Another
week,
another
law
firm
merger.
Because
apparently
no
one
in
Biglaw
wants
to
stay
regional
anymore,
in
yet
another
sign
of
growing
consolidation
in
industry,
Frost
Brown
Todd
and
Gibbons
are
joining
forces
to
create
a
new
national
firm
called
FBT
Gibbons.
The
combination,
set
to
go
live
on
January
1,
2026,
will
bring
together
about
800
attorneys
across
25
offices
from
coast
to
coast.
The
new
firm
will
have
a
reach
that
stretches
from
New
York
to
California,
giving
both
firms
a
much
broader
platform
—
and
a
lot
more
lawyers
to
wrangle.
Frost
Brown
Todd,
based
in
Cincinnati,
is
known
for
its
corporate
and
transactional
work,
while
Newark-based
Gibbons
—
a
firm
that’s
nearly
a
century
old
—
has
long
been
a
litigation
heavyweight
in
the
Northeast.
Together,
they’re
hoping
to
carve
out
a
bigger
slice
of
the
middle-market
pie,
the
increasingly
competitive
space
between
the
global
Biglaw
giants
and
the
smaller
boutiques.
Financially
speaking,
they’re
off
to
a
solid
start.
Combined,
the
two
firms
bring
in
north
of
$450
million
in
revenue
—
enough
to
land
FBT
Gibbons
comfortably
within
the
Am
Law
100
when
the
next
set
of
rankings
come
out.
As
noted
by
the
American
Lawyer,
leadership
for
the
new
firm
is
already
set:
“We
are
very
excited
about
this
as
leaders
of
our
respective
firms
and
the
leaders
of
the
combined
firm
to
be,”
said
FBT
chairman
Robert
Sartin
in
an
interview.
“Our
partners
are
very
much
behind
this
and
excited
about
it.”Sartin
will
serve
as
chair
of
the
combined
firm,
with
Gibbons
managing
director
Peter
Torcicollo
and
FBT’s
CEO
Adam
Hall
serving
as
co-managing
partners.
FBT
held
its
partnership
vote
on
the
combination
Monday,
with
more
than
90%
of
the
firm’s
partnership
greenlighting
the
merger,
and
Gibbons’
partnership
unanimously
confirmed
the
merger
Tuesday.
When
the
dust
settles,
FBT
Gibbons
will
be
one
of
the
largest
mid-market
firms
in
the
country,
with
the
resources
to
take
on
national
matters
while
keeping
that
“client-first”
vibe
both
firms
swear
by.
Whether
that
balance
holds
up
after
the
honeymoon
phase
remains
to
be
seen,
but
for
now,
Frost
Brown
Todd
and
Gibbons
are
the
latest
to
say
“I
do”
in
Biglaw’s
ongoing
merger
season.
Frost
Brown
Todd
to
Merge
With
NJ
Mainstay
Gibbons,
Bolstering
Northeast
Footprint
[American
Lawyer]
Staci
Zaretsky is
the
managing
editor
of
Above
the
Law,
where
she’s
worked
since
2011.
She’d
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hear
from
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so
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