In his column on the Legal Post page of Wednesday’s National Post, Jim Middlemiss reported rumours that merger discussions are taking place between Lang Michener and McMillan. Partners are “meeting to iron out the details,” Middlemiss wrote.
The two firms share many practice areas and are nearly identical in size. McMillan’s Toronto office is substantially larger, though, while Lang Michener has the largest presence in the west (with 82 lawyers at its Vancouver office). Should the merger take place, the combined firm would have a presence in the five largest metropolitan areas in Canada, as well as Hong Kong.
Here’s a chart comparing a few key details about the two firms:
| Lang Michener | McMillan | |
| Founded | 1927 | 1903 |
| Notable mergers | 1989 (Lawrence & Shaw) | 2005 (Mendelsohn GP); 2009 (Thackray Burgess) |
| Office locations | Toronto, Vancouver, Ottawa, Hong Kong | Toronto, Montreal, Calgary |
| Total lawyers | 198 | 197 |
| Toronto lawyers | 83 | 141 |
| Toronto articling students | 8 | 13 |
| Toronto address | Brookfield Place, suite 2500 | Brookfield Place, suite 4400 |