Mergers and Aquisitions

Law firns like to merge - what senior partner wouldn't want to be top dog of a bigger, swankier firm with a sexy modern glass-fronted office in The City, and an even larger geyser of cash to the top of the pyramid? Hard to say no to such an alluring prospect, especially if the pain of the inevitable redundancies is borne by someone else.

Unless, of course, you find yourelf being cast out by the other partners, sidelined into that ever-threatening and underperforming category of "dead wood", ready to be pruned and chopped. Playing in the big league can be fun, but it also looks a bit risky if the other firm turns out to be an even bigger shark than you thought.

Better to stay put, perhaps, better the devil you know than the big league players you don't.