Day, Berry Merges, Becomes ‘Day Pitney’

News of a law firm merger in Connecticut, ‘driven by client needs’:

"Day, Berry & Howard, one of the state’s largest law firms, will change its 74-year-old name as it merges with a New Jersey-based law firm to double its staff of lawyers and extend its geographic reach.

"Day, Berry’s merger with Pitney Hardin, based in Morristown, N.J., will create a firm with about 400 lawyers and nine offices stretching from Boston to Washington, D.C. The combined firm will be known as Day Pitney, taking the portion of each firm’s name that would be the most recognizable to clients, executives at both firms said.

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"Jim Sicilian, chairman of the executive committee at Day, Berry, said the merger was spurred mostly by clients wanting to reduce the number of law firms they deal with. As a result, firms need to expand on their areas of expertise, he said.

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"No layoffs are expected, Sicilian said, because the combination of the two firms is expected to increase the number of clients the merged firms serve.

"In addition to lawyers, the two firms employ about 450 staff members, including paralegals, administrative assistants and office managers."