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Friday, August 12, 2011

Ind. Law - Much more on "Baker & Daniels and Faegre & Benson Confirm Merger Talks" [Updated]

Updating this morning's ILB entry, here is a long, in-depth article on the proposed merger, from Patrick Thornton of Finance & Commerce. A few quotes:

Call it a merger or a strategic combination, it’s still a big deal.

Faegre & Benson, one of Minneapolis’ largest and oldest law firms, said Friday it is in talks to merge with the Indianapolis law firm Baker & Daniels.

The two sides could vote on the plan as early as October. If the deal goes through, the combined law firm would have about 800 attorneys in 13 offices in the U.S. and around the globe in a variety of different practice areas and business ventures.

For the Twin Cities, it would be the biggest law firm merger in memory. It comes at a time when the industry is seeing an uptick in mergers as firms battle through a slowdown that has forced some firms to cut back and others to dissolve. * * *

“They initially approached us,” [Adam Severson, the director of business development and marketing at Faegre & Benson] said Friday. * * *

Management at Baker& Daniels said Friday it is likely the firm’s name would change if the deal goes through, but Severson said it is too early to speculate about what it would be called. He said there would be no formal headquarters for the merged firm, but Minneapolis would be the largest office.

It is also unknown how the hierarchy of the combined firms would operate. Both operate as limited liability partnerships.

The proposed deal could go one of three ways, said Daniel Kleinberger, who teaches partnerships and LLCs at the William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul.

Faegre & Benson could be merged into Baker & Daniels, or Baker & Daniels could be merged into Faegre & Benson. The firms could also create a third, separate partnership. He said that with any merger there are overlaps and questions that will arise.

[Updated 8/14/11] "Baker & Daniels may finish merger by October" is the headline to this story in today's Indianapolis Star business section, reported by Bruce Smith. It begins:
Baker & Daniels, one of the oldest and largest law firms in Indianapolis, is in merger talks with one of the largest firms in the country.

The proposed deal -- possibly one of the largest in the nation this year -- would join the 300-plus attorneys of Baker & Daniels with the 475 attorneys in Minneapolis-based Faegre and Benson, the firms confirmed. The deal could close by October.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on August 12, 2011 07:28 PM
Posted to Indiana Law