Firm head Martyr sets out plans to grow New York base and launch in Brazil following tie-up with Fulbright 

Norton Rose chief executive Peter Martyr is gearing up to expand in locations including New York and Latin America as the firm prepares to go live with its $2bn (£1.26bn) merger with Houston's Fulbright & Jaworski in June 2013. 

The Norton Rose Fulbright tie-up will give the firm 800 lawyers across 11 offices in the US, with 110 of these in New York, including 50 partners. 

Martyr hopes to expand the practice further by adding on teams of lawyers, with the firm also targeting launches in Brazil, South Korea and Turkey in the coming years. 

Martyr (pictured) told Legal Week: "We plan on growing the New York base. Fulbright has a good platform and strong standing there for a firm that isn't headquartered in New York, but we plan to expand there in terms of teams and lateral hires."

He added: "We are looking at launching in Brazil next year. Other areas of interest we'd be looking at covering over the next five years are South Korea and Turkey. Nothing is on the cards at the moment, but we'll be keeping a very close eye on how those markets develop."

On top of merging with firms in South Africa and Australia in the past two years, Norton Rose has combined with two Canadian firms: Ogilvy Renault in June 2011 and Macleod Dixon in January 2012. As such, Martyr, who will hold the same position at the merged firm when the deal goes live, does not rule out a second tie-up in the States in the longer term. 

"As for a second US merger partner, well, how could we rule it out after what happened in Canada? But it is early days and not on the cards at the moment. Our combination with Fulbright has given us a powerful platform, which we are focusing on developing."

Though Norton Rose's Asia-Pacific capabilities were boosted by the merger with Australia's Deacons, which went live in 2010, the firm is still relatively light in mainland China; however, Martyr maintains there is no rush to agree a deal there. 

He commented: "Everyone would consider a combination in mainland China. With some markets, such as Canada, Australia and South Africa, it helps to be a first-mover, but I don't think firms need to be first-movers in China. While we wouldn't rule it out in future, there is no need to rush into the market as I expect the profession will evolve significantly over the next few years."

According to Martyr, the combination with Fulbright has filled a crucial gap in Norton Rose's international strategy. "It was a simple plan to begin with – a firm can't be global without being in the US. The CEO of a big firm asked me: 'How can you call yourselves global if you're not in the States?' So that was the main driver behind the merger. 

"From there we worked backwards – the idea was to build up a connected business around the world, centred around energy, resources and financial institutions work. And then we sought out a firm that would be a culturally good fit."

The firms will not be financially integrated, with the US arm adding to the existing Swiss verein structure. However, partners in Fulbright offices in Beijing, Hong Kong, London and Munich – where Norton Rose already has a base – will join Norton Rose. 

Martyr commented: "With the structure we have profit per equity partner doesn't make a great deal of sense, because we are running different models together. We have a variety of different profit profiles."

In the months leading to the official merger date, decisions will be made regarding practice group heads, global executive committee members and duplicate office space.