COMMERCIAL LAW: growth in AIM fuels international tie-up



London-based Stringer Saul is to merge with one of Canada's largest firms to create the first ever full-service Canadian-UK partnership.



The commercial law specialist, which has 20 partners and 32 other solicitors, will join forces with Fasken Martineau DuMoulin in February next year to form a 650-lawyer practice.



The combined firm - to be called Fasken Martineau Stringer Saul - will be in the top 70 firms worldwide by number of fee-earners, with offices in London, Vancouver, Toronto, Calgary, Montreal, Quebec City, New York and Johannesburg. Turnover following the merger will be C$250 million (£111 million).



Stringer Saul managing partner Norman Ziman said that the London office would now have the critical mass to take advantage of the substantial growth in the Alternative Investment Market (AIM).



He added that Stringer Saul had already worked with its new Canadian partner on several AIM projects - which in part prompted the merger - and it expected to become involved in many more, particularly in areas where both firms specialised, such as mining, life sciences and high-tech industries.



Mr Ziman said: 'Canada offers... many vibrant business opportunities. There are currently 283 overseas companies listed on AIM. In the last 12 months alone, 80 new global organisations were admitted and [more than half] of those were from Canada.'



Recruitment was another area singled out by Mr Ziman as an advantage of the merger. He said: 'It's never easy to get the highest-calibre lawyers to leave the City and move to a comparatively small firm in the West End. The merger should give us greater credibility.'



Mr Ziman will remain managing partner in the UK and will sit on the board of the merged firm.



Jonathan Rayner