Chicago-headquartered McDermott Will & Emery is in advanced merger talks with New York outfit Schulte Roth & Zabel, in a tie-up that would create a law firm with $2.8bn in revenue. 

A McDermott spokesperson said the two firms were “actively finalising a transformative combination” with a deal anticipated “in the coming months”.

“Schulte, the nation’s preeminent private capital law firm, is excited to align with McDermott, the firm that has achieved the strongest upward trajectory in Big Law over the past eight years,” the spokesperson said.

“United by a commitment to innovation, excellence in client service and a people-first culture, this potential merger brings together two premier firms with complementary strengths and exceptional track records.”

The merged firm would be among the top 20 US law firms by revenue and headcount, with around 1,700 lawyers. 

McDermott is by far the larger of the two firms – its 1,350 lawyers brought in revenue of just over $2.2bn in 2024 according to data published by the American Lawyer, with profit per equity partner (PEP) of $4.6m. Schulte had revenue of $618m last year and PEP of $4.1m. 

The merger would see McDermott, which has particular strength in healthcare, tax and mid-market M&A, gain Schulte’s top-tier funds, financial services regulation and mid-market private equity buyouts practices. 

Almost all of Schulte’s 360 lawyers are based in New York, although the firm also has small offices in Washington DC and London. 

Schulte has seen a number of senior partner departures this year. These include three private equity specialists who joined McDermott, among them Allison Scher Bernbach, who signed up as leader of its US private equity fund regulatory practice in New York in February. 

More recently, Michael Swartz, co-chair of Schulte’s litigation group, left for Quinn Emanuel, and restructuring leader Douglas Mintz joined Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft. 

Earlier this year the firm, which grew revenue 13.5% and PEP by 24% in 2024, abandoned a full-equity partnership and introduced a non-equity tier, according to the American Lawyer, joining a string of law firms that have made the same move in a bid to retain and reward top talent.  

The McDermott spokesperson said: “When complete, this will mark one of the most strategic and high-performing legal combinations in the industry’s history. We are operating from a position of shared strength, and our vision is to deepen our ability to serve our clients at the highest levels.”

McDermott is currently 23rd in the AmLaw 100 while Schulte is placed at 91. A merger would put the firm at around 13th place by revenue.

Last month, McDermott closed its Singapore office, ending its on-the-ground presence in Asia. However, it has made a number of lateral hires in Europe in recent months across its London, Paris, Frankfurt and Munich offices.

News of the merger talks continues a trend of mergers in the legal industry as firms seek scale to boost profitability and build their footprint in desirable markets. 

“This is part of a pattern of accelerating consolidation among law firms,” said Kent Zimmermann, a principal at law firm consultancy Zeughauser Group. “Larger and more profitable firms often have a talent advantage because they tend to have more flexibility on compensation, more money to invest to advantage the firm broadly, have a higher profile, and are often seen as a safer choice among talent and clients for the most sophisticated work that commands high rates. 

“Most firms find there are limits to how big and profitable they can get on their own, so they increasingly put M&A on the table. What’s changing is that these trends are now impacting more profitable firms. There will be more transactions for all of these reasons.”

According to Fairfax Associates, law firm merger activity has remained steady this year, with 22 mergers completed in Q1 2025, compared to 21 in the same period last year. 

Four of those were between firms that each had more than 100 lawyers, with the largest being Atlanta-based Troutman Pepper’s (1,074 lawyers) tie-up with Dallas-based Locke Lord (556) to create Troutman Pepper Locke. 

Other high-profile combinations include Allen & Overy’s merger with Shearman & Sterling – the largest law firm combination of 2024 – and Herbert Smith Freehills’ impending tie-up with New York firm Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel, which will hand the Anglo-Australian firm a sizeable US presence when it goes live at the start of June.