Kirkland & Ellis was the top mergers and acquisitions (M&A) legal adviser in the North American region during first the three quarters (Q1-Q3) of 2024 by value and volume, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

An analysis of GlobalData’s Deals Database reveals that Kirkland & Ellis achieved the leading position having advised on 356 deals worth $269.4 billion.

Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Kirkland & Ellis was also the top adviser by both value and volume during Q1-Q3 2023 and managed to retain the top position during Q1-Q3 2024 as well. In terms of volume, it outpaced its peers by a significant margin but faced close competition from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom for the top position by value.”

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom occupied the second position in terms of value, by advising on $266.8 billion worth of deals, followed by Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison with $217.9 billion, Cravath Swaine & Moore with $183.3 billion and Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz with $150.9 billion.

Meanwhile, Latham & Watkins occupied the second position in terms of volume with 120 deals, followed by Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher with 102 deals, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison with 99 deals and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett with 84 deals.