Building on the Big Four’s sustained attempts to disrupt the legal services market, PwC has extended its presence in the US through a partnership with immigration specialist Fragomen.
The agreement, announced today (24 September), will see the two entities jointly market their respective immigration services in the US. The alliance gives PwC access to Fragomen’s considerable stateside firepower, with the firm boasting 16 offices across the country.
Julia Onslow-Cole, London-based head of PwC’s well-established global immigration practice, commented: ‘Making our respective immigration teams available to clients, particularly in the US, will provide an even deeper level of local insight. The PwC and Fragomen alliance will also facilitate more strategic, global insights on the impact of government policies on both corporate immigration and mobility.’
Austin Fragomen, chairman of Fragomen’s executive committee, added: ‘Immigration strategy and compliance has never been more important in the mobility environment. Clients seeking aggregated legal, tax and mobility services will get best-in-class services by working with Fragomen and PwC.’
Global 100 player Fragomen generated $577m in revenue over the last financial year, a 7% increase over the previous period. The New York-bred firm also consists of 555 lawyers, 63 of which are equity partners while 57 are non-equity.
The Fragomen alliance is not PwC’s first foray into the US market – it follows the launch of a law firm in Washington DC last year. The firm, ILC Legal, does not advise on US law but instead supports American companies on their operations abroad in areas such as immigration, cyber security and dispute resolution.
PwC also entered into the contract lawyering market last year, launching a service called Flexible Legal Resources. The operation will initially focus on the financial services sector but PwC’s pool of contract lawyers will eventually cover clients from all sectors, providing support work for corporate, commercial and data protection.
The PwC global network has combined income of around $500m. KPMG generated more than £12m in the UK, while several commentators put EY’s UK revenues in the £15m-£20m range.
For more on the rise of the accountants in law, read ‘Who’s afraid of the Big Bad Four? – Inside the accountants’ assault on law’