Latham Dominates in Legal 500 US Guide

Latham & Watkins continues its streak of earning more Tier 1 practice rankings and more total rankings than any other law firm in the Legal 500 US 2026 guide.

Among the firm’s Tier 1 highlights, Latham:

• Maintained consistent Tier 1 rankings across the capital spectrum, from Commercial Lending and Private Credit to Capital Markets, Structured Finance, and Restructuring categories
• Continued its Tier 1 dominance across M&A/Corporate categories, including for large M&A deals, Shareholder Activism advice to boards, Private Equity large deals, as well as Venture Capital and Emerging Companies
• Maintained Tier 1 rankings across litigation categories, including Antitrust, Appellate, General Commercial, M&A Litigation, Product Liability, Securities, and White Collar, as well as for CFIUS and National Security advice
• Remains Tier 1 across key Industry Focus categories, including Energy, Projects, and Environmental rankings, Healthcare and Life Sciences, Technology, Media & Entertainment, and Sport

LATHAM’S 2026 TIER 1 PRACTICE AND INDUSTRY RANKINGS

• Antitrust — Cartel
• Antitrust — Civil Litigation/Class Actions: defense
• Antitrust — Merger Control
• Dispute Resolution — Appellate: Courts of Appeal
• Dispute Resolution — Appellate: Supreme Court (federal and state)
• Dispute Resolution — Corporate Investigations & White Collar Criminal Defense: Advice to Corporates
• Dispute Resolution — Corporate Investigations & White Collar Criminal Defense: Advice to Individuals
• Dispute Resolution — General commercial disputes – premium ($500m+)
• Dispute Resolution — M&A: litigation: defense
• Dispute Resolution — Product liability, mass tort and class action: defense: consumer products (including tobacco)
• Dispute Resolution — Product liability, mass tort and class action: toxic tort – defense
• Dispute Resolution — Securities litigation: defense
• Finance — Capital markets: debt offerings — advice to issuers
• Finance — Capital markets: debt offerings — advice to underwriters
• Finance — Capital markets: equity offerings — advice to issuers
• Finance — Capital markets: global offerings — advice to issuers
• Finance — Capital markets: global offerings — advice to underwriters
• Finance — Capital markets: high-yield debt offerings — advice to issuers
• Finance — Capital markets: high-yield debt offerings — advice to underwriters
• Finance — Capital markets: equity offerings — advice to managers
• Finance — Commercial lending: advice to bank lenders
• Finance — Commercial lending: advice to borrowers
• Finance — Commercial lending: advice to direct lenders/private credit
• Finance — Crypto
• Finance — Energy and Power
• Finance — Fintech
• Finance — Restructuring (including bankruptcy): corporate
• Finance — Structured Finance: Derivatives and structured products
• Finance — Structured Finance: Securitization
• Industry Focus — Energy transactions: electric power — large-cap ($500m+)  (FKA: conventional power)
• Industry Focus — Energy transactions: oil and gas — large-cap ($500m+)
• Industry Focus — Energy transactions: oil and gas power — large-cap ($500m+)
• Industry Focus — Energy: renewable/alternative
• Industry Focus — Environment: litigation
• Industry Focus — Environment: regulatory
• Industry Focus — Environment: transactional
• Industry Focus — Healthcare: life sciences
• Industry Focus — Insurance: advice to policyholders
• Industry Focus — Sport
• Intellectual Property — Copyright
• Intellectual Property — Patent litigation: full coverage
• Intellectual Property — Patent litigation: international trade commission
• Intellectual Property — Patents: Licensing
• Intellectual Property — Trade secrets (litigation and non-contentious matters)
• International Trade and National Security — CFIUS
• International Trade and National Security — National Security
• Labor and Employment — Employee benefits and executive compensation and retirement plans (transactional)
• M&A/Corporate and Commercial — M&A: large deals ($1bn+)
• M&A/Corporate and Commercial — Private equity buyouts: large deals ($500m+)
• M&A/Corporate and Commercial — Shareholder activism: advice to boards
• M&A/Corporate and Commercial — Venture capital and emerging companies
• Media, Technology and Telecoms — Cyber law (including data protection and privacy)
• Media, Technology and Telecoms — Media and Entertainment: litigation
• Media, Technology and Telecoms — Media and Entertainment: transactional
• Media, Technology and Telecoms — Technology transactions
• Media, Technology and Telecoms — Telecoms and broadcast: regulatory
• Media, Technology and Telecoms — Telecoms and broadcast: transactions
• Real Estate — Land use/zoning
• Real Estate — Real Estate – large-cap ($500m+)
• Real Estate — Real estate investment trusts (REITs)
• Tax — US taxes: contentious
• Tax — US taxes: non-contentious