SNR Denton co-chief executive Howard Morris has stepped down from his leadership role to focus on integration at the newly-merged transatlantic firm.

His decision, which takes effect immediately, will see the Washington DC-based Elliott Portnoy become the firm's sole chief executive. The pair have co-managed the firm since the merger between legacy US firm Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal and legacy Denton Wilde Sapte went live on 30 September last year.

Morris's new brief will see him relocate to SNR Denton's New York office from where he will travel around the firm's US and international offices dealing with integration issues and meeting with clients.

The firm previously announced that Portnoy would become sole chief executive by the end of a three-year integration phase, but the move is happening ahead of schedule because the integration of the two firms has been smoother than expected.

Morris was first appointed chief executive of legacy Dentons in December 2004, when he replaced Virginia Glastonbury in the role. He was appointed for another three-year term in 2007 in an uncontested election.

News of his decision to step down early was announced at the merged firm's first partner meeting, which was held last weekend (17-20 February) at the Grande Lake Resort outside Orlando, Florida, in the US.

Portnoy told Legal Week: "We have asked Howard to take on a new integration-based role which will keep him largely over in the States. It is important to have a senior leader that can knit together the various offices of the new firm and sell to clients the key strengths of the firm. While we had expected to be able to do this eventually we have found the integration process has gone so smoothly that were able to do it sooner."

Morris commented: "We are very pleased that we have been able to get this far so quickly and that we can now focus on our further integration and what we can do for our clients as one firm. For me it is obviously tremendously exciting and a great opportunity to work in a wonderful city and be a part of an international firm."

The partner meeting also saw the firm discuss business plans within its service lines and sector focuses, as well as topics such as ethnic diversity and female promotion.

The news comes after SNR Denton appointed its first UK managing partner in November last year, when Milton Keynes partner Brandon Ransley took on the new role. He is now based in London but spends one day a week in Milton Keynes overseeing both offices.