Our ranking of the 10 most prestigious law firms in the UK, according to reputation, client base and profitability
Prestige is the currency of the Big Law world.
It’s what sets firms apart - many of which offer the same high-quality legal advice across the same practice areas - helping them attract the best clients and draw the best talent to work for them.
But what does it really mean to be a ‘prestigious’ law firm?
Prestige is naturally somewhat subjective.
For some, it's about history. Many of the UK’s leading firms have roots stretching back more than a century, with reputations that are hard to rival and carefully earned over decades of consistently delivering high-quality work.
Take Magic Circle giant Freshfields, for example. The firm is renowned for its long-standing relationship with the Bank of England which it has acted for since the firm’s founding in 1743. It’s hard to match that kind of pedigree.
For others, prestige is about legal excellence - how ‘good’ the advice is. The truth, though, is that providing high quality legal advice is table stakes. All of the UK’s leading law firms are renowned for delivering excellent legal advice. There are probably 10 large firms that would provide the same standard of legal advice on a large corporate M&A deal, for example.
So the 'excellence' should probably be more reflective of financial success in terms of revenue and profitability - metrics that are byproducts of winning the most lucrative work from the biggest clients. That said, the biggest law firms by revenue are not necessarily regarded as the most prestigious.
Prestige can certainly be reflected by a law firm’s reputation. Firms that are consistently trusted by the world’s biggest companies, financial institutions and governments to guide them through the complex legal and regulatory challenges they’re facing would self-evidently be described as prestigious.
We think prestige sits at the intersection of three attributes: reputation, client base and profitability.
The second and third of these can be objectively measured, but the first is more difficult. We’ll rely on our years of experience as City lawyers ourselves to help us make a judgment call when it comes to reputation.
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Founded: 1889
Headquarters: London
Type: Magic Circle
Lawyers: 560
Revenue: £625 million (estimated)
Profit per equity partner (PEP): £3.5 million (estimated)
What you should know: Despite the rest of the Magic Circle's best efforts, Slaughters still reigns supreme as the UK’s most prestigious law firm thanks to its unique (and difficult to define) mix of culture, blockbuster clients and market-leading profitability.
Known for its distinctive and more traditional culture (e.g. as a general rule, Slaughters doesn’t hire partners from other firms, recruiting almost exclusively from its own ranks), Slaughters is the only big law firm that remains a general partnership rather than an LLP. That means all its partners are personally liability for the debts of the partnership. No place to hide here.
Smaller and with much lower revenues than its Magic Circle peers, but thought to be significantly more profitable. The go-to legal adviser for the UK’s biggest listed companies.
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Founded: 1743
Headquarters: London
Type: Magic Circle
Lawyers: 2,800+
Revenue: £2.1 billion
Profit per equity partner (PEP): £2 million+ (estimated)
What you should know: Freshfields has a long history dating back to 1743. The firm is best known for its banking and finance, corporate M&A and arbitration practices.
Consistently among the UK’s most profitable law firms (although it no longer discloses its PEP) and a true member of the so-called 'global elite' thanks to its strong foothold in the lucrative US market where many now consider it be a top 10 player in New York.
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Founded: 1987 (via a merger)
Headquarters: London
Type: Magic Circle
Lawyers: 2,500+
Revenue: £2.3 billion
Profit per equity partner (PEP): £2.04 million
What you should know: Good across the board, huge global reach, and a powerhouse in banking and finance, corporate M&A, and litigation advising international clients on big-ticket cross border mandates.
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Founded: 1838
Headquarters: London
Type: Magic Circle
Lawyers: 2,500+
Revenue: £2.1 billion
Profit per equity partner (PEP): £1.9 million
What you should know: Much like its Magic Circle peers (particularly Clifford Chance and A&O Shearman), Linklaters is a heavyweight in corporate, banking, and capital markets. It has a particularly highly-regarded corporate M&A practice, and is also well known for its finance and capital markets pedigree.
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Founded: 2024 (via a merger)
Headquarters: London
Type: Magic Circle
Lawyers: 4,000+
Revenue: £2.2 billion
Profit per equity partner (PEP): £2.2 million
What you should know: Formed from the merger of the UK’s Allen & Overy with US firm Shearman & Sterling in 2024, A&O’s history dates back to 1930. The firm is strong in a variety of practice areas but is best known for its work in banking and finance (especially capital markets).
We've marked the firm down slightly on the rest of the Magic Circle because of the merger with normal integration issues expected. Some also felt that A&O could have done better than combining with Shearman, which was considered to be a firm on the decline.
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Founded: 1875
Headquarters: London
Type: Silver Circle
Lawyers: 500
Revenue: £309 million
Profit per equity partner (PEP): £2.6 million
What you should know: The most prestigious firm outside of the Magic Circle. Tiny in size compared to the Magic Circle with revenues just topping £300 million, but highly profitable and with a similar reputation to Slaughter and May: traditional and characterised by a conservative approach to expansion.
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Founded: 2012 (via a merger)
Headquarters: London
Type: Silver Circle
Lawyers: 2,600+
Revenue: £1.3 billion
Profit per equity partner (PEP): £1.3 million
What you should know: Roots going back to 1882 and long-regarded as the most prestigious law firm outside the Magic Circle - a label we think it’s now lost to Macfarlanes thanks to its determination to be become a full service global giant (which has seen it lose its sheen as the UK’s pre-eminent litigation shop). Large, highly profitable, big global footprint.
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Founded: 1822
Headquarters: London
Type: Silver Circle
Lawyers: 1,900+
Revenue: £961 million
Profit per equity partner (PEP): £1.3 million
What you should know: Generally put in the same bracket as HSF thanks to its rich City roots and equally high profitability. Unlike HSF when it comes to disputes, Ashurst doesn’t really have a single stand-out practice. Rather, it is solid across the board in corporate M&A, banking and finance, and litigation. An excellent Magic Circle substitute for any client.
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Founded: 2010 (via a merger)
Headquarters: London and Washington D.C.
Type: International
Lawyers: 2,700+
Revenue: £2.15 billion
Profit per equity partner (PEP): £2.2 million
What you should know: A transatlantic giant with a fast-improving reputation over the past decade thanks to its increasing profitability. Its PEP puts Hogan Lovells among the UK’s most prestigious firms. Big global footprint, strong presence in the US thanks to its 2010 merger (UK Lovells combined with US Hogan Hartson), and a good reputation across practice areas with a stand out litigation department.
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Founded: 1810
Headquarters: London
Type: Silver Circle
Lawyers: 400+
Revenue: £215 million
Profit per equity partner (PEP): £1.3 million
What you should know: Traditionally considered one of the most prestigious firms outside the Magic Circle, often put in the same bracket as Macfarlanes. But while Macfarlanes’ reputation continues to grow, Travers has stalled somewhat in recent years. Much smaller than its international rivals, but consistently highly profitable and known for punching above its weight, particularly in mid-market M&A and private equity.
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Law Firm | Trainee First Year | Trainee Second Year | Newly Qualified (NQ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Addleshaw Goddard | £52,000 | £56,000 | £100,000 |
| Akin Gump | £60,000 | £65,000 | £174,418 |
| A&O Shearman | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Ashurst | £52,000 | £57,000 | £125,000 |
| Baker McKenzie | £56,000 | £61,000 | £140,000 |
| Bird & Bird | £47,000 | £52,000 | £98,000 |
| Bristows | £46,000 | £50,000 | £88,000 |
| Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner | £50,000 | £55,000 | £105,000 |
| Burges Salmon | £47,000 | £49,000 | £72,000 |
| Charles Russell Speechlys | £50,000 | £53,000 | £88,000 |
| Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton | £57,500 | £62,500 | £164,500 |
| Clifford Chance | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Clyde & Co | £47,000 | £49,500 | £85,000 |
| CMS | £50,000 | £55,000 | £110,000 |
| Cooley | £55,000 | £60,000 | £157,000 |
| Davis Polk & Wardwell | £65,000 | £70,000 | £170,000 |
| Debevoise & Plimpton | £55,000 | £60,000 | £168,000 |
| Dechert | £55,000 | £61,000 | £165,000 |
| Dentons | £50,000 | £54,000 | £100,000 |
| DLA Piper | £50,000 | £55,000 | £110,000 |
| Eversheds Sutherland | £46,000 | £50,000 | £100,000 |
| Farrer & Co | £47,000 | £49,000 | £88,000 |
| Fieldfisher | £48,500 | £52,000 | £95,000 |
| Freshfields | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Fried Frank | £55,000 | £60,000 | £175,000 |
| Gibson Dunn | £60,000 | £65,000 | £180,000 |
| Goodwin Procter | £55,000 | £60,000 | £175,000 |
| Gowling WLG | £48,500 | £53,500 | £98,000 |
| Herbert Smith Freehills | £56,000 | £61,000 | £135,000 |
| HFW | £50,000 | £54,000 | £100,000 |
| Hill Dickinson | £43,000 | £45,000 | £80,000 |
| Hogan Lovells | £56,000 | £61,000 | £135,000 |
| Irwin Mitchell | £43,000 | £45,000 | £76,000 |
| Jones Day | £56,000 | £65,000 | £160,000 |
| K&L Gates | £50,000 | £55,000 | £115,000 |
| Kennedys | £43,000 | £46,000 | £85,000 |
| King & Spalding | £55,000 | £60,000 | £165,000 |
| Kirkland & Ellis | £60,000 | £65,000 | £174,418 |
| Latham & Watkins | £60,000 | £65,000 | £174,418 |
| Linklaters | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Macfarlanes | £56,000 | £61,000 | £140,000 |
| Mayer Brown | £55,000 | £60,000 | £135,000 |
| McDermott Will & Emery | £65,000 | £70,000 | £174,418 |
| Milbank | £65,000 | £70,000 | £174,418 |
| Mills & Reeve | £45,000 | £47,000 | £82,000 |
| Mischon de Reya | £47,500 | £52,500 | £95,000 |
| Norton Rose Fulbright | £48,500 | £53,000 | £120,000 |
| Orrick | £55,000 | £60,000 | £140,000 |
| Osborne Clarke | £54,500 | £56,000 | £94,000 |
| Paul Hastings | £60,000 | £68,000 | £173,000 |
| Paul Weiss | n/a | n/a | £180,000 |
| Penningtons Manches Cooper | £48,000 | £50,000 | £83,000 |
| Pinsent Masons | £49,500 | £54,000 | £97,000 |
| Quinn Emanuel | n/a | n/a | £180,000 |
| Reed Smith | £50,000 | £55,000 | £125,000 |
| Ropes & Gray | £60,000 | £65,000 | £165,000 |
| RPC | £46,000 | £50,000 | £90,000 |
| Shoosmiths | £43,000 | £45,000 | £97,000 |
| Sidley Austin | £60,000 | £65,000 | £175,000 |
| Simmons & Simmons | £52,000 | £57,000 | £120,000 |
| Skadden | £58,000 | £63,000 | £173,000 |
| Slaughter and May | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Squire Patton Boggs | £47,000 | £50,000 | £110,000 |
| Stephenson Harwood | £50,000 | £55,000 | £100,000 |
| Sullivan & Cromwell | £65,000 | £70,000 | £174,418 |
| Taylor Wessing | £50,000 | £55,000 | £115,000 |
| TLT | £44,000 | £47,500 | £82,000 |
| Travers Smith | £54,000 | £59,000 | £120,000 |
| Trowers & Hamlins | £45,000 | £49,000 | £80,000 |
| Vinson & Elkins | £60,000 | £65,000 | £173,077 |
| Watson Farley & Williams | £50,000 | £55,000 | £102,000 |
| Weightmans | £34,000 | £36,000 | £70,000 |
| Weil Gotshal & Manges | £60,000 | £65,000 | £170,000 |
| White & Case | £62,000 | £67,000 | £175,000 |
| Willkie Farr & Gallagher | £55,000 | £60,000 | £165,000 |
| Withers | £47,000 | £52,000 | £95,000 |
| Womble Bond Dickinson | £43,000 | £45,000 | £80,000 |
Rank | Law Firm | Revenue | Profit per Equity Partner (PEP) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DLA Piper* | £3,010,000,000 | £2,400,000 |
| 2 | Clifford Chance | £2,300,000,000 | £2,040,000 |
| 3 | A&O Shearman | £2,200,000,000 | £2,200,000 |
| 4 | Hogan Lovells | £2,150,000,000 | £2,200,000 |
| 5 | Freshfields | £2,140,000,000 | Not disclosed |
| 6 | Linklaters | £2,100,000,000 | £1,900,000 |
| 7 | Norton Rose Fulbright* | £1,800,000,000 | £1,100,000 |
| 8 | CMS** | £1,620,000,000 | Not disclosed |
| 9 | Herbert Smith Freehills | £1,300,000,000 | £1,300,000 |
| 10 | Ashurst | £961,000,000 | £1,300,000 |
| 11 | Clyde & Co | £844,000,000 | £739,000 |
| 12 | Eversheds Sutherland | £749,000,000 | £1,300,000 |
| 13 | BCLP* | £661,000,000 | £748,000 |
| 14 | Pinsent Masons | £649,000,000 | £793,000 |
| 15 | Slaughter and May*** | £625,000,000 | Not disclosed |
| 16 | Simmons & Simmons | £574,000,000 | £1,076,000 |
| 17 | Bird & Bird** | £545,000,000 | £696,000 |
| 18 | Addleshaw Goddard | £495,000,000 | Not disclosed |
| 19 | Taylor Wessing | £480,000,000 | £915,000*** |
| 20 | Osborne Clarke** | £456,000,000 | £771,000 |
| 21 | Womble Bond Dickinson | £448,000,000 | £556,000 |
| 22 | DWF | £435,000,000 | Not disclosed |
| 23 | Fieldfisher | £407,000,000 | £966,000 |
| 24 | Kennedys | £384,000,000 | Not disclosed |
| 25 | DAC Beachcroft | £325,000,000 | £700,000 |
What do City lawyers actually do each day?
For a closer look at the day-to-day of some of the most common types of lawyers working in corporate law firms, explore our lawyer job profiles:
Law Firm | Trainee First Year | Trainee Second Year | Newly Qualified (NQ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| A&O Shearman | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Clifford Chance | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Linklaters | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Slaughter and May | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
Law Firm | Trainee First Year | Trainee Second Year | Newly Qualified (NQ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| A&O Shearman | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Clifford Chance | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Linklaters | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
| Slaughter and May | £56,000 | £61,000 | £150,000 |
Law Firm | Trainee First Year | Trainee Second Year | Newly Qualified (NQ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ashurst | £52,000 | £57,000 | £125,000 |
| Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner | £50,000 | £55,000 | £105,000 |
| Herbert Smith Freehills | £56,000 | £61,000 | £135,000 |
| Macfarlanes | £56,000 | £61,000 | £140,000 |
| Travers Smith | £54,000 | £59,000 | £120,000 |
Law Firm | Trainee First Year | Trainee Second Year | Newly Qualified (NQ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ashurst | £52,000 | £57,000 | £125,000 |
| Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner | £50,000 | £55,000 | £105,000 |
| Herbert Smith Freehills | £56,000 | £61,000 | £135,000 |
| Macfarlanes | £56,000 | £61,000 | £140,000 |
| Travers Smith | £54,000 | £59,000 | £120,000 |
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