Dallas-headquartered Thompson & Knight and Holland & Knight of Miami are in final negotiations to merge.
If the combination is approved, the firm will boast more than 1,600 lawyers in 30 offices and annual revenue in excess of $1.25 billion.
“This proposed combination would expand significantly each firm’s presence in important geographic markets,” Thompson & Knight managing partner Mark Sloan said in a written statement to The Texas Lawbook.
Sloan said the merger “would also improve the depth and breadth of the services offered to clients in key industries.”
“Most importantly, the combination would bring together two firms who share similar cultures, and who are focused on providing excellent client service in a collaborative and diverse environment,” he said. “This is an exciting opportunity for both firms.”
Sources say the two law firms signed a binding letter of intent last week and that Thompson & Knight essentially will be merged into Holland & Knight.
Known informally throughout the legal profession as TK, Thompson & Knight is a 134-year-old law firm that has deep roots in the oil patch and represents some of the most important energy companies, including Shell Oil, Chesapeake Energy and NGP Energy Capital Management.
TK partner Amy Curtis recently led Riley Exploration in its go-public merger with Tengasco. The firm also represents non-energy clients, including Walmart.
TK has the full-time equivalent of 252 lawyers, including 231 in Texas, and reported 2020 revenues of $195 million. The firm has Texas offices in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth and Houston. Thompson & Knight also has outposts in Algiers; Monterrey, Mexico; Mexico City; and New York City.
Holland & Knight, which has the FTE of 1,159 lawyers including 92 in Texas, reported $1 billion in revenues in last year.
Thompson & Knight lawyers are joining a significantly more profitable law firm. In 2020, Holland & Knight reported profits per partner were $1.7 million, compared to TK’s $745,145.
Multiple sources told The Texas Lawbook that the name of the firm will be Holland & Knight and it will continue to be based in Miami.
This is the largest merger of a Texas law firm since 2018, when three large corporate law firms in the state – Andrews Kurth, Gardere and Strasburger – combined with larger national law firms.
Like those three law firms, Thompson & Knight has been losing some of its top partners to other law firms in recent years. For example, earlier this week, Akin Gump announced it had hired two energy transactional partners – Wesley P. Williams and Jessica Hammons – from TK’s Dallas-Fort Worth offices.