A&O Partners Earned £2.2 Million Year Ahead of Shearman Merger

Allen & Overy reported higher revenue and profits last year, ahead of the UK Magic Circle firm’s merger with US firm Shearman & Sterling.

A&O partners took home an average of £2.2 million ($2.7 million), up more than 20% from £1.82 million ($2.2 million) the previous year. Client revenue rose 3.4% to £2.2 billion ($2.7 billion) and the firm’s pre-tax profit grew 17.2% to £1 billion ($1.3 billion).

A boost in the firm’s results can be attributed partially to the sale of its legal technology unit aosphere to private equity firm Inflexion and investment firm Endicott Capital in October.

Allen & Overy’s merger with Shearman & Sterling was made official in May, forming A&O Shearman, the world’s fourth-largest law firm, with an estimated $3.5 billion in annual revenue and 4,000 lawyers. The merger gives Allen & Overy, the much larger of the combined firms, a foothold in the lucrative US deals market.

On Wednesday, rival Magic Circle firm Linklaters reported its highest ever revenue and pre-tax profits, surpassing £2 billion in revenue. That firm’s profit per equity partner was up 8% to £1.9 million ($2.45 million).