Biglaw

Transatlantic Biglaw Merger Plan Enters Home Stretch

Everything's coming together.

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So that O’Melveny press statement about how “We have no plans to merge and never have” turned out to be — as we suspected at the time — a complete lie. Even back then, Allen & Overy was willing to offer a diplomatic version of “yeah, maybe” which wasn’t the best sign that the firms were on the same page when it came to combining.

But despite all the dissonance, it looks like Allen & Overy and O’Melveny are really going to get this done. The leadership are said to be hammering out final terms right now and the deal appears headed to a partnership vote soon. Nothing in life is guaranteed, but we’ve passed the “I left because he killed a hooker at his bachelor party” stage and gotten to the point where any hiccup is a true runaway bride scenario.

When nitty-gritty details like these are getting fully fleshed out, then we’re in the home stretch:

One person said that a merged firm is expected to operate one profit pool. A combined firm is likely to run an amalgamation of the two firms’ systems in a flexible lock step style, which would have greater flexibility at the top in order to retain and attract stellar talent, the person said.

A&O’s standard lockstep ladder runs from 20 to 50 points, taking 15 years to reach the plateau. However, the firm introduced a bonus pool for star performers in 2014 and broke lockstep to hire a number of finance partners in New York in 2016.

Still, the firms haven’t yet settled on a name:

The combined firm’s name is also being discussed. A number of hybrids of the duo’s names have been registered online, including allenomelveny.com, omelvenyallen.com, aom.com, aomm.com and allenmyers.com. It is not known whether those names were registered by the firms.

I’d note that the best name — Allen O’Melvery — hasn’t been picked up yet. Let’s just do it and be legends, man.

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O’Melveny and Allen & Overy Merger Talks Reach Final Stages [American Lawyer]

Earlier: Checking In On ‘Allen & O’Melvery,’ Biglaw’s Most Hilarious ‘Will They Or Won’t They’ RomCom
Allen & Overy And O’Melveny Are Considering Merger (Please Name It Allen & O’Melvery)
O’Melveny Tells ATL ‘We Have No Plans To Merge And Never Have.’
The ‘Allen & O’Melvery’ Merger Seems To Be Gaining Steam

HeadshotJoe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.

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