Sullivan acted on 33 deals worth a combined $162.9bn (£83bn), while Davis Polk acted on 28 deals worth $149.4bn (£76.2bn), according to preliminary figures from Mergermarket.
Other
Linklaters, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, DLA Piper, Clifford Chance (CC), CMS Cameron McKenna and Allen & Overy also featured in the top 10.
The figures come after a drop in global M&A activity compared with the same period last year. Total deal volume fell from 3,276 to 2,269 while total value fell from E746bn (£505bn) to E600bn (£407bn). The biggest fall came in
In the European deal rankings by value, Linklaters knocked magic circle rival Freshfields off the top spot, acting on 51 European deals worth E39.4bn (£26.7bn). Freshfields was ranked second, with 47 European deals worth E38.7bn (£26.4bn). CC was third with 43 deals worth E33.7bn (£23bn). However, the figures do not include Barclays’ current merger bid for ABN Amro, the largest announced bid for the year.
