Lawyers to the stars in Valentine's Day tie-up

Theodore goddard, the law firm acting for Catherine Zeta Jones in her battle against the magazine Hello!, took the opportunity of St Valentine's Day to announce it was considering tying the knot with its rival Addleshaw Booth & Co.

Theodore Goddard, which was set up in 1902, is perhaps best known for advising Wallis Simpson in her divorce before her marriage to the former King Edward VIII. The law firm is also said to be advising the pop star Michael Jackson over the controversial interview he did with the journalist Martin Bashir, which was televised at the beginning of the month.

Addleshaw Booth, which was created after the merger of Addleshaw and Booth in 1997, counts Manchester United among its clients. After a strategic review, Theodore Goddard started looking for a potential merger partner last year and started talks with Addleshaw Booth last November.

The partners of the firms confirmed they had agreed to "enter into exclusive discussions to explore the benefits of a merger". If a deal is done, the combined business would have about 180 partners while the combined fee income would be in excess of £130m.

Addleshaw Booth, which has offices in Leeds, Manchester and London, has three main divisions – transactions, commercial and property – and 115 partners. Theodore Goddard is based in London with 65 partners.