Harris Beach and Murtha Cullina Sign Combination Agreement to Create Heavyweight Regional Firm

(May 7, 2024) — Harris Beach PLLC, an accomplished firm with a strong presence across New York and the Tri-State area, and Murtha Cullina LLP, a leading legal presence in Connecticut and Massachusetts, today announced a planned combination for the creation of one firm. This new combined firm, which will be a powerhouse in the region’s legal industry, will be known as Harris Beach Murtha.

Harris Beach and Murtha Cullina are each leading law firms in their respective geographies and offer complementary services. Together, Harris Beach Murtha will offer greater strength and reach throughout an expanded geographical footprint on the Northeast Corridor and throughout upstate and Western New York, accelerating the growth strategy of both firms. The combination will create more robust capabilities to meet and exceed clients’ needs and support them as they navigate increasingly complex legal and regulatory environments.

The synergies between the two law firms will benefit clients of both firms through a significantly increased knowledge base and expanded service areas. Together, Harris Beach Murtha will have more than 250 attorneys across 15 offices in several states, and more than 250 years of combined legal experience.

Harris Beach serves clients throughout New York State and across the nation. The firm has offices in Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Ithaca, Saratoga Springs, Albany, White Plains, Long Island and New York City, as well as New Haven, CT, Washington D.C. and Newark, NJ. Murtha Cullina serves clients throughout New England and across the United States. The firm has offices in Boston, MA, Stamford, New Haven and Hartford, CT and White Plains, NY.

Harris Beach and Murtha Cullina will continue to operate as separate, independent entities until the combination has been completed, and both firms are committed to ensuring clients continue to receive high-quality, focused services throughout this process. During this period, Chris Jagel, CEO of Harris Beach, and Andy Corea, Managing Partner of Murtha Cullina, will co-lead an interim advisory committee.

Chris Jagel, Harris Beach CEO, said:
“This Harris Beach Murtha combination is an exciting, transformational move and proof of our investment in our clients. Both firms have a long history of excellence and client-driven growth in our respective markets and are well-aligned culturally and with many of the same practice areas. The combination will enable us to extend our reach to provide even more diverse and innovative services and capabilities over a larger geographic footprint.”

Andy I. Corea, Murtha Cullina Managing Partner, said:
“We are excited by this strategic opportunity to combine the strengths of our two firms, expanding our geographic reach, broadening the scope of our services, and deepening our bench of experienced attorneys to offer a more comprehensive suite of legal services to our clients.”

Consummation of the proposed combination is subject to customary conditions, including a vote of the Partners of each firm to approve the Operating Agreement for the combined entity. The vote is expected to take place in the next several months, with the Operating Agreement effective January 1, 2025, pending completion of all necessary reviews and closing conditions.

About Harris Beach PLLC
Founded in 1856, Harris Beach and its subsidiaries provide legal and professional services to clients across New York state, as well as nationally and internationally. Harris Beach is among the country’s top law firms as ranked by The National Law Journal and ranks as a BTI Elite law firm based on in-depth interviews of more than 600 corporate counsel at the world’s largest and most influential companies. Clients include Fortune 100 corporations, privately held companies, emerging businesses, public sector entities, not-for-profit organizations, and individuals. Principal industries Harris Beach represents include cannabis, education, energy, financial, food and beverage, health care, insurance, manufacturing, medical and life sciences, real estate developers, science and technology, veterinary medicine, and state and local governments and authorities. Our lawyers and consultants practice from offices throughout New York state in Albany, Buffalo, Ithaca, Long Island, New York City, Rochester, Saratoga Springs, Syracuse, and White Plains, as well as from offices in Washington, D.C., New Haven, Connecticut and Newark, New Jersey. For more information, go to www.harrisbeach.com.

About Murtha Cullina LLP
Murtha Cullina is a mid-sized firm with full-service capabilities established in 1936, with a deeply rooted culture of collaboration, excellence and inclusion. With offices throughout the Northeast and New England serving local, regional, national and international clients, including public and private companies, institutions, government entities, tax-exempt organizations and individuals, Murtha Cullina is focused on its clients’ business goals and strategic objectives. The firm’s core practice areas include business law, employee benefits, energy, environmental, health care, immigration, intellectual property, labor and employment, litigation, real estate, tax, tax-exempt organizations, trusts and estates, bankruptcy and creditors’ rights, construction, municipal and commercial finance.

Murtha Cullina is the exclusive member firm in Connecticut for Lex Mundi, the world’s leading network of independent firms with in-depth experience in more than 125 countries worldwide and the exclusive member firm in Connecticut for the American Property Tax Counsel (APTC), the only organization of law firms providing major portfolio owners with a single source for their property tax reporting and tax reduction needs. For more information, visit www.murthalaw.com. Follow us on LinkedIn.

Media Contacts:

Harris Beach:
Joli Plucknette-Farmen
Manager of Communications
99 Garnsey Road
Pittsford, NY 14534
Direct: 585.419.8914
[email protected]

Murtha Cullina:
Carrie L. Samperi
Director of Marketing
280 Trumbull Street
Hartford, CT 06103
Direct: 860.240.6083
[email protected]