Sullivan ranked first in the value tables for
New York rival Skadden came second in both the European and UK value tables after advising on 264 European deals worth a combined value of E692.5bn (£497bn) and 109 UK deals worth E188bn (£135.3bn).
The two firms saw their positions boosted by roles on deals including Barclays’ unsuccessful E67.5bn (£48.5bn) bid for ABN Amro earlier this year and, during last year, Gaz de France’s bid for Suez and E.ON’s bid for Endesa.
The tables tracked all M&A deals of more than E5m (£3.6m). The rankings also highlight the strong performance of White & Case, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton and Latham & Watkins.
White & Case topped the table by volume, traditionally a more accurate indicator of local law prowess in Europe, and finished fifth by value, working on 484 deals worth E317bn (£228bn).
In European rankings, Cleary came third by value and fourth by volume, while Latham featured within the top six firms by value and volume in both the
Other strong performers included Baker & McKenzie and Jones Day, which feature in the top three firms on
