Fueled by deals, revenue at law firms grew by 14% for the first nine months of 2021, continuing the pace set during the first half of the year, and far exceeding 6% growth during the same period in 2020, according to results of the Wells Fargo Legal Specialty Group Nine-Month 2021 Check-in Survey.

"Firms continue to benefit from this 'best of all worlds' environment with almost everything going right: growth in demand, rates, and productivity—each up 6% or more, against generally easy comparisons a year ago," the private bank wrote in a Monday press release.

Big firms continue to lead the pack, as revenue for the Am Law 50 firms that participated in the survey grew by 17% for the three quarters, compared with 10% for the rest of the Am Law 100 and the Second Hundred. Significantly, 93% of firms reported an increase in revenue for the nine months when compared with the prior year, which was a time when the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the legal industry.

Broken down, 68% of Am Law 50 firms reported more than 10% revenue growth, as did 45% of the rest of the Am Law 100, and 41% of the Second Hundred.