White & Case and CMS have been recognised as the top mergers and acquisitions (M&A) legal advisers in Europe for the first half (H1) of 2024, according to the latest legal advisers league table by GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.
White & Case has been placed at the forefront in terms of deal value while CMS led by deal volume.
An analysis of Deals Database by GlobalData indicates that White & Case advised on deals worth $27.1bn, securing the top position by value.
On the other hand, CMS advised on a total of 105 deals, leading in deal volume.
GlobalData lead analyst Aurojyoti Bose said: “CMS was the clear winner in terms of volume as it was the only adviser to hit triple-digit deal volume during H1 2024. Interestingly, it was also the top adviser by volume in H1 2023.
“Meanwhile, White & Case registered a jump in the total value of deals it advised, as well as an improvement in its ranking by value in H1 2024 compared to H1 2023. It went ahead from occupying the sixth position by value in H1 2023 to lead in H1 2024.
“Involvement in seven billion-dollar deals during H1 2024 was pivotal for White & Case to register improvement in the total value of deals advised, as well as its ranking in terms of value.”
White & Case also held a strong position in deal volume, coming in second position with 60 deals.
Following White & Case in deal volume were Baker McKenzie with 49 deals, Allen & Overy with 42 deals, and Addleshaw Goddard with 41 deals.
In the value category, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom ranked second, advising on deals amounting to $26.5bn.
They were followed by Latham & Watkins with $22.1bn, Kirkland & Ellis with $19.3bn, and Sullivan & Cromwell with $18.6bn.
GlobalData’s league tables are based on the real-time tracking of thousands of company websites, advisory firm websites and other reliable sources available on the secondary domain. A dedicated team of analysts monitors all these sources to gather in-depth details for each deal, including adviser names.
To ensure further robustness to the data, the company also seeks submissions of deals from leading advisers.
