Field Fisher Waterhouse is set to rebrand itself as Field Fisher as part of a shake up of the firm's image.

The firm is understood to be abandoning the "Waterhouse" part of its name next month, as part of a rebrand campaign timed to match the move of its headquarters to Thames-side site Riverbank House in London.

The part of the name that will be dropped originates from legacy firm Waterhouse & Co, which was founded in 1865 by solicitor Theodore Waterhouse, the older brother of PriceWaterhouseCoopers co-founder Edwin Waterhouse. Waterhouse & Co merged with Field Fisher Martineau in 1989.

The firm will retain its previous name on LLP listings.

A former partner said on the name change: "The name has a lot of history behind it that the partners are proud of, but the brand has unfortunately built a certain image and reputation around the reputations of some of the partners there over the years. This is an attempt to put some distance between that and the name."

The firm declined to comment.

FFW has gone through a series of unsuccessful merger talks in recent years. Talks with Lawrence Graham and Osborne Clarke respectively fell through in June and November 2012.

The firm has also seen a spate of partner exits in the past year, including the high profile departure of a franchising partner trio led by partner Mark Abell last year.

However the firm has also embarked on a period of expansion, securing a merger with eight-partner Manchester boutique Heatons earlier this year and an office launch in Shanghai last July.

As part of its growth strategy, 13 lateral partners joined last year, with a similar number expected to follow in 2014.