Charlesbank Capital Partners is in advanced talks to acquire a stake in Wood Smith Henning & Berman (WSHB), a US law firm, in a transaction worth about $700m, according to a report by the FT.

Charlesbank reportedly plans to take a stake in a new entity that houses WSHB’s back office and other non-legal operations, known as a management services organisation, or MSO. The structure splits a firm in two: an attorney-owned entity that provides legal advice, and an MSO that holds the remaining assets and supplies services to the lawyers in return for sizeable fees. That separation lets private equity bypass professional ethics rules, which bar non-lawyer ownership of law firms in most US states.

WSHB makes for an attractive target. Founded in 1997 and based in Los Angeles, the firm has more than 550 lawyers who defend companies against product liability, personal injury, and other claims, operating from 43 offices across 35 states. The business generated $244.4m of revenue in 2025, up almost 20%, and has expanded at roughly 20% a year over three years. The same document valued the deal at about 18 times the firm’s 2025 adjusted earnings of $38.2m.

MSOs have not been widely tested against US legal ethics rules, which are designed to stop commercial pressures from tainting advice to clients, and that uncertainty has made some firm owners and investors cautious. Proponents counter that, structured properly, the model keeps private equity owners away from case decisions while freeing lawyers to focus on clients rather than administration.