MJ Hudson, alternative asset law firm, and Jersey’s VerrasLaw have agreed to merge, operating under the name of MJ Hudson, and continue to advise clients such as family offices on investments. Separately, MJ Hudon said it plans to open in Hong Kong later in 2013.

The firm will provide asset managers and investors with a “one-stop legal shop for funds, investment, corporate finance and M&A work - onshore in London and offshore in the Channel Islands”, according to a press statement from MJ Hudson yesterday. MJ Hudson said the M&A deal is the “next step” it is taking to expanding into “key asset manager and funds jurisdictions”.

Devlin added, “Clients are looking for a managed introduction to offshore jurisdictions, which is seen as a key home for servicing offshore funds advised out of London. Also VerrasLaw are most unusual in having built an offshore practice around asset manager clients, as opposed to the usual offshore model of relying on onshore law firm referrals, thus doubling our respective client bases,” Eamon Devlin, MJ Hudson managing partner, said.

The merger is subject to regulatory approval. Until formal approval has been obtained, MJ Hudson and VerrasLaw will be working in association, but trading under the name of MJ Hudson.

Following the merger, the enlarged firm will have over 200 clients, principally general partners/managers and investors in areas such as private equity, hedge, venture capital, infrastructure, real estate, energy, credit and special purpose pools of capital.

The firm will also continue to advise HNWs, family offices and ‘aggressive’ corporates.

MJ Hudson was established in July 2010 by Matthew Hudson, formerly a founding member of the SJ Berwin private equity group in the 1980s who also worked in house within a CSFB buyout group, as well as at global secondaries firm Coller Capital. He was more recently hired to re-establish the O’Melveny & Myers London office and then start up the Proskauer Rose London office. VerrasLaw was founded in 2008 by Hiren Patel and Jonathan Bale.