Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis and
If the talks prove to be successful, the merger would be completed by 1 July, both firms said in a statement.
K&L Gates ranked 28th in this year's Am Law 100, with gross revenues of $755m (£379.7m). The 1,235-lawyer national firm had profits per partner of $800,000 (£402,300), with revenue per lawyer at roughly $610,000 (£306.750).
K&L Gates itself grew out of a January 2007 merger between Pittsburgh firm Kirkpatrick & Lockhart and Seattle firm Preston Gates & Ellis. In January, K&L Gates merged with 175-lawyer Dallas firm Hughes & Luce, which also had offices in
The proposed merger with 175-lawyer Kennedy Covington, which has five offices throughout North and
K&L Gates chairman Peter Kalis and Kennedy Covington managing partner Eugene Pridgen said in a joint statement: "
Kalis added: "Kennedy Covington - like Hughes & Luce - is a regional firm with a national reputation for doing matters of consequence for [its] clients."
Asked about K&L Gates' merger mania, Kalis said the firm's strategy is to "identify strategically significant parts of the global economy" and align itself with premier regional firms.
The two firms began merger talks in late 2007, Kalis revealed, adding that all partners at Kennedy Covington would become partners of similar standing with K&L Gates should the merger be finalised.
The American Lawyer is a US sister title of Legal Week.
