As reported by Lawyers Weekly in June, Phillips Fox has been the first Australian law firm to join an exclusive global alliance, which will see it change its name to DLA Phillips Fox, and service Australian and New Zealand clients globally. On Monday this week, the alliance was formally launched.

“Many of our clients have legal needs in other countries and they can now work with a firm they know and trust, without spending time and money sourcing offshore expertise. The same is true of the many DLA Piper clients who have legal requirements in this region,” said Phillips Fox chief executive Tony Crawford.

The firm expects to increase its revenue by more than 20 per cent as a direct result of the alliance with DLA Piper. It will join a global presence of more than 3,200 lawyers.

The deal provides Phillips Fox with a platform for expansion into the Asian region. The two firms will collaborate on client opportunities, with a focus on Australia and New Zealand and parts of the Asia Pacific region. Opportunities for collaborating on projects in Asia will grow over time, said Crawford.

DLA Phillips Fox now has eight offices in Australia and New Zealand, with over 1,400 employees, including 173 partners, in Australia.

Crawford said the union is the culmination of a relationship that has existed between DLA Piper and the firm for the past five years. It is expected to give Phillips Fox increased billings and better access to an international pool of clients.

“This step is a natural progression of that [relationship] — a response to the globalisation of business,” Crawford said. “What we did there was the best response possible for a major Australia, New Zealand law firm.

The deal is expected to give DLA Piper, an organisation with over 3,100 lawyers and 1,000 partners globally, increased access to the Australian market, fulfilling their vision to be the “leading global business law firm, to make sure they have the best possible coverage in Australia and New Zealand”, said Crawford.

The international firm will gain access to Phillips Fox’s pool of more than 700 lawyers throughout Australia, New Zealand and Vietnam. DLA Piper already has offices in Asia, including in Bangkok, Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore and Tokyo.