Sullivan & Cromwell and Kirkland & Ellis led the financial services mergers and acquisitions (M&A) legal adviser rankings for Q1-Q3 2026. Sullivan & Cromwell ranked first by value, advising on $38.9 billion worth of deals, while Kirkland & Ellis topped the volume charts with 32 deals, according to GlobalData’s Deals Database.
Both firms’ ascension reflects broader client demand for specialised financial-services expertise amid a year of heightened regulatory scrutiny.
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom took second place by value with $37.4 billion, closely matched by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, which recorded the same total. Ropes & Gray and A&O Shearman followed, with $33.1 billion and $30.8 billion, respectively.
In terms of volume, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett took second place with 29 deals, followed jointly by Latham & Watkins and Alston & Bird at 27 deals each. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom rounded out the top five with 26 deals.
GlobalData lead analyst Aurojyoti Bose observed that the two leading advisers experienced changes in their standings. Kirkland & Ellis moved up to the top spot in volume, overtaking its previous position, even though the overall count of deals it advised fell year over year. Sullivan & Cromwell, meanwhile, saw a reduction in total deal value, yet it rose to the premier position by value.
The year-on-year drop in Kirkland & Ellis’s deal count was the smallest among all the advisers in the top 10 by volume that saw a decrease, while a similar downward trend affected several advisers in the top-10 by value rankings.