Eversheds Sutherland

Eversheds Sutherland is a large international law firm dual-headquartered in the UK and the US.

The firm has deep roots in the UK - it still has 11 offices here - and is known for its history as one of the UK’s most respected national law firms.

As we know it today, Eversheds Sutherland was formed from the merger of UK stalwart Eversheds with US law firm Sutherland Asbill & Brennan in 2017.

The merger turned Eversheds into a significant transatlantic player with a large global footprint in the US, Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

Today, the firm is one of the largest full service law firms in the world with more than 2,500 lawyers, including 550+ partners, operating across more than 72 offices in 34 countries worldwide. Its office count is among the highest of any law firm in the world, trailing only the likes of global behemoths Dentons in terms of footprint.

Eversheds itself came to be in 1988, born from a four-way merger between firms in Birmingham, Manchester, Sheffield, and Norwich, marking it as one of the UK's first truly 'national' law firms.

By 1995, it had expanded across the UK, and in 1998, it significantly boosted its London and international presence by absorbing a large part of 200-year-old firm Frere Cholmeley Bischoff.

The 2000s saw further international growth, but the firm continued to maintain a strong UK focus. Eversheds was hit hard by the global financial crisis of 2008/9 and the fallout led to redundancies (it actually made the biggest cuts of any UK-based firm in the aftermath of the financial crisis) and a renewed focus on becoming a global player.

That vision was realised in 2017 when Eversheds merged with Atlanta-based US firm Sutherland Asbill & Brennan, a move that added 400 lawyers in eight offices in the US and Europe.

While Eversheds Sutherland advises across a broad range of practice areas, it has historically been best known in the UK for its expertise in real estate, corporate/M&A, and public sector work.

It is generally regarded as a leading ‘mid-market’ law firm. While it may miss out on the headline-making big-ticket deals of its City-focused rivals, it remains a respected player and has stand-out expertise in several areas.