The legal sector used to be such a nice, calm place to do business. Partners and clients would occasionally come and go. The odd practice would falter, while a few firms would make slightly more money than everyone else. But the market historically lived up to its reputation as a bastion of sleepy conservatism and resilience. Then came the financial crisis. Spanner, meet works. The legal elite has been forced to adapt to the most turbulent market conditions for a generation. As firms tussle for position in this new world order, the pronounced uptick in law firm merger activity has transformed our Global 100 rankings.
New giants are emerging to dominate the charts, thanks in part to the increasing use of looser organizational structures that have facilitated these combinations. Vereins and verein-like firms now constitute five of the top 25 positions on the revenue chart. Five years ago there was just one: Baker & McKenzie, with the U.S. and international arms of DLA Piper still appearing as separate firms. (A verein is a holding structure, utilized by DLA, Baker & McKenzie, and the majority of recent global tie-ups, that lets participating entities maintain their existing forms without integrating financially.) Three new verein-type firms join the rankings this year: Squire Sanders, SNR Denton, and Europe’s CMS Legal. As the market continues to evolve, there are likely to be more. And with demand for legal services remaining broadly flat across much of the United States and Europe, the biggest international practices have continued to push the geographic envelope by investing in faster-growth markets such as Asia and Africa.
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