US firms Locke Lord and Edwards Wildman Palmer are preparing for a vote on their proposed merger as soon as next month.

Partners expect votes at both firms to take place in November ahead of a go-live date slated for early January, which would tie in with the start of the financial year for US firms.

The firms are attempting to resolve potential client conflicts ahead of the combination being confirmed. A source at one of the firms predicted that "one or two teams" would be likely to leave as a result of conflicts.

The source added: "On the whole, the prospect of a merger seems to have gone down well so far. A union would give a much-needed boost to both firms' Chicago presences, which are currently lacking on both sides."

The management teams at both firms signed a letter of intent to merge last month. If approved by partners, a union would create a 1,000-lawyer firm with revenue of more than $675m (£421.6m), operating as Locke Lord Edwards.

The combination would be led by Locke Lord chair Jerry Clements (pictured), with Edwards Wildman managing partner Alan Levin acting as vice chair.

On top of their overlapping Chicago offices, the firms would need to integrate their respective offerings in London, Hong Kong, Los Angeles, New York and Washington DC.

Edwards Wildman's London base has suffered a spate of partner departures in the last few months, including corporate partner Niall McAlister, who joined Olswang, fellow corporate partner Stuart Blythe, who moved to CMS Cameron McKenna, private equity head David Ramm, who defected to Morgan Lewis & Bockius, and venture capital co-chair Shawn Atkinson, who left for Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe.