Howard Kennedy is set to cut up to 10 support staff roles ahead of its delayed merger with Finers Stephens Innocent (FSI).

The London firm, which announced the redundancy consultation following an internal review, stated that the job losses were unrelated to the forthcoming merger.

A statement from the firm read: "It is regrettable that we are presently considering redundancies affecting our support staff. We're continuously reviewing the structure of the firm and it's important to stress that this is a standalone Howard Kennedy restructuring process and not related to the merger with Finers Stephens Innocent in any way.

"We're aiming to make as minimal redundancies as possible with only 10 support roles at risk."

Those affected by the redundancy round were informed yesterday (21 November), with the consultation expected to be completed early next year.

The news comes after the planned merger between Howard Kennedy and FSI, which would create a combined firm with revenues of around £43m, was put back from 1 November 2012 to 1 February next year due to back office integration issues.

The combination will result in a firm with 88 partners and 125 fee-earners under the brand Howard Kennedy FSI, with Howard Kennedy chief executive Mark Dembovsky (pictured) taking the same role at the new firm.

The news marks the latest example of law firm job cuts, with other recent examples including DLA Piper's 251-staff consultation and Pannone's decision to trim its numbers by 16.