The past year was a challenging one for M&A professionals. It was challenging, on the one hand, because of the sharp pullback in merger activity levels. The downward trend in deal activity that began in mid-2007 accelerated in 2008, as the financial crisis and general economic downturn dragged global merger and acquisition activity to levels last seen in 2005. This slowdown has continued into 2009, with US deal activity in March at a level not seen since 1994. The sharp drop in activity forced firms across the M&A advisory spectrum to re-evaluate practices that had been built up to meet the demands of the hyperactive 2006 and early 2007 M&A market. With less work to be shared among an expanded pool of practitioners, the fourth quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009 brought into stark relief the negative impact of drastically reduced deal activity levels on the many financial, accounting, legal and consulting firms regularly engaged in the M&A marketplace.