Kennedys and Plexus rule out merger as news of talks emerges
Former partners say Kennedys and Plexus discussed tie-up earlier this year
September 28, 2017 at 08:13 AM
2 minute read
Kennedys and defendant insurance firm Plexus Law held talks over a merger earlier this year, sources close to the firms have told Legal Week.
While both firms dismissed the prospects of a deal – as reported by RollOnFriday earlier this week – former partners say that discussions took place around six months ago.
A source with knowledge of the matter said: "I certainly heard that Kennedys were in talks to buy Plexus. It has looked clear to me that Plexus have been getting ready for a sale, and Kennedys was the name of which I was made aware. I heard about those talks inside the last six months."
A former Parabis partner confirmed this, saying that they were aware of talks between the two firms "between six and seven months ago".
A spokesperson for Kennedys said: "We are approached by laterals, teams and firms regularly but we can confirm that Kennedys is not purchasing or in any way merging with Plexus." A Plexus spokesperson added: "The firm is not is discussion with Kennedys."
Kennedys has been in acquisitive mode of late, taking over eight-partner Manchester firm Berg on 1 September, on the back of a merger with 100-lawyer US insurance firm Carroll McNulty & Kull in June.
Plexus, meanwhile, has had an eventful few years following the collapse of parent company Parabis in 2015. As part of the break-up of Parabis, Plexus was sold to a consortium of investors led by Parabis founders Andrew McDougall and Tim Roberts in November 2015, following unsuccessful talks over an acquisition by insurance rival Keoghs.
At the same time, Plexus partners were asked to agree to a two-year lock-in. Those agreements are set to expire this November or in May next year "for capital reasons", according to one ex-partner.
Kennedys already has a number of former Plexus lawyers among its ranks. In March 2015, the firm took on a 13-lawyer travel team led by partners Claire Mulligan and Justin Collins.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllKirkland, Debevoise & Nishimura Advise On $8.2B Japanese Acquisition of Resolution Life
Covington Swipes Mishcon Insurance Disputes Head for New Practice Launch in London
3 minute readAsia Pacific Hires: Global Firms Kick Off Q4 with Flurry of Team Hires Across the Region
10 minute readTrending Stories
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250