Weighing Opportunities, Risks of PE Investment in Law Firms
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November 24, 2025
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This article was originally published by Law360 in November 2025. The publication is available at: https://www.law360.com/pulse/articles/2406354.
What happens when private equity’s search for returns collides with the $350 billion U.S. legal services market? In this insightful article, FTI Consulting M&A expert Brian Salsberg and private equity expert Puja Sood explain why large, stable Am Law 100 firms and thriving boutiques are unlikely candidates for outside capital, while midsize and underperforming firms — especially those that resemble accounting firms or struggle with talent and revenue decline — may be most attractive to investors. Against a backdrop of rising law firm M&A activity and PE’s pivot from technology and healthcare into professional services, the authors explore how private capital could fund consolidation, AI-driven innovation and managed services models. For law firm leaders, investors and advisors, the piece offers a balanced framework for weighing when private equity involvement might make sense, the structures that could channel capital into law-related services, and the regulatory, cultural and brand risks that must be managed to preserve the profession’s core foundations.
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November 24, 2025
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