The Legal 500 United States 2021

The Legal 500 provides an objective analysis on leading law firms in the U.S. market in various areas of law. Rankings are based on in-depth research, including feedback from clients and peers, to highlight firms with a truly national presence and the capability to handle sophisticated and complex work.

Kirkland & Ellis is ranked as a leading firm in 56 categories, including 27 Tier 1 ratings. Additionally, 24 attorneys are featured in the “Hall of Fame,” 30 attorneys are named “Leading Lawyers,” 29 attorneys are recognized as “Next Generation Lawyers” and one attorney is recognized as a “Rising Star.”

Tier 1 rankings include:

Antitrust - Civil Litigation/Class Actions: Defense
Dispute Resolution - Appellate: Courts of Appeal
Dispute Resolution - Appellate: Supreme Courts (States and Federal)
Dispute Resolution - Corporate Investigations and White-Collar Criminal Defense: Advice to Corporates
Dispute Resolution - General Commercial Disputes
Dispute Resolution - M&A Litigation: Defense
Dispute Resolution - Securities Litigation: Defense
Finance - Capital Markets: High-yield Debt Offerings: Advice to Issuers
Finance - Commercial Lending: Advice to Borrowers
Finance - Restructuring (Including Bankruptcy): Corporate
Industry Focus - Energy Transactions: Conventional Power
Industry Focus - Energy Transactions: Oil & Gas
Industry Focus - Environment: Transactional
Investment Funds - Private Equity Funds (Including Venture Capital)
Intellectual Property - Copyright
Intellectual Property - Patent Litigation: Full Coverage
Intellectual Property - Patent Litigation: International Trade Commission
Intellectual Property - Trade Secrets (Litigation and Non-contentious Matters)
Labor and Employment - Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation and Retirement Plans: Transactional
M&A/Corporate and Commercial - M&A: Large Deals ($1BN+)
M&A/Corporate and Commercial - Private Equity Buyouts
M&A/Corporate and Commercial - Shareholder Activism: Advice to Boards
Media, Technology and Telecoms - Advertising and Marketing: Litigation
Media, Technology and Telecoms - Technology Transactions
Real Estate
Tax - International Tax
Tax - US Taxes: Non-contentious

The Firm is also recognized in:

Antitrust - Cartel
Antitrust - Merger Control
Dispute Resolution - Corporate Investigations and White-Collar Criminal Defense: Advice to Individuals
Dispute Resolution - E-discovery
Dispute Resolution - Financial Services Litigation
Dispute Resolution - International Trade
Dispute Resolution - Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Actions: Automotive/Transport
Dispute Resolution - Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Actions: Consumer Products (Including Tobacco)
Dispute Resolution - Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Action: Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices - Defense
Dispute Resolution - Product Liability, Mass Tort and Class Action: Toxic Tort - Defense
Finance - Capital Markets: Debt Offerings - Advice to Issuers
Finance - Capital Markets: Equity Offerings - Advice to Issuers
Finance - Capital Markets: Equity Offerings - Advice to Managers
Finance - Project Finance: Advice to Lenders
Finance - Project Finance: Advice to Sponsors
Finance - Structured Finance: Securitization
Industry Focus - Energy Litigation: Oil & Gas
Industry Focus - Energy Regulation: Conventional Power
Industry Focus - Energy Regulation: Oil & Gas
Industry Focus - Energy: Renewable/Alternative Power
Industry Focus - Environment: Litigation
Industry Focus - Healthcare: Life Sciences
IP - Patents: Licensing
IP - Trademarks: Litigation
Media, Technology and Telecoms - Media and Entertainment: Litigation
Media, Technology and Telecoms - Outsourcing
Real Estate - Construction (Including Construction Litigation)
Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITS)
Tax - US Taxes: Contentious