Kirkland & Ellis and White & Case were the leading mergers and acquisitions (M&A) legal advisers in the Middle East and Africa during the first three quarters (Q1-Q3) of 2026, ranking first by deal value and volume, respectively, according to GlobalData.
An analysis of GlobalData’s Deals Database shows that Kirkland & Ellis advised on deals worth $33.4 billion, while White & Case led advising on 12 deals.
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A&O Shearman ranked second in the value table after advising on $9.2bn in deals. Sullivan & Cromwell followed with $6.4bn, ahead of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer with $6.2 billion and Meitar Law Offices with $5.9bn.
Baker McKenzie placed second by volume, with 10 advised deals. A&O Shearman and DLA Piper each advised on nine transactions, while Meitar Law Offices recorded five deals.
GlobalData lead analyst Aurojyoti Bose commented: “White & Case was the top adviser by volume during Q1-Q3 2025 and retained its leadership position by this metric during Q1-Q3 2026 as well, despite experiencing a year-on-year fall in the total number of deals advised by it. Moreover, it was among the only two advisers to hit double-digit deal volume during Q1-Q3 2026.
“Meanwhile, Kirkland & Ellis also witnessed a decline in the total value of deals advised by it, but still it not only managed to lead by value but out outpaced its peers by a significant margin. Involvement in the $33.4 billion deal for the acquisition of The AES by a consortium of investors played a pivotal role in keeping Kirkland & Ellis well ahead of its peers.”
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.
