A new report confirms what M&A associates already knew in their bones: the mergers and acquisitions market wasn’t just hot last year, it was record-setting. According to data released this week by the London Stock Exchange Group, 2025 featured the most-ever M&A mega-deals, with 68 transactions clocking in at $10 billion or more. Globally, M&A value hit a staggering $4.6 trillion, representing a 49% increase over 2024.
And if you’re wondering who made out like bandits in this frenzy of consolidation, well, let’s just say the usual suspects didn’t exactly miss the party.
Sitting comfortably atop the rankings once again is Kirkland & Ellis, which served as principal adviser on $829 billion worth of deals. Kirkland was joined in the stratosphere by Latham & Watkins, Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz, and Skadden Arps, each advising on $600 billion or more in transactions last year.
Michael Weisser, a private equity partner at Kirkland, put it bluntly to Reuters, “There’s no doubt that the legal market has sort of bifurcated and there is a flight to the top.” So… if you’re not already elite, good luck getting invited to the table.
Latham’s Alex Kelly echoed the point, predicting the stratification will only deepen. As deals grow “in volume, complexity and geographic reach,” clients are increasingly relying on a smaller and smaller cadre of firms to get the job done.
Goodwin Procter took the No. 1 spot for number of deals, advising on a whopping 945 transactions worth $123 billion. Vice chair Stuart Cable told Reuters there’s “no reason to be anything other than highly optimistic” about 2026.
Meanwhile, Wachtell’s Adam Emmerich and Jacob Kling suggested that even this banner year might just be a warm-up act. “We are neck deep in ongoing deals, and the pipeline is bulging as well,” they said. Which is probably thrilling news if you’re a partner… and a scheduling nightmare if you’re an associate with a vacation request pending.
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Mastodon @Kathryn1@mastodon.social.
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