions.
The firms announced that they entered a strategic alliance in June 2016.
Data from The Lawyer Global 200 and The Lawyer UK 200 shows that the newly-merged firm will break into the top 100 firms, placing 97th with a combined turnover of £312m and more than 420 partners.
Womble Carlyle’s CEO and chairwoman Betty Temple will co-chair the merged firm with Bond Dickinson managing partner Jonathan Blair on a global board comprised of four partners from each firm.
Temple said:”They know the market, they know the clients, they know this region, and they are used to working together to accomplish great things for clients.”
Speaking of the merger, Blair told The Lawyer that he was keen to put our “money where our mouth is”.
Blair had stated that he wanted to take Bond Dickinson into the “top 20 by 2020”. The merger will make that a reality placing Womble Bond Dickinson at 17th in The Lawyer UK 200 rankings.
