Chicago-based Winston & Strawn and British firm Taylor Wessing will merge this year, creating a global firm with more than 1,400 lawyers in 20 offices. The resulting firm will operate under the name Winston Taylor. Both firms expect to complete the transaction in May 2026, subject to partner approval.
According to a fact sheet published on a website created for the deal, the combined firm would have estimated annual revenues of approximately $1.75 billion. The announcement comes just days after both firms confirmed they were in merger talks.
The transaction comes amid increasing consolidation in the legal sector. A recent report by Citigroup and Hildebrandt Consulting indicated that mergers between law firms could intensify in 2026, as many firms face moderate demand growth and rising cost pressures. The report also noted that British firms’ interest in the US legal market could spur further transatlantic deals.
Steve D’Amore, chairman of Winston & Strawn, is slated to become chairman of the resulting firm. In a statement, D’Amore said the merger will provide Winston & Strawn with a “London-based partner that fulfills our long-held ambition to grow in the UK.” Shane Gleghorn, managing partner of Taylor Wessing UK, will be the new firm’s managing partner for Europe and the Middle East.
Taylor Wessing currently operates under a Swiss verein structure, with regional divisions functioning as largely independent legal entities under a common brand. Under the proposed transaction, Taylor Wessing’s UK business -which includes lawyers in the UK, Ireland, Dubai, and San Francisco- would leave the verein and merge with Winston & Strawn. The firm’s practices in the Netherlands and Belgium would also leave the structure and enter into an agreement to operate under the Winston Taylor brand. The remainder of the Taylor Wessing verein would maintain a referral relationship with the new firm.
In their joint announcement, the firms indicated that the merger “responds to the growing client demand for integrated and seamless advice across the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union for the businesses, people and markets that drive capital and innovation.”
The deal follows a series of mergers between US and British law firms in recent years. Ashurst and Perkins Coie announced their intention to merge to create a firm of around 3,000 lawyers, subject to partner approval, with a closing expected in the third quarter of 2026. In early 2025, the merger between Herbert Smith Freehills and Kramer Levin resulted in a firm of approximately 2,700 lawyers, while Allen & Overy and Shearman & Sterling combined to form A&O Shearman, a firm with nearly 4,000 lawyers globally.
A&O Shearman advised Winston & Strawn on the transaction, while Jenner & Block acted as advisor to Taylor Wessing, a spokesman confirmed.
