Taylor Wessing in merger talks with US firm Winston & Strawn

Taylor Wessing has confirmed it is in merger discussions with US firm Winston & Strawn, a deal that would mark a significant strategic shift for the UK-headquartered firm and see its UK arm exit its long-standing Swiss Verein model. 

The combination would create a transatlantic firm ranking among the global top 40 by revenue. The talks underline how sharply Taylor Wessing has accelerated its pursuit of a US combination as the timetable now appears to have moved forward.

Swiss association departure

The merger talks also come as Taylor Wessing prepares to unwind the UK from its long-standing Swiss verein structure, a significant reorganisation first reported by JUVE Patent. Under the plans, the UK arm will leave the association that contractually links Taylor Wessing’s German, Austrian and other European firms.

The verein structure allows national firms to operate under a shared brand while remaining financially and legally independent, and has historically given partners a high degree of autonomy. By unwinding the model, Taylor Wessing is simplifying its structure in a way that many in the market see as a necessary step for firms pursuing deeper international integration, particularly in the US, where fully integrated partnerships remain the norm.

Profitability gap looms

As with many UK-US mergers, a central challenge is the profitability gap between the two partnerships. Winston & Strawn’s PEP was last reported as $3.5 million versus Taylor Wessing’s UK PEP of £1.1 million ($1.5 million), a disparity that could complicate integration.

By contrast, Ashurst’s merger with Perkins Coie was widely seen as easier to execute because the two firms entered talks with broadly aligned partner economics. The gap here is far more pronounced than the Herbert Smith Freehills and Kramer Levin merger, which in the end, landed on a single, global profit pool from "day one" to signal a fully integrated partnership. 

Is it a strategic fit

Beyond economics, early feedback from the market has focused on whether the strategic logic of the tie-up is immediately clear. Taylor Wessing has spent years sharpening its identity around the tech sector, with a strong emphasis on venture capital, growth companies and innovation-led work. Winston & Strawn, on the other hand, is a long established US firm best known for its heavyweight litigation and transactional practices.

Transatlantic combos

If completed, the merger would add to a rapidly growing list of US-UK combinations over the past 18 months, including Herbert Smith Freehills and Kramer Levin, A&O Shearman, and Ashurst’s merger with Perkins Coie. This wave reflects mounting pressure on firms to build genuine transatlantic scale rather than rely on networks or alliances.

For Taylor Wessing, the talks represent a decisive moment in a long-running strategic debate about how far and how fast it should push into the US market, even as questions remain over integration risk and long-term fit.