Bird & Bird today announced that it will merge with leading Danish firm BvHD on 1 May 2013.
The new office opening in Copenhagen means Bird & Bird will be the only international firm to have a presence in Denmark, Finland and Sweden, three of the most advanced knowledge economies in the world, as well as in Germany and Poland. It will bring the number of Bird & Bird offices around the world to 24 and give the firm an unrivalled presence across key economies in the Nordic and Baltic Sea regions.
Originally established as a technology and internet advisory specialist, BvHD has a team of highly-recognised lawyers specialising in corporate, commercial, public procurement and disputes advice. It works for Danish clients across the technology, media and telecoms sectors, ranging from internationally recognised IT companies to entrepreneurs and start-ups, and for Danish municipalities and other public entities, as well as for major international clients. It is now pre-eminent in these areas in Denmark and its history, experience and relationships complement Bird & Bird’s strengths internationally.
CEO of Bird & Bird, David Kerr said: “Denmark is a centre for innovative industries that match our sector focus globally and it’s exciting to be able to provide clients with a comprehensive service across the Baltic Sea region, something not offered by any other international firm. Our new colleagues from BvHD will also be able to offer Danish clients a seamless service across the rest of world, building on the strong relationships they already have with their new colleagues in Bird & Bird offices.
“We already know the BvHD team very well. The cooperation agreement, which has been in place for over a year, means we will have an integrated team from day one of the merger and our complementary sector focus means there are excellent synergies between our firms.”
BvHD Managing Partner Peter Lind Nielsen said: “We are extremely proud and equally pleased to become part of Bird & Bird. We are convinced that Bird & Bird and BvHD are a good match, not only from a business perspective, but also culturally which has been very important to us in our decision to go forward with this merger.
“We are confident that becoming part of the only true global law firm with a presence in Denmark will strengthen our position in the Danish legal market where the international dimension, in-depth sector focus and high level of specialisation that Bird & Bird stands for is in high demand. The recent recruitment of two corporate M&A specialists, Ulrik Laustsen and Christian Scherfig, will help to further create synergies and opportunities with Bird & Bird.”
“We are also convinced that being part of Bird & Bird will give all of our employees access to new, exciting challenges and opportunities, making our office an even more attractive workplace for the future.”
