A transatlantic tie-up with a twist

When people think of transatlantic mergers, they normally think of UK-US unions. And yet the merger between London corporate boutique Stringer Saul and top four Canadian firm Fasken Martineau DuMoulin is one of those rare deals that seem to make perfect sense, on paper at least.

As the two firms explain in their unusually informative press release, the rationale for the deal lies with Stringer Saul’s healthy Alternative Investment Market (AIM) practice and the attractiveness of AIM to Canadian companies, especially in the mining sector.

Of the 80 new international companies that were admitted to AIM over the last 12 months, 44 were from Canada. What a shame then for both firms that they did not secure the deal 12 months earlier. Still, while AIM is currently going through a period of what one AIM specialist describes as “indigestion”, practitioners are relatively confident that it will pick up speed again in the new year. They are also hoping that the proposed new regulatory regime, which will see nominated advisers policed more closely, will help shore up the market’s reputation (see story).

“I think it’s an excellent move for both firms,” says partner Max Audley, London head of corporate at Faegre & Benson. “I have known the Fasken people for a long time and Stringer Saul are a great mob. I can see similarities between the two teams.”

But it is not only to do with the practice fit between the two firms. Norman Ziman, managing partner of Stringer Saul, has conceded to Legal Week (see story) that he hopes the merger will give the firm more credibility both with clients and prospective laterals, as it has been struggling to recruit.

Beachcroft corporate partner Peter Jay is reminded of the merger between Audley’s old firm, Hobson Audley, and Minneapolis-based Faegre & Benson back in January 2003. He says: “Like Stringer Saul, Hobson Audley was a small practice focused on AIM. If you are a small firm doing transactional work, a merger with a larger practice gives you both additional resources and protection in the form of bread-and-butter work at times when the market is slow.”

For its part, Fasken Martineau will be congratulating itself on snapping up what is becoming an increasingly rare commodity in London – a bite-sized corporate boutique with a decent practice that is willing to merge.

john.malpas@legalweek.com