Private equity firm Charlesbank Capital Partners has invested in the back-office operations of US law firm Wood Smith Henning & Berman, marking one of the most notable examples yet of outside capital entering the American legal market.
The Los Angeles-based trial firm, known as WSHB, has created a management services organisation called WSHB Support Services to provide non-legal operational infrastructure and support to the firm.
Charlesbank has invested in the new business, although the financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.
The Financial Times previously reported that the transaction values WSHB at approximately $700 million. Charlesbank and WSHB have not confirmed that figure.
WSHB has more than 550 lawyers across 43 offices in 23 US states and represents insurers, self-insured corporations and institutional clients.
Charlesbank’s investment is intended to support expansion into existing and new markets while funding technology, artificial intelligence and data science capabilities.
The structure of the transaction is particularly significant because of longstanding restrictions governing outside ownership of US law firms.
Non-lawyers are generally prohibited from owning direct stakes in law firms or sharing lawyers’ fees in most US jurisdictions.
Management services organisations, commonly known as MSOs, provide a structure through which outside investors can invest in non-legal operations supporting law firms while the legal practice remains under lawyer control.
Under the model, an outside investor can own or take a stake in an entity providing services such as technology, administration and operational infrastructure to a law firm.
WSHB said it will remain an independent law firm, with its lawyers retaining sole authority over the practice of law and client matters.
Daniel Berman, co-founder and executive chairman of WSHB, will serve as chief executive of WSHB Support Services, while Stewart Reid will remain firmwide managing partner of the law firm.
Charlesbank said its experience investing in professional services and insurance businesses would support its partnership with WSHB.
The transaction comes as private equity investors show growing interest in the US legal sector and law firms explore structures that allow access to external capital while complying with professional ownership rules.
Several publicly disclosed law firm MSO transactions have emerged during 2026.
Private equity and M&A firm Massumi + Consoli announced the launch of an MSO in September, while private equity firm Uplift Investors has struck deals involving six personal injury firms this year.
Some AI-focused law firms have also adopted MSO structures as a way of attracting external investment while keeping their legal practices separately controlled by lawyers.
For established firms, outside capital could provide greater resources for technology, geographic expansion and growth.
The Charlesbank transaction is therefore likely to attract attention beyond WSHB itself.
It demonstrates how substantial private investment can be structured around professional rules that have traditionally restricted non-lawyer ownership of US law firms.
For WSHB, the immediate objective is to use Charlesbank’s investment to support expansion and technology while maintaining lawyer control over its legal practice.
For the wider US legal market, the deal provides another significant test of whether the MSO model can develop into a major route for private capital into the legal industry.