Pirical data tracking 50,000+ lawyers across PE and capital markets practices reveals a three-year talent reshaping more dramatic than the numbers indicate.

Lateral Partner retention is a vital metric for law firms. "Each year, law firms invest countless hours, money, and resources in their lateral hiring efforts" , so the success rate of each lateral hire has significant implications to any firm. Based on input from a number of firms, a key window for a lateral Partner hire is the first 3 years from joining. Within that timeframe, most firms will have a sense of whether the hire is going to be a success, or not! Using publicly-available data tracked by Pirical , we've analyzed how many of the lateral Partner hires made by AM Law 100 firms between 2020-2022 exited the firm within 3 years of joining.

The first quarter of 2026 has wrapped up, so which firms started the year off with the most lateral Partner hires? We’ve taken a look, using publicly-available data tracked by Pirical Legal Professionals .

Pirical Rankings: Which AM Law 101-200 Firms Have The Best Lateral Partner Retention?

A landmark Supreme Court decision just invalidated presidential tariff authority. Big Law firms are now racing to capture what could become one of the most lucrative litigation waves in recent memory. More than 2,000 refund lawsuits have already been filed. The stakes exceed $100 billion in potentially recoverable duties. An exclusive analysis by Pirical identifies which law firms are best positioned to capitalize on the tariff litigation boom. The analysis weighs three factors: client representation, practice investment, and specialized expertise. Kirkland & Ellis emerges as the clear market leader. The firm represents 12 major companies seeking tariff refunds. That's double the client count of its nearest competitor. Kirkland's 74.8 composite score in Pirical's three-pillar analysis significantly outpaces Akin Gump (58.9) and Latham & Watkins (51.3), which round out the top three.

The Strait of Hormuz handles about a fifth of the world's oil supply. Right now it's generating something else at scale: legal work. Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd, CMA CGM, and MSC have all suspended transits. Tankers have been struck by drone fire. QatarEnergy has paused LNG production. Over 400 vessels are anchored outside the strait waiting to find out what happens next. Every one of those vessels represents charter party clauses, war risk premiums, force majeure notices, and cargo claims. The dispute pipeline heading toward London arbitration panels and P&I desks is enormous. The question is which law firms get the call. We ranked 20 firms using Pirical Legal Professionals data across three dimensions. Here's what the numbers say.

See Pirical's Ranking of Which AM Law 101-200 Law Firms Have Seen the Most Significant Growth in the Past Year

Pirical has been working with customers to diagnose their current state of productivity and to test ideas about what really drives productivity across the market.

The Volume of Lateral Moves From AM Law 1-50 to 101-150 Firms has Increased by +45% Over the Last 3 Years.

Which law firms had already positioned themselves years earlier to capture what may become the largest energy legal market since post-invasion Iraq?