Kirkland & Ellis

Kirkland & Ellis

By LawFuel Editors / March 20, 2026

Revenue:Revenue of $8.8 billion, up 22% year-on-year. Profits per equity partner of $9.25 million, up 16%. The firm grew its equity partnership by 6.3% to 573 partners while maintaining these PEP levels, while revenue per lawyer also jumped 12% to nearly $2.3 millionl For context, Kirkland's revenue is more than double that of its nearest UK competitor (Clifford Chance at approximately $2.4 billion) and its PEP is roughly nine times that of Addleshaw Goddard. Latham & Watkins is Kirkland's nearest rival by revenue at $7 billion — itself a record — leaving a $1.8 billion gap at the top.

Global Spread / Office Footprint:Approximately 4,000 lawyers across 22 cities in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Net US offices span Chicago (HQ), New York, Washington DC, Houston, Boston, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Palo Alto, Austin, Salt Lake City and Philadelphia. International offices include London, Munich, Frankfurt, Paris, Dublin, Brussels, Amsterdam, Beijing, Shanghai and Riyadh. The firm expanded its European presence by opening in Frankfurt in 2024, following Riyadh in 2023. London is the crown jewel internationally — the London office comprises over 500 lawyers and acts on some of the most complex, high-value and high-profile corporate transactions in Europe. Net In late 2025 the firm relocated from the Gherkin to 40 Leadenhall Street, dubbed 'Gotham City' by the City press, which features a sauna, hair salon and a 10,000-book library

Prestige / Market Tier:BigLaw Elite

Tier 1 Strengths:The highest-grossing and most profitable law firm in the world. Wikipedia A category of one. Not a peer of the Magic Circle or even of other elite US firms in any conventional sense — the financial gap between Kirkland and its nearest rivals has widened every year for a decade. Kirkland leads the Am Law 100 in both gross revenue and profits per equity partner, with revenue per lawyer of $2.29 million

Culture / Work Environment Snapshot:High-octane, meritocratic, and bracingly honest about what it is. Kirkland does not pretend to offer work-life balance in the conventional sense — it is work-hard, play-hard, with an accelerated partner track at around 6 PQE: if you work your guts out and do well, you're in. The quid pro quo is exceptional compensation, exceptionally high-quality work, and a genuinely meritocratic culture in which trainees describe the cohort as "close and really supportive" with "honest discussions" and a genuine desire for colleagues to succeed — rather than the competitive backstabbing sometimes associated with elite US firms. The move to 40 Leadenhall has reinforced the firm's self-image: firm events are legendary, with "literally no expense spared," free breakfast, lunch and dinner in the office, and deal closings marked by lunches that "can be huge." For lawyers who want to work at the very top of the market and are prepared to earn it, Kirkland is the benchmark.

Last Updated: March 31, 2026

There is Kirkland & Ellis, and then there is everyone else. The Chicago-founded firm — established in 1909 and for decades a respected but unremarkable mid-tier player — has executed one of the most extraordinary transformations in the history of the legal profession, becoming by considerable distance the highest-grossing and most profitable law firm on earth.

The engine of that transformation is a ruthlessly focused model: concentrate exclusively on the most profitable work (private equity, leveraged finance, fund formation, restructuring and high-stakes litigation), hire the best lawyers at every level with market-leading compensation, promote partners faster than anyone else, and repeat at scale. In 2024, Kirkland posted $8.8 billion in revenue — a 22% increase on the prior year — and profits per equity partner of $9.25 million.

No other law firm in history has come close to those numbers. The London office, now housed at the landmark 40 Leadenhall Street after three decades in the Gherkin, is the firm’s largest outside the US and a major force in European private equity — with over 500 lawyers and a reputation as the most sought-after training ground for deal lawyers in the City.