Crossing the Atlantic at Last: How Ashurst Finally Secured Its Long-Sought American Breakthrough

For more than two decades, Ashurst has been a global law firm with one persistent strategic tension: it was everywhere except meaningfully in the United States. The U.S. is the world’s largest and most profitable legal market, yet Ashurst’s presence in America never quite reached the scale or depth of its operations in Europe, Asia, or Australia.

That long wait is now over.

In one of the most significant transatlantic legal moves of the decade, Ashurst has announced a merger with U.S. firm Perkins Coie—a deal that, if approved, will create a top-20 global legal powerhouse and mark the end of Ashurst’s decades-long quest to firmly establish itself on American soil.

A Transatlantic Union Years in the Making

Ashurst’s ambition to expand in the United States is not new. The firm has pursued multiple strategies over the years: opening small foothold offices, recruiting key laterals, shifting global partners to New York and Los Angeles, and engaging in long courtships with potential U.S. merger partners.

Before now, none of those attempts delivered the scale the firm sought. Talks with major American firms over the years either stalled or quietly dissolved. Ashurst’s U.S. offices remained focused but modest, and lacked the breadth needed to compete with the major U.S. players.

Perkins Coie, meanwhile, has long been a respected national firm—deep in tech, strong across the West Coast, and boasting a healthy roster of marquee clients. But as the legal market globalized, its lack of international reach increasingly stood out.

The combination of the two firms, therefore, is less surprising than the fact it took this long.

Why This Merger Makes Strategic Sense

1. Ashurst Gains the Scale It Couldn’t Build Organically

By merging with Perkins Coie, Ashurst instantly becomes a major U.S. presence—something that might otherwise have taken another decade of incremental growth. The combined firm will have thousands of lawyers across dozens of global offices, immediately transforming Ashurst’s ability to service multinational clients with significant American operations.

2. Perkins Coie Gets Global Reach Overnight

For Perkins Coie, the merger solves the opposite problem: global visibility. The firm now gains access to Ashurst’s international network across Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Australia. Its technology and venture capital clients—many with international footprints—stand to benefit from streamlined cross-border legal support.

3. A Perfectly Timed Move for an Evolving Legal Market

The legal world is consolidating. Corporate clients increasingly expect seamless global service, and firms without international depth risk losing ground.

By joining forces, Ashurst and Perkins Coie can more effectively compete with elite global players. Their merged strengths—technology, infrastructure, energy, finance, and regulatory work—align with sectors experiencing rapid worldwide growth.

A “Combination of Equals” — Not a Takeover

Both firms have emphasized that this is not a traditional acquisition. Leadership roles are balanced, regional hubs are distributed, and the integration strategy aims to avoid the pitfalls that have plagued past transatlantic mergers.

Instead of forcing an identity on one another, the two organizations are trying to build a genuinely combined global enterprise. If successful, it could serve as a new model for cross-border legal integration—one that ensures cultural compatibility as much as commercial synergy.

Ashurst’s Slow but Steady Build Toward This Moment

Even prior to the merger announcement, Ashurst had been laying groundwork for a stronger U.S. presence:

• relocating senior infrastructure partners from Australia to New York
• expanding its Los Angeles office
• recruiting U.S. finance specialists
• investing in AI-driven legal technology
• strengthening energy, sustainability, and infrastructure practices aligned with U.S. market growth

These moves signaled a shift from passive ambition to active, strategic preparation. The Perkins Coie merger is the culmination of that evolution.

What the Combined Firm Could Look Like

Once finalized, the merged firm will feature:

• significant offices in the U.S. (New York, Seattle, Washington, D.C., LA, etc.)
• major hubs across Europe, Asia, and Australia
• strengthened cross-border finance and technology practices
• more than 3,000 lawyers worldwide
• annual revenues likely exceeding $2.5–$2.7 billion

This puts the new entity firmly into the top ranks of global law firms—competing not just with British Magic Circle firms, but with major U.S. rivals as well.

Opportunities—and Risks—ahead

Like any large merger, this deal comes with challenges:

Cultural Integration

U.S. and international partnerships often have different compensation models, governance structures, and cultural norms. Balancing those will determine whether the merger achieves true cohesion.

Client Alignment

Both firms will need to reassure clients that the merger strengthens—rather than complicates—their service experience.

Competition

The new firm will face intense pressure from elite U.S. players who have long dominated high-end corporate work.

Still, the potential rewards are significant. A well-executed integration could reshape both firms’ competitive trajectories for the next decade.

The End of a Long Quest—and the Start of a New Chapter

Ashurst’s journey into America has been long, complicated, and at times uncertain. But with this merger, the firm has finally secured what it could not achieve through organic growth alone: a meaningful, strategic, and sustainable U.S. foothold.

This is more than an expansion. It’s a transformation.

The firm that once circled the U.S. market from afar is now poised to become a major player within it.

And as global clients demand deeper cross-border capabilities, this could prove to be one of the most consequential legal tie-ups of the decade.