A Hogan Lovells spokeswoman told RollOnFriday that there were not any "hard dates" for the timing of all three office closures, but that the firm anticipated it would be "in the coming months". She added: "We want to find a fair way and we are also mindful of our client needs.”

Across all offices, approximately 65 lawyers (including 11 partners) and 58 support staff are likely to lose their jobs at Hogan Lovells, due to the office closures.

“As a leading global law firm, we are focused on ensuring that we are present in strategic markets where our clients look to us for support and sophisticated, high-end work," said the firm in a statement about the shrinkage. 

The firm said that closing the three offices "was a difficult decision, but one that was needed so that we can continue our path to achieve transformational growth and drive greater success – particularly in London, New York, California, Texas, Washington, D.C., and key international markets".

The firm fared well in the last financial year, as it recorded global profit per equity partner of $2.74m (a rise of around 20%) with global revenue at $2.68bn (up by about 10%).

The HogLove closures follow the news that A&O Shearman  is shutting its office   in Johannesburg and slimming its partnership by 10%.