March 7, 2011 12:59 PM

Clyde & Co Latest Firm Eyeing Opening in Canada

Posted by Brian Baxter

One year after Clyde & Co opened in New Jersey, the British firm is reportedly looking to establish offices in Montreal and Toronto by joining forces with a Canadian firm, according to U.K. publication Legal Week.

Clyde also announced on Monday that it had hired former O'Melveny & Myers insurance and reinsurance litigation partner Paul Koepff for its New York office. Clyde, which is known for its insurance work, first entered the North American legal market in 2006 when it took on four partners from U.S. firm Condon & Forsyth and opened offices in New York and Los Angeles.

In November 2007, Clyde strengthened its U.S. practice by hiring Michael Knoerzer, an insurance litigation partner with LeBoeuf, Lamb, Greene & MacRae. Clyde opened a new office last year in Roseland, N.J., with the addition of five insurance lawyers who had decamped from Connell Foley.

Now the firm is eyeing a move into the Canadian market after retaining the services of former Stikeman Elliott senior partner W. David Angus, who previously served as senior partner at Stikeman and as chairman of Canada's Senate Energy Committee. According to Legal Week, Angus will now help Clyde establish a presence in Canada.

Legal Week reports that Clyde has been holding ongoing discussions with Canadian insurance boutique Nicholl Paskell-Mede, which has offices in Montreal and Toronto. Should the deal be completed, Clyde would have about 40 lawyers in Canada operating out of offices in the two cities.

In a statement to Legal Week, Clyde declined to comment on the talks with Nicholl Paskell-Mede, but confirmed it had hired Angus as a consultant to advise the firm on its Canadian expansion efforts.

"As a long time adviser to the London insurance market, [Angus] is someone who we have worked with closely on a professional basis for many years," Clyde said in the statement. "With David's input, we are looking closely at establishing a presence in Canada."

Legal Week notes that Clyde's interest in Canada comes at a time when other international firms have expressed interest in setting up shop up north. As part of its focus on expanding its footprint in global energy markets, DLA Piper has been exploring opportunities in the country. DLA previously held merger talks with 650-lawyer Canadian firm Fasken Martineau DuMoulin in late 2008, according to Legal Week.

British firm Norton Rose made waves late last year when it entered the Canadian legal market as part of a three-way merger with Ogilvy Renault and South African firm Deneys Reitz. The American Lawyer has a feature story in its March issue on Norton Rose's ambitious tie-ups with both firms.

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