The recent announcement that Detroit-based, Am Law 200 firm Clark Hill would be absorbing Conrad O’Brien marks the end of a highly regarded litigation firm that had been a mainstay in the Philadelphia legal market for nearly 40 years.
The Philadelphia-based boutique, which was founded in 1984, had 21 lawyers by the time the merger with Clark Hill was announced. Although the firm’s size had shrunk somewhat over the decades from its roughly 35-lawyer peak, the merger appears to be part of a strengthening wave of link-ups occurring across the country where large firms are looking to establish themselves in new markets through significant acquisitions.
