The $11 Million Club – BigLaw’s Partner Profit Machine Just Broke Another Record — And The 2026 Rankings Haven’t Even Dropped Yet
In the rarefied atmosphere where partners measure success in eight-figure payouts and associates measure it in how many weekends they haven’t seen since the bar exam, one number looms above all others: profit per equity partner, or PEP.
PEP is the metric that makes managing partners beam, headhunters salivate, and mid-level associates stare at their billable hour trackers with a particular brand of existential dread.
The 2026 Am Law 100 rankings — reflecting 2025 fiscal performance — haven’t been formally published yet. But early reports are already in, and if you thought the 2025 numbers were eye-watering, with 4.6 trillion (that’s ‘illion’ with a ‘T’) brace yourself.
Kirkland & Ellis has become the first law firm in history to crack $10 billion in annual revenue, posting $10.56 billion for 2025 — up 20% year-on-year.
PEP at the Chicago colossus hit $11.1 million, also up approximately 20%. Since 2020, Kirkland’s average partner profits have risen 80%. Let that arithmetic sink in for a moment. A Kirkland equity partner today earns roughly what a senior Magic Circle partner in London earns in four years.
The PEP-Talk Numbers
