Author(s):  Ashish Nanda, Monet Brewerton
Product Number:  HLS 09-26
Publication Date:  September 30, 2011
Length:  24 pgs
Cost per Copy:  $10.00

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Abstract
The case outlines Bingham’s evolution from a “middle-of-the-downtown-pack” Boston law firm in the early 1990s to a preeminent international law firm by 2010. Bingham achieved this transformation by following a strategy of sequential mergers, or “combinations” in the firm’s parlance. The case describes the approach firm management took to initiate and integrate these combinations, and ends with a question as to what the firm’s future trajectory might be.

Learning Objectives
The case allows participants to explore the positives and negatives of following a strategy of inorganic growth in professional service firms (PSFs); identification, negotiation, and post-merger integration in case of acquisition of PSFs; the challenge of alignment in a firm that is growing through mergers; and the challenge of leading a firm as it becomes larger and more complex.

Subjects Covered
Mergers and Acquisitions
Change Management
Strategy Formulation

Setting
Geographic: United States
Industry: Law Firm
Event Year Begin: 1990s