Big Law Firm Merger Brings New Name to Downtown Legal Scene

Brooks Smith, managing partner of Troutman Pepper’s Richmond office, was quoted in the January 14, 2025 Richmond BizSense article, “Big Law Firm Merger Brings New Name to Downtown Legal Scene.”

Brooks Smith, managing partner of the firm’s Richmond office, said the new signage for now marks the merger’s most immediate ripple effect to its local operations. Smith said that was also the case when Troutman Pepper was created in 2020 through the merger of Troutman Sanders and Pepper Hamilton.

“It’s oddly similar in the respect that Richmond isn’t directly affected, but it definitely adds to our bench strength and a lot of collaboration opportunities across the other offices.”

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“Even with this huge new firm, we’re still the second largest office in the country,” Smith said of the Richmond outpost, adding that it’s neck-and-neck in terms of size with the firm’s Philadelphia office.

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“We have an outsized share of firm leadership here in Richmond,” Smith said. “It’s a testament to the fact that we’re a powerhouse office. We’re very productive and have a lot of interesting work going on.”

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“There’s not an individual or set of people that I know today will be relocating to Richmond, but I expect a steady flow of our new colleagues in and out of the office. Just as it will likely bring some of our Richmond lawyers to other offices for work,” he said.

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“We don’t have a spare office to be found in our building,” he said, adding that, as they’ve looked around, they’ve found that comparable space nearby is slim pickings.”

“I would have expected there would be a lot of Class-A office space available… there is very little,” he said. “It has been very difficult.”