Ashurst Perkins Coie: The Transatlantic Merger Explained

Last updated: 3 November 2026. This article draws on the firms’ announcements of 17 November 2025, 23 June 2026 and 28 June 2026, reporting by Bloomberg Law, The Global Legal Post, Above the Law and Legal Cheek, and reports on the Perkins Coie executive order appeal. Figures are the firms’ own or as reported by those publications. It is general information, not investment, career or legal advice.

Short answer: Ashurst Perkins Coie is the firm created when London-based Ashurst combined with US firm Perkins Coie. The deal was announced on 17 November 2025, partners approved it in April 2026, and completion was announced on 28 June 2026. The firm reports over 950 partners and 52 offices, and press reports put revenue at about $2.8 billion.

Key takeaways

• The firms announced their plan on 17 November 2025, said on 13 April 2026 that partners had approved it, and announced completion on 28 June 2026, just ahead of the third quarter the firms had targeted.
• The firm says it has more than 950 partners and 3,500 client-facing practitioners in 52 offices across 20 countries and regions. Reports put combined revenue at about $2.8 billion.
• Paul Jenkins of Ashurst and Bill Malley of Perkins Coie are global co-CEOs. There is no single headquarters: the flagship hubs are London, New York, Seattle and Sydney.
• The cost came early. Before closing, Perkins Coie lost more than 20 partners to McGuireWoods and Morrison & Foerster, according to reports in February 2026.

When did Ashurst and Perkins Coie merge?

The firms first set out their plan in a joint announcement on 17 November 2025, describing a top 20 global firm subject to a partner vote at each firm. Talks had started early in 2025, The Global Legal Post reported.

The firms said on 13 April 2026 that partners had voted “overwhelmingly” in favour, Bloomberg Law reported. Above the Law, citing The American Lawyer, said the vote cleared a two-thirds threshold. We found no published percentage. The firm then announced completion on 28 June 2026.

How big is Ashurst Perkins Coie?

The numbers have moved as the deal progressed, so it helps to separate them. The November 2025 announcement cited about 3,000 lawyers and 52 offices in 23 countries. The completion release cites over 950 partners and 3,500 client-facing practitioners in 52 offices across 20 countries and regions. That release gives no revenue figure. Press estimates rose from about $2.7 billion at announcement to about $2.8 billion at the partner vote and at closing, which put it in the top 20 of the biggest law firms in the world by revenue.

Here is what each side brought, from the last separate figures:

Ashurst’s final results, published on 23 June 2026, showed revenue up 11% and profit per equity partner up 15%. The Perkins Coie figures come from Law.com data reported by The Global Legal Post. Ashurst says the first full-year results as Ashurst Perkins Coie are expected in 2028, so the combined firm’s real revenue and profit will not be public for some time.

Who runs Ashurst Perkins Coie and how is it structured?

Leadership is split evenly. Bill Malley, Perkins Coie’s firm managing partner, and Paul Jenkins, Ashurst’s global CEO, are global co-CEOs. Karen Davies of Ashurst and Brian Eiting of Perkins Coie are global co-chairs. Jenkins told the Financial Times that the firms would be “50-50” in all respects, including board and leadership seats, The Global Legal Post reported. The same report said the firm would be fully integrated with pooled profits.

There is no single head office. The firm is built around flagship hubs in Seattle, London, Sydney and New York, with what it calls a deep presence in financial centres including Brussels, Dubai, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Paris, Seoul, Shenzhen, Singapore and Tokyo. It organises its work into eight divisions: corporate; finance, funds and restructuring; intellectual property; litigation, investigations and advisory; projects, energy, environment and resources; real estate; technology; and Advance, the firm’s New Law division.

For readers less familiar with how these roles fit together, our guide to law firm hierarchy explains the ladder from associate to equity partner. We could not confirm the firm’s legal structure, as neither announcement states it.

Why did Ashurst and Perkins Coie combine?

Each firm filled the other’s gap. Jenkins said Ashurst’s ambition “for many years” had been to grow in the US “with the right partner”. Ashurst already had US offices, and The Global Legal Post named Austin, Los Angeles and New York among them. Perkins Coie’s lawyers were mostly in 17 US offices, with small teams in Taipei and London.

The firm’s stated strategy is sector-led. It names three focus areas: technology, energy and infrastructure, and financial services. Malley said the firm would focus on “the sectors driving global economic transformation”, and argues that AI is bringing those sectors closer together. Jenkins described the aim as being “the leading global advisor to the companies shaping the future economy”.

Market pressure mattered too. The deal followed Allen & Overy’s combination with Shearman & Sterling and Herbert Smith Freehills’ tie-up with Kramer Levin, which we covered when it completed. Our profile of Hogan Lovells Cadwalader, which launched three days later, shows how much larger that deal is.

Deal watchers can follow the firm’s announced work on DealDatabase’s Ashurst profile, which tracks mandates and deal teams.

What did the merger cost Perkins Coie?

The clearest early cost was litigators. Above the Law reported on 6 February 2026, citing The American Lawyer and the National Law Journal, that eight partners were joining McGuireWoods to open a Seattle office, and that 12 named partners were joining Morrison & Foerster, with three more expected. Perkins Coie said it was “grateful for the contributions of our former colleagues”.

The reports did not always link the departures directly to the merger, and it would be unfair to say that every partner left because of it. Above the Law later reported, citing unnamed sources, that the firm was considering retention bonuses with clawbacks, though another source said it was not proactively offering them. That is unconfirmed by the firm. In the other direction, Ashurst was still hiring in the run-up: Legal Business and Non Billable reported a three-partner private equity team from Goodwin and a four-partner finance team from Bracewell in New York, both in March 2026.

What happened to the executive order against Perkins Coie?

This is the part of the deal with no parallel in other mergers. In March 2025, President Trump signed an executive order targeting Perkins Coie. Judge Beryl Howell struck it down in May 2025. The Justice Department appealed, moved to drop the appeals in March 2026 and then, a day later, asked to withdraw that request, NBC News reported.

The D.C. Circuit heard argument on 14 May 2026 in the consolidated appeals of Perkins Coie, WilmerHale, Jenner & Block and Susman Godfrey, before Chief Judge Srinivasan and Judges Pillard and Rao, the Washington Legal Foundation noted. As of 3 November 2026 we found no reported decision. We also found no public statement on how a ruling would apply to the combined firm.

What does the merger mean for clients, trainees and associates?

Clients. The pitch is one firm across US, European, Middle East and Asia Pacific markets. Technology clients of Perkins Coie gain Ashurst’s energy, infrastructure and finance bench, and Ashurst’s clients gain US reach. Neither firm has published detail on client conflicts, a problem that drove several exits at Hogan Lovells Cadwalader.

Trainees and newly qualified lawyers. London is where the two pay scales diverge. Legal Cheek reported in June 2026 that Ashurst pays newly qualified solicitors £140,000 and that it understands Perkins Coie pays £180,000. In London, Ashurst offers 38 training contracts and Perkins Coie around four a year. Trainee numbers and salaries for the combined firm had not been announced at that point, and we found no update since.

US associates. We could not find a published combined pay scale. For the market benchmark, see our guide to the Cravath scale.

What should we watch next?

Three things will show whether the combination works: whether partners stay, how the firm settles the London pay gap, and what the first combined results show in 2028. The D.C. Circuit’s ruling could also matter for Perkins Coie’s legacy practice and for the wider relationship between law firms and the White House.

Frequently asked questions

When did Ashurst and Perkins Coie merge?

Completion was announced on 28 June 2026. The firms announced their intent to combine on 17 November 2025, and reports on 13 April 2026 said partners had approved the deal. Above the Law had reported a planned 1 July closing.

How many lawyers does Ashurst Perkins Coie have?

The firm says it has over 950 partners and 3,500 client-facing practitioners. The November 2025 announcement cited about 3,000 lawyers, so the two figures measure different groups. The completion release lists 52 offices in 20 countries and regions, though the firm’s website elsewhere has said 53.

What is Ashurst Perkins Coie’s revenue?

The firm has not published a combined figure. Reports put it at about $2.8 billion, based on Ashurst’s £1.152 billion for the year to 30 April 2026 and Perkins Coie’s just under $1.3 billion for 2025. Ashurst says the first full-year results for the combined firm are expected in 2028.

Who are the CEOs of Ashurst Perkins Coie?

Paul Jenkins, previously Ashurst’s global CEO, and Bill Malley, previously Perkins Coie’s firm managing partner, are global co-CEOs. Karen Davies and Brian Eiting are global co-chairs.

Where is Ashurst Perkins Coie headquartered?

It has no single head office. Its flagship hubs are Seattle, London, Sydney and New York. Ashurst’s London base is the London Fruit & Wool Exchange at 1 Duval Square in Spitalfields.

Is the Trump executive order against Perkins Coie still in force?

No. Judge Beryl Howell ruled it unconstitutional and blocked it in May 2025. The government’s appeal was argued before the D.C. Circuit on 14 May 2026, and we found no reported decision as of 3 November 2026.

This article is general information about a law firm combination, based on public statements and press reporting as of 3 November 2026. It is not legal, financial or career advice. Figures are as reported by the firms or the publications named, and reports about partner moves and bonuses are attributed to those outlets.

Featured image: Photo: Loz Pycock via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 (adapted)