Latham & Watkins

Latham & Watkins is the world’s second-largest law firm by revenue.

Founded in Los Angeles in 1934 (during the Great Depression) by Dana Latham and Paul Watkins, the firm originally specialised in tax and employment law.

Today, having pivoted to become a corporate, finance and private equity powerhouse, Latham & Watkins has more than 3,500 lawyers across some 30 offices in 14 countries. As of 2024, its revenue stands at $5.7 billion, trailing only arch-rival Kirkland & Ellis.

Latham & Watkins’ London office has played an important role in the firm’s global success.

Opened in 1990, its headcount of almost 600 lawyers in the City make it the biggest US firm in London, having overtaken Baker McKenzie in 2022. It’s now Latham’s second largest operation worldwide after New York.

Although some of this expansion has been organic, a large part of Latham’s growth has come from high-profile lateral hires, particularly at the partnership level.

This includes leading capital markets specialist Mark Austin from Freshfields in 2023 and the current head of Latham’s London office, Ed Barnett, who joined the firm in 2017 after two decades at Allen & Overy (now A&O Shearman).

During the four-year tenure of Barnett’s predecessor, Stephen Kensell, Latham’s partnership grew by a hefty 40%. It now numbers almost 150.

Latham’s talent acquisition strategy has enabled it to challenge the dominance of the five Magic Circle firms at the top of London’s legal market.

In 2022/3, Latham reportedly recorded the fourth-highest UK revenue of any law firm. The £588 million figure places it just behind Linklaters, A&O Shearman (then, just A&O), and Clifford Chance, who took the top three spots by a small margin. And, more significantly, it smashes the remaining two Magic Circle firms - Freshfields and Slaughter & May - out of the water who took the seventh and eighth spots, respectively.

Additionally, Latham’s recent appointment to the advisory panels of some of the largest FTSE 100 names such as Vodafone (in 2021) and Anglo American (in 2023) demonstrates the firm gaining on territory traditionally regarded as Magic Circle strongholds.

Currently located in 99 Bishopsgate, Latham & Watkins has earmarked 2026 as the date for its move over to new premises at One Leadenhall (where it will be just a few doors down from arch-rival Kirkland which counts The Gherkin (30 St Mary Axe) as its London HQ).

Latham & Watkins is capable of delivering a full-service offering to the largest players in every major business jurisdiction around the world. It often leads on highly complex, multi-jurisdictional mandates, and reports that 70% of the firm’s transactions involve five or more offices.

The firm’s strongest practice areas include M&A, private equity, leveraged finance, capital markets, restructuring, litigation and regulatory.

Other things to know

Environmental Credentials: In 2024, climate action group Law Students for Climate Accountability (LSCA) Climate ranked Latham & Watkins as the second-worst law firm in the world for work on fossil fuel related transactions.

Loss of Key Partners In London: Latham lost at least 11 London partners to rivals in 2024. Notably, it lost seven in a single day in August when US rival Sidley Austin poached five leveraged finance partners and Milbank poached a six-lawyer structured finance team.

Sidley’s raid included star leveraged finance partner Jayanthi Sadanandan. It followed up in November with the hire of 10 finance associates, bringing its tally to 17 lawyers poached from Latham in 2024.

In addition to an active City partner transfer market generally, some have put the exodus down to a culture shift at Latham triggered by the firm rolling out a ‘super points’ equity band to better reward star partners - moving them closer to the $20 million a year on offer at Latham’s most profitable rivals, such as Kirkland and Paul Weiss.

What is Latham & Watkins known for?

Latham & Watkins is a fully paid-up member of the 'global elite' of law firms, along with the likes of Kirkland, Skadden and Freshfields.

It is a full service law firm advising multinational companies, governments and financial institutions across the full spectrum of corporate law matters. In the UK market, it's best known for its expertise in the following areas:

‍Banking & Finance: Latham & Watkins’ banking and finance practice is a go-to for institutional investors and sponsors on complex, cross-border deals. It regularly advises on the biggest leveraged finance transaction, as well as on more bespoke deals. The firm is ranked Band 1 by Chambers for its advice to lenders on big-ticket financings.

Private Equity: Latham & Watkins’ private equity practice regularly scores high-end, multi-jurisdictional mandates for a host of well-known private equity houses. The firm is ranked in Band 1 by Chambers for buyouts over £500 million.

Capital Markets: Latham & Watkins has the biggest high-yield bond practice in Europe, acting on the largest deals in the market for sponsors and issuers. The firm is ranked in Band 1 by Chambers for high yield advice.

Corporate/M&A: Latham & Watkins is highly sought-after on international deal work across Europe, Asia, and the US. It has a full service corporate practice, offering expertise dealing with M&A, shareholder activism, competition law and regulatory hurdles. The firm is ranked in Band 2 by Chambers for big-ticket corporate work.

What's Chambers?

We use Chambers rankings to demonstrate a firm's strengths. Chambers is the most highly-regarded provider of law firm rankings in the legal industry. Law firms are ranked in bands from 1 (highest) to 6 (lowest) across a range of practice areas.

It's important to note that being ranked in any band at all is still considered a significant achievement.

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Who does Latham & Watkins compete with?

Latham competes with the Magic Circle firms in the UK for the big-ticket corporate and banking mandates. On the global stage, its main competitors are Kirkland & Ellis and Skadden.

Latham & Watkins is the second biggest law firm in the world by revenue. For 2023, its total revenue was $5.7 billion.

For 2023, its profit per equity partner (PEP) was $5.5 million.

How many trainees does Latham & Watkins take?

Latham & Watkins takes on around 32 trainees each year in the UK.

Trainees complete four seats in different departments, each lasting six months.