Winston Taylor

Winston Taylor is a transatlantic law firm created in 2026 by the merger of US firm Winston & Strawn and Taylor Wessing's UK-led business.

Editor's Note: We are currently updating this profile to reflect the merger that created Winston Taylor. The information below relates to the legacy Taylor Wessing business and will be revised in due course.

Taylor Wessing is a prominent international law firm headquartered in London with a strong presence in the UK and European legal market.

The firm was established in 2002 through the merger of the UK's Taylor Joynson Garrett and Germany's Wessing & Berenberg-Gossler. Taylor Joynson Garrett traced its roots back to 1782, while Wessing & Berenberg-Gossler was founded in 1873, so it’s fair to say the firm has a healthy dose of history behind it.

Today, Taylor Wessing is a modern operation boasting over 1,200 lawyers worldwide, including more than 400 partners. In the UK, the firm has around 100 partners spread across three offices in London, Cambridge and Liverpool.

Its global network, meanwhile, spans 26 offices in 19 jurisdictions across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, giving it plenty of breadth to serve clients internationally. It also has small business offices (i.e. not practising US law) in Silicon Valley and New York.

It has particularly strong ties to mainland Europe thanks to the 2002 merger and serves a broad range of European clients. In Germany alone, the firm has offices in Berlin, Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, and Munich.

Taylor Wessing is big on technology, media and communications, boasting an impressive client list that spans household name brands and the occasional disruptive startup. It says it acts for 32 of the world's top 50 most valuable brands and dozens of startups.

Life sciences is another major focus, especially on patent litigation and regulatory matters for pharma and medical device heavyweights. Meanwhile, the firm’s private wealth team caters to the ultra-rich on everything from global tax structuring to estate planning, with Taylor Wessing having one of the best private client practices in the City.

From its 18th century origins, Taylor Wessing has morphed into a thoroughly modern, international outfit. With its strong sector focus, Taylor Wessing has carved out a strong reputation for clients seeking quality advice in technology, life sciences and private wealth.

The firm's international strategy took a major step forward in December 2025 when it announced a merger with US firm Winston & Strawn in a combination that will see Taylor Wessing's UK business split away from its long-standing international Swiss verein model. Once completed, the merged firm will have revenues around the $1.75 billion mark and rank among the top 40 largest law firms globally.