Davis Polk & Wardwell and Kirkland & Ellis were the top mergers and acquisitions (M&A) legal advisers in the retail sector for Q1-Q3 2022 by value and volume, respectively, according to the latest Legal Advisers League Table by GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

An analysis of GlobalData’s Financial Deals Database reveals that Davis Polk & Wardwell achieved the leading position by value by advising on $3.7 billion worth of deals. Meanwhile, Kirkland & Ellis led by volume by advising on a total of 18 deals.

According to GlobalData’s report, ‘Global and Retail M&A Report Legal Adviser League Tables Q1-Q3 2022’, a total of 1,470 M&A deals worth $59.7 billion were announced in the sector during Q1-Q3 2022.

Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “While only very few firms managed to see double-digit deal volume during Q1-Q3 2022, Kirkland & Ellis was just two deals away from hitting the 20 deals volume mark. Apart from leading by volume, it also occupied the seventh position by value.

“Meanwhile, Davis Polk & Wardwell, despite advising on a much lesser number of deals and without featuring among the top 10 by deals volume, managed to top the chart by value. Of the four deals advised by Davis Polk & Wardwell, three were billion-dollar deals*, which helped it occupy the top position by value.”

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton occupied the second position by value by advising on $2.4 billion worth of deals, followed by Slaughter and May with $2.2 billion, Allen & Overy with $2.2 billion, and Clifford Chance with $2.1 billion.

Meanwhile, AZB & Partners occupied the second position in terms of volume with 12 deals, followed by CMS with 12 deals, Morgan, Lewis & Bockius with seven deals, and Jones Day with seven deals.

*Valued more than or equal to $1 billion.