Blake Lapthorn and Morgan Cole are to merge, creating a new UK top 50 firm with revenues of £72m.

The new firm, which will be known as Blake Morgan, will go live on 1 July this year. Combined, it will have 120 partners and 900 members of staff.

Blake Lapthorn's revenue for 2012-13 was £45.6m, while Morgan Cole recorded a figure of £33.7m, Morgan Cole has since sold its personal injury business to DAC Beachcroft and Berrymans Lace Mawer, meaning combined revenue at Blake Morgan will sit at around £72m.

Based on 2012-13′s rankings, Blake Morgan would sit at 46th in the UK top 50.

The firms were originally in talks over a three-way merger with Reading-based firm Boyes Turner. Boyes Turner pulled out of the discussions, which were confirmed in November last year, a month later.

Blake Lapthorn, which specialises in commercial and private client law in the Southeast, has offices in London, Oxford, Southampton and Portsmouth. It has 80 partners and a total staff count of 650. Managing partner Walter Cha will hold the same role at the combined firm.

Morgan Cole has its headquarters in Cardiff (pictured) with additional offices in Oxford, Reading and Swansea. The firm has 42 partners and almost 300 lawyers. Its major clients include the Welsh Government, the Department of Health, AXA, NFU Mutual, all 10 Health Boards and NHS Trusts in Wales, Thames Valley Police Authority and Severn Power.

Last November it launched a consultation to transfer five partners and 54 members of staff from its Bristol personal injury practice to DAC in Bristol and Newport, while a seven-strong Cardiff PI team moved to Berrymans.