According to David Buckley, a senior consultant at Taylor Root, it's too soon to predict just what impact the Magic Circle firm's arrival in Australia will have on the legal recruitment market, but it's likely to present some attractive propoitions for associates and partners.

"Undoubtedly it will be [and attractive proposition]l given the true international connections they Allen &Overy have and the well known market it has down here from previous forays into the market that it has made from previous recruiting campaigns," said Buckley.

Despite the potential attractive returns for Australian lawyers, Buckley believes the industry is still grappling with the idea of the firm setting up shop in Sydney and Australia.

"The surprise is that they have managed to convince such a high number of partners to leave [the one firm], rather than a merger that everyone would suspect would happen over the course of the next couple of years," said Buckley.

"Obviously Mallesons and Clifford Chance have been talking for a period of time, and everybody suspected that was probably the direction that any kind of pan Asia Pacific European merger would take."

Check back with Lawyers Weekly for more on the arrival or Allen & Overy in Australia.