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Today Dundas & Wilson joins CMS, the sixth largest global law firm

01/05/2014

CMS and Dundas & Wilson join forces with the combination of the two firms completing today. CMS will begin a new chapter in Scotland as it combines with Dundas & Wilson, Scotland’s most established and preeminent law firm founded in 1759 and with the greatest number of band 1 rankings over the last ten years.

Dundas & Wilson will operate under the banner of CMS and will be able to offer its Scottish based clients access to their colleagues across the world. CMS has over 830 partners and 5,600 employees operating from 58 offices in 32 countries with revenues of circa €900m. The firm will now have a strong presence in the UK’s three key financial centres of London, Edinburgh and Glasgow, and energy capital, Aberdeen. CMS offers real choice to its global clients with its in-depth City expertise and high quality lower cost legal services in Scotland.

CMS is committed to Scotland and sees it as an important market for the growth and development of its Energy and Financial Institution sectors. CMS’ newly appointed Senior Partner, Penelope Warne, set up its office in Aberdeen 20 years ago and five years later opened the office in Edinburgh. She has been instrumental in negotiating and promoting the Dundas & Wilson combination within the firm. The decision to join forces followed consultation between the firms’ respective clients and a high level of positive feedback about the combination and the more flexible service model the two firms combined can deliver together.

Along with Senior Partner, Penelope Warne, CMS’ UK Managing Partner, Duncan Weston and Executive Partner for Scotland Stephen Millar were key to the combination coming to fruition. Penelope also heads the firm’s Energy practice and has opened offices in Brazil, Dubai, Oman and Mexico. The management team comprising Laurence Ward, Caryn Penley and Allan Wernham led negotiations for Dundas & Wilson. Laurence Ward takes on a senior partner role within CMS Scotland. Caryn Penley will now serve as a UK Board member and as co-Executive Partner for Scotland with Stephen Millar for CMS. Allan Wernham will now become CMS practice group head for Real Estate in Scotland.

Welcoming Dundas & Wilson, Penelope Warne, CMS Senior Partner and Chair of its Board, said:

"Scotland is an important market for us and I have been building our firm here for the last twenty years. I am delighted that we have joined together with market leaders Dundas & Wilson who have a fantastic reputation. We are two highly complementary firms who strengthen each other’s position in Scotland, in the energy and financial services industries and in our ability to offer clients better value. Quality, value and global scale is what our clients are interested in and together this is what we are able to offer them.”

Caryn Penley, Executive Partner of CMS Scotland, comments:

“We all recognise the landscape is changing and this combination offers both firms the ideal opportunity to strengthen our position in Scotland and, indeed, the UK. Most importantly, being part of CMS creates an exceptional platform for us to take on more global mandates and further develop our credentials as international legal advisers.”

Related people

Portrait ofCaryn Miller
Caryn Miller
Managing Director for Asia and the Middle East
Edinburgh
Portrait ofPenelope Warne
Penelope Warne
The Senior Partner
London