After last week’s revelation that a number of partners had been asked to leave the firm, Ashurst has now entered into a redundancy consultation with a number of its London-based support staff. Approximately 15 secretarial positions in London, mainly float secretaries and staff on night shifts, are in the firing line.

South East firm, Blake Lapthorn has launched its second redundancy consultation in the last four months with up to 30 jobs under threat. The consultation, revealed by Legal Week will affect the firm’s offices in London and the southeast and is likely to focus on the firm’s corporate and real estate divisions. Secretarial and business support staff also under consultation.

Meanwhile more banking culls are taking place as in-house legal roles come under the axe. The Lawyer has reported that at least six senior legal roles at Merrill Lynch have been axed as part of the investment bank’s global restructuring.

The line up include New York associate general counsel Carlos Morales, general counsel of litigation and employment Barry Mandel, co-head of global litigation John Eisenberg, director and senior counsel Chris Haas and two more legal heads have been cut from the legal team and will be leaving the bank imminently.

Elsewhere…

Finally, Simmons & Simmons has announced that it is to shut down its Rotterdam base and merge its Netherlands operation into a single office in Amsterdam. Over the next two years around 75 lawyers will be transferred in stages to Amsterdam, before the Rotterdam office closes for business in 2011. It is understood that the office closure will not result in job losses.