Kirkland & Ellis and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher were the top mergers and acquisitions (M&A) legal advisers in the power sector during the first half (H1) of 2026 by value and volume, respectively, according to the latest legal advisers league table by GlobalData, which ranks legal advisers by the value and volume of M&A deals on which they advised.

Based on its Financial Deals Database, the leading intelligence and productivity platform revealed that Kirkland & Ellis achieved the top position in terms of value by advising on $154.6 billion worth of deals. Meanwhile, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher led in terms of volume by advising on a total of 18 deals.

Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “There was an improvement in the number of deals advised by Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher in H1 2026 compared to H1 2025 and its ranking by volume improved from eighth to the top position.

“Meanwhile, there was more than a three-fold jump in the total value of deals advised by Kirkland & Ellis in H1 2026 compared to H1 2025 and its ranking by value improved from second to the top spot. In H1 2026, Kirkland & Ellis advised on six billion-dollar deals* that also included a mega deal valued more than $100 billion. Involvement in these big-ticket deals helped it register a massive jump in terms of value.”

An analysis of GlobalData’s Deals Database reveals that Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison occupied the second position in terms of value, by advising on $114.8 billion worth of deals, followed by Vinson & Elkins with $102.7 billion, McGuireWoods with $102.5 billion, and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom with $41 billion.

Meanwhile, CMS occupied the second position in terms of volume with 16 deals, followed by Latham & Watkins with 15 deals, Kirkland & Ellis with 13 deals, and Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas with nine deals.

*Deals valued more than or equal to $1 billion