The standout deal of the week in the legal sector has been the announcement of the forthcoming merger between the British firm Ashurst and the US firm Perkins Coie to create a new global legal powerhouse named Ashurst Perkins Coie.

The result will be a firm with around 3.000 lawyers, a presence in 23 countries, and combined estimated revenues of 2.7 billion dollars.

This marks the third transatlantic merger in three years, following the tie-up between Herbert Smith Freehills and Kramer Levin – operating as Herbet Smith Freehills Kramer since June 2025 – and that of Allen & Overy and Shearman & Sterling, known as A&O Shearman since May 2024.

Our global managing partner, Marc Gericó, examines this development in an exclusive feature for Cinco Días. 

“It is more than a corporate transaction; it is another clear indication of the new global legal order“. The market, Marc explains, “is witnessing the formation of a league of large transatlantic firms seeking genuine scale, integrated geographic coverage and sector-specific specialisation in strategic areas such as technology, energy, infrastructure and financial services”.

“The consolidation of a global legal landscape in which 20-25 firms will compete for the most complex transactions”

“We already saw this trend earlier this summer with the combination of McDermott Will & Emery and Schulte Roth & Zabel, a deal that further reinforced this movement. But the Ashurst-Perkins Coie merger is particularly revealing because it accelerates three major trends: the consolidation of a global landscape in which 20-25 firms will compete for the most complex transactions -as highlighted at the Legal Marcom Awards-; the increasingly stark contrast between scale-driven models and focus-driven models (specialisation, agility and client proximity); and the need for partners to evolve towards the role of ‘architects’ of international transactions, rather than merely legal executors”.

In this regard, Marc Gericó states that “all signs suggest that this wave will continue: clients are demanding efficiency, multidisciplinary teams and genuine presence across multiple jurisdictions”. 

“Firms wishing to compete in that environment will need to strengthen their strategy, clarify their position and decide precisely what type of player they want to be on this new global board”. 

You can read the full Cinco Días article here.