Two West Midlands law firms have merged to become one of the largest legal firms in Sandwell borough.
Clark Brookes and Turner Cary have also joined the national QualitySolicitors Group to become QualitySolicitors Clark Brookes Turner Cary.
The major move means that the firm now has around 45 members of staff at its two offices in West Bromwich on Lombard Street West and High Street, which are about 100 yards apart.
The two firms had been in negotiations for around a year and the merger has been completed with the support of the Birmingham office of chartered accountants and business advisors Chantrey Vellacott DFK.
Turner Cary was established in 2000, while Clark Brookes’ history dates back to the 1930s.
Former Clark Brookes partners Richard Pinning and Paul Breen, and Turner Cary partners Rafe Turner and Neil Mocroft have become directors of QualitySolicitors Clark Brookes Turner Cary, while the firm now has 14 qualified solicitors.
Neil Mocroft said: “We’re delighted the merger has been completed and has made us one of the biggest law firms in the borough.
“Both firms knew each other extremely well being based so close and bringing the two parties together will only serve to strengthen the service we offer to individual and corporate clients.
“We’re also pleased to become part of the QualitySolicitors brand which will also help us to build our presence and reach across the area.”
Richard Pinning said the newly-formed firm is well positioned to grow in the future.
“Bringing together two profitable practices made sense and the merger has been extremely smooth,” he said.
“We’d first talked about joining forces around five years ago and since then built up a really strong relationship.
“Now we’ve come together formally and have become part of QualitySolictitors. We are confident we are well positioned to continue to add value to clients’ support teams and organisations as a whole through the expertise and experience the team has.”
Suk Aulak, partner at Chantrey Vellacott DFK, acted for Turner Cary on the deal. He said: “We know only too well from completing our own merger back in 2009 just how big an impact bringing together two likeminded firms with strong expertise can have on growth and the service available to clients.
“We’re really pleased to have supported QualitySolicitors Clark Brookes Turner Cary on this deal and I’m sure the new firm will thrive.”
cK chartered accountants in Dudley acted for Clark Brookes on the merger.