Freshfields

Freshfields traces its origins to 1743, one of the oldest law firms in the world. For most of its history, a quintessentially English institution advising British banks and corporations from the city of London. The transformation came through a 1999 merger with two German firms, bridging English common law and German civil law traditions. Today, over 5,000 lawyers across 27 offices generating approximately 2.7 billion. One of the magic circles most internationally diversified members with strong positions in Frankfurt, Hong Kong and New York. The American push was high risk. Freshfields offered guaranteed compensation packages worth tens of millions to lure top partners from firms like Davis Polk and Cleary Gottlieb.