🔒Lawyering up: Expansions, alternative models and a closure reflect churn in Maine’s legal industry

The legal industry across Maine has been seeing a variety of changes in recent years, including growing staff numbers, migrations between firms, relocations, the closure of one of Maine’s larger firms, new service models and the expansion of a New Hampshire practice into Greater Portland.

The activity is driven by factors that include growing expenses, retirement cliffs, competition for next-gen lawyers and opportunities in new markets.

“If you’re growing, you can better manage those challenges. If you’re shrinking, it becomes increasingly difficult,” says Scott Anderson, managing partner at Portland-based Verrill, which is now Maine’s largest law firm with 90 Maine attorneys. (See list of Maine’s largest law firms on Page 26.)

At boutique firm Aleta Law, co-founder Kai McGintee agrees: “I think there’s been a lot of disruption happening in our world and in our economy that lent itself to changes in the legal industry.”

Here’s a roundup of what’s happening at law firms and related companies.

Attorney migrations

Over the last 18 months, Portland-based Verrill hired 12 Eaton Peabody lawyers before the latter closed in June. Seven were in Eaton Peabody’s Bangor office, the rest in its Portland office. Verrill retained Eaton Peabody’s Bangor location at 80 Exchange St.

Verrill also hired away four attorneys and three staff members from Bernstein Shur.

Verrill, which ranked as Maine’s fourth-largest law firm in the 2025 Mainebiz Book of Lists, is now Maine’s largest firm, according to the latest Mainebiz research.

In all, Verrill now employs 340 people, including 180 attorneys across offices in Portland, Augusta and Bangor, as well as Boston and, in Connecticut, Westport and Greenwich.

The Connecticut offices are associated with a group of seven attorneys and three staffers who recently joined Verrill from Whitman Breed Abbott & Morgan which, similar to Eaton Peabody, was winding down operations, says Anderson. Verrill retained the Westport office and opened the Greenwich office as a result of the hires. Verrill first entered Connecticut in 2010.

More hiring could be on the horizon.

“There continues to be lot of activity and interest,” says Anderson. “We’re still seeing a lot of conversation in the Maine and Boston markets with folks who are moving around and looking for a new law firm.”

Several factors contribute to the activity, Anderson says. Expenses are growing, particularly as firms invest in technology more than ever, primarily into artificial intelligence and cybersecurity systems that protect client data.

There’s a generational shift at many firms as senior lawyers head toward retirement, which can result in loss of revenues if clients look elsewhere for representation.

Affecting the Maine market in particular, he says, is the lack of large numbers of incoming junior lawyers.

“Those factors are putting a lot of pressure on law firms,” says Anderson.

He adds, “We’ll continue to look for opportunities for growth.”

Fluid market

With offices in Portland; Manchester and Lebanon, N.H.; and Flagstaff, Ariz., Drummond Woodsum added 10 attorneys last year. In Maine, the tally grew from 84 in 2024 to 91 today as new hires continue. That included an entertainment lawyer hire that launched the firm’s entertainment practice this year.

“That practice continues to grow and to flourish,” says David Kallin, who became the firm’s managing partner on Oct. 1.

The hires helped Drummond Woodsum displace Bernstein Shur as the state’s largest law firm, but with Verrill’s growth, Drummond is now No. 2 on the latest list of Maine’s largest law firms.

“There’s been a shake-up in the legal market that’s made it more fluid, with attorneys looking for new homes,” says Kallin. “We’ve benefited from that, with attorneys who have dovetailed with existing practices here.”

Office move

Skelton Taintor & Abbott bought 491 Lisbon St. in downtown Lewiston and says it has renovations underway for a move from its current location at nearby 500 Canal St.

Josh Soley and Charlie Hippler of CORE, a commercial real estate firm in Portland, brokered the transaction.

Built in 2004, the building at 491 Lisbon St. encompasses 18,000 square feet of Class A office space on three stories and was vacant when it was sold. The sale was several months in the making.

In 2024, CORE brokered the sale of 491 Lisbon St. to Lisbon Street Leasing LLC and then managed the lease listing.

Skelton Taintor & Abbott, No. 15 among law firm rankings, approached CORE with an interest in leasing the space. As conversations progressed, the firm decided to buy the building and transform it into a state-of-the-art office space.

“This is a prime site and the perfect location for one of Lewiston’s most important law firms,” Soley said in a press release. “It offers Skelton Taintor & Abbott a chance to expand and further build on its storied, 172-year history in Lewiston.”

Founded in 1853, Skelton Taintor & Abbott said the plan is to move after it completes extensive interior renovations “to create a modern, collaborative workspace designed to support our attorneys, staff and clients for years to come,” according to a separate release.

The firm said it expects to move in the late spring of 2026.

Client uptick

Earlier this year, Viridian Law started in Ellsworth and Portland with 13 employees, many of whom formerly comprised Eaton Peabody’s startup practice: seven attorneys led by Jeff Spaulding as managing director and Jen Baroletti as CFO, and a number of additional professionals.

Most are at the downtown Ellsworth office at 204 Main St. One attorney and a staffer are at Cloudport CoWorking at 63 Federal St. in Portland.

The group’s clients at Eaton Peabody followed their lawyers and professionals to the new firm, which has evolved into a solid general practice, says Spaulding.

“It’s exceeded all expectations,” he says.

Viridian is intentional about not growing headcount too quickly.

“We’re certainly open to growing, but it’s got to be a very good fit with what we’re focused on,” says Baroletti.

She adds, “We’ve had a lot of former colleagues and others reach out about joining us.”

An unexpected outcome of publicity around the firm’s formation was the gain of new clients, representing at least a 30% uptick.

“Our move got a lot of attention,” Spaulding says. “We weren’t really expecting to gain clients, but that was nice to see.”

NH firm expands into Maine

A Bedford, N.H., company made its first foray into Maine when Absolute Title and the Law Office of Matthew W. Neuman opened an office at 500 Southborough Drive in South Portland.

Jon Wood, a real estate attorney who joined Absolute earlier this year, is working out of the office with four support staffers.

“Our team has always enjoyed working with clients and colleagues in Maine, and business in this market has been growing significantly,” says owner and attorney Matthew Neuman.

The office is temporary until renovations are finished at a permanent space nearby, at 600 Southborough Drive.

Founded in 2005, the company has been handling real estate closings in Maine since 2007.

In addition to its headquarters in Bedford, N.H., and South Portland location, it has offices in Concord, Portsmouth and Conway, N.H., and Lowell, Mass., with three attorneys and 43 support staffers across all locations.

Maine-based work is about 10% of the firm’s overall workload, but a growing segment, says Neuman. That’s aided by a focus on customer support, attention to detail and tools such as a platform called AbsolutePay to facilitate financial transfers and “mobile closing vehicles,” fitted with conference rooms, that travel to clients throughout Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts for real estate closings.

The 600 Southborough Drive location could be open by Feb. 1 and offers the ability to expand. Maine-based business encompasses Cumberland, Oxford and Penobscot counties, as far as Bangor, both commercial and residential.

More hiring is expected for South Portland. “We are actively looking,” says Neuman.

Virtual model

In Greater Portland, Aleta Law launched in early 2024 as a virtual boutique firm with 10 attorneys and three staff members, all formerly with Portland-based Bernstein Shur.

Led by Amanda Norris Ames and Kai McGintee, Aleta has since grown to 13 attorneys and four support staff across Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Illinois, California and Georgia, recruiting through traditional avenues such as job postings and LinkedIn and through their network.

“I think we’re at a good, stable number in terms of our attorneys and staff, but we will likely hire again within the next year or so,” says McGintee.

Aleta conducts external investigations into allegations of discrimination, harassment and misconduct for higher education institutions, K-12 schools, athletic organizations, nonprofits and companies.

“We continue to stay busy in an evolving landscape,” says McGintee.

From the hiring perspective, the virtual work model proved an advantage for attracting attorneys who didn’t want to return to an in-person office environment and preferred the flexibility of working remotely, says McGintee.

The formation of new firms, along with mergers and closures, are likely to continue, she says.

“I think there’s been a lot of disruption happening in our world and in our economy that lent itself to changes in the legal industry,” she says.

Creating a remote work environment involves being intentional about collaboration, connection and team-building, she notes.

“We’ve been really thoughtful about how we do that, how we create a culture that is built around our remote environment and connection, without losing the collaboration and the benefits of a team,” she says.