MOSCOW, January 9 (RAPSI) - US law firm mergers and acquisitions surged by 47% in 2013 when compared with 2012, leading legal consulting firm Altman Weil, Inc. reported Thursday.

A statement released by the firm quoted its principal Ward Bower as having stated: “The surge in 2013 numbers was driven by a boom in acquisitions of small law firms… These kinds of deals are smart, low-risk moves to enter new markets and acquire new clients, and we expect the trend to continue in 2014.”

According to data released recently by the firm, there were 88 such mergers and acquisitions throughout the course of 2013. 82% of these transactions involved the acquisition of firms consisting of 20 or fewer lawyers.

Five of 2013’s mergers and acquisitions included international combinations. Chicago firm Baker & McKenzie (which has 4,000 lawyers) combined with Dubai’s Habib Al Mulla (45). New York’s Gregory P. Joseph Law Offices (12) combined with London’s Hage Aaronson (8). San Francisco firm Littler Mendelson (980) combined with Bogota’s Godoy Cordoba Abogados (27) and San Jose, Costa Rica’s BDS Asesores (14). Washington DC-based Hogan Lovells (2,280) combined with Johannesburg firm Routledge Modise (120).

Bower further commented that at present, law firm combinations tend to come in the form of acquisitions rather than mergers, adding: “The complexity of a true merger of equals is exponentially greater. There are any number of potential pitfalls on the way to the altar,” as quoted by the firm’s statement.