Kirkland & Ellis has secured the top spot as the leading mergers and acquisitions (M&A) legal adviser globally in terms of both deal value and volume from Q1 to Q3 of 2024, according to the latest financial advisers league table by GlobalData. 

According to GlobalData’s Deals Database analysis, Kirkland & Ellis advised on a total of 423 deals, which cumulatively are valued at an $310.5bn.  

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GlobalData lead analyst Aurojyoti Bose said: “Interestingly, Kirkland & Ellis was the top adviser by both volume and value during Q1-Q3 2023 and also managed to retain its leadership position during Q1-Q3 2024 as well.  

“It was the only firm to advise on more than 400 deals during Q1-Q3 2024. Of these, 63 were billion-dollar deals that also included seven mega deals valued more than $10bn. Involvement in such big-ticket deals helped it occupy the top position by value as well. 

“However, although Kirkland & Ellis outpaced its peers by a significant margin in terms of deal volume, it faced close competition from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom for the top position by value.” 

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom followed closely in the value rankings, advising on deals worth $301.9bn.  

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Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison came in third with $232.1bn, while Cravath Swaine & Moore and Latham & Watkins advised on deals valued at $197.4bn and $193.8bn, respectively. 

In terms of deal volume, Kirkland & Ellis’s lead was substantial, with CMS coming in second with 204 deals.  

White & Case took third place with 182 deals advised, Latham & Watkins followed with 176, and Allen & Overy rounded out the top five with 135 deals. 

GlobalData’s league tables are based on the real-time tracking of thousands of company websites, advisory company websites and other reliable sources available in the secondary domain. A dedicated team of analysts monitors all these sources to gather in-depth details for each deal, including adviser names.​   

To ensure further robustness of the data, the company also seeks deal submissions  from leading advisers.