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A&O Shearman is focusing more on “quality of revenue” by refocusing attorney efforts on the most profitable clients and types of legal work. DC firms are quietly building capacity for a potential wave of congressional investigations should Democrats retake the House. Paul Hastings added Cahill's private credit co-leader Peter Williams, a former KKR managing director, as firms continue building sponsor-side financing benches. In London, DLA Piper and Macfarlanes both raised NQ pay, pushing the salary war into new territory.
On the client side, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and PNC Financial have held preliminary talks to acquire a Fiserv debit-card network, a move that could reshape payments but faces regulatory scrutiny. At least 10 power and clean-tech companies raised $11.6 billion in IPOs as AI data center demand drives capital into energy infrastructure.
Now, on to what matters for your practice today.
Today’s Talking Points
-A&O Shearman Focuses on Quality of Revenue / DC Firms Prepare for Congressional Investigations Following Midterm Elections
-Paul Hastings Hires Cahill's Private Credit Co-Leader / Sidley Expands Capital Markets from Latham
-Simpson Thacher Signs 916K-Sq-Ft NYC Lease
-DLA Piper and Macfarlanes Raise NQ Pay in London Salary War / Blank Rome Discloses Data Breach
-Major Banks Explore Fiserv Debit Network Deal / Payments Regulatory Scrutiny Ahead
-Power and Clean-Tech IPOs Raise $11.6B / SK Hynix Launches $28B US Listing
-Mubadala Opens $25B Credit Business
-France Cuts Growth Forecast / OPEC+ Raises Output / NATO Summit This Week
Talent Strategy
Latest Moves
Paul Hastings hired Peter Williams as a private credit partner in New York. Williams was co-head of Cahill Gordon & Reindel's private credit practice and previously served as a managing director at KKR.
Sidley Austin is expanding its capital markets bench, adding a top high-yield partner from Latham & Watkins.
Pillsbury hired Calvin Wingfield as an IP tech litigation partner in Washington, D.C.
Lowenstein Sandler hired Thomas Pearce as an environmental law partner in New York from Latham & Watkins.
O'Melveny hired Todd Beaton as a securities litigation and financial services partner in New York from McGuireWoods.
White & Case added partners in Hong Kong and Riyadh, building out its cross-border bench.
What today's moves tell us: Hiring across private credit, capital markets, and litigation defense hasn’t slowed down. Deal flow levels and enforcement cycles are generating billable work across markets.
Operations and Strategy
Firms are confident in sector-focused strategies while building up capacity for potential congressional investigations. The New York market stays resilient, and London's NQ pay war intensifies.
A&O Shearman is focusing more on “quality of revenue” by refocusing attorney efforts on the most profitable clients and types of legal work. The firm is said to be doubling down on its industry-sector-based strategy, which has resulted in significant growth in profits on a per partner basis.
In Washington, top law firms are quietly building capacity for a potential wave of congressional investigations should Democrats retake the House. Likely targets span Big Tech and retail such as Amazon and Walmart over pricing practices, and Apple and Microsoft among donors to Trump's White House ballroom project.
A House majority flip would mark the first power shift since 2023, putting a premium on firms' ability to pivot client services rapidly under conditions of partisan gridlock and divided government.
In London, DLA Piper raised NQ salaries to £140,000, and Macfarlanes set NQ base pay at £150,000 (about $200,000) plus bonuses. The moves keep the London pay war running as firms compete for top talent against US rivals.
Simpson Thacher signed a 916,000-square-foot lease in New York's Plaza District, one of the largest law firm real estate commitments in recent years. The deal signals confidence in in-person work and positions the firm for long-term headcount growth in its home market. The U.S. legal sector added 5,100 jobs in June, pushing total legal employment to an all-time high of 1,243,500 for the third straight month.
Blank Rome disclosed a data breach affecting firm systems. The incident adds to a growing list of cybersecurity events at major firms and underscores the pressure on law firm IT and risk teams to secure client data against increasingly sophisticated threats.
Practices
Corporate M&A and Private Equity
Large strategic deals continue to drive M&A activity, with several multi-billion-dollar transactions announced across industrials, defense, airlines, and life sciences. Activist investors are adding fuel: Lazard reports 184 campaigns in H1, up 20% from a year ago, with more demands pushing companies to sell or pursue strategic alternatives. For sponsors, the picture is mixed: PE still has capital to deploy but is losing share to strategic buyers in the AI acquisition wave.
Selected Press:
Solstice (Honeywell spinoff) to acquire Element Solutions in a $14.5 billion cash-and-stock deal, creating a specialty chemicals leader.
Lockheed Martin buying Ultra Maritime from Advent for $3.45 billion as demand for naval defense systems surges.
Castlelake's fifth bid for EasyJet accepted at over £5 billion as soaring fuel costs and suppressed demand weigh on the airline.
Thales agreed a €3.9 billion deal for Exail Technologies, a maritime robotics firm, amid Europe's defense rearmament push.
Novartis buying UK biotech Myricx Bio for up to $1.5 billion, adding an experimental cancer drug.
Lazard reports 184 campaigns in H1, up 20% from a year ago.
Capital Markets and IPOs
The IPO window is open for companies tied to AI infrastructure and energy. At least 10 power infrastructure and clean technology companies have gone public in 2026, raising about $11.6 billion as investors fund the massive power needs of AI data centers. SK Hynix kicked off marketing for a $28 billion US listing on the Nasdaq, the largest from South Korea, to ride AI-driven memory chip demand. SpaceX joined the Nasdaq-100 this week with a roughly $2.1 trillion valuation, and Brookfield-backed data center company Csquare is seeking $1.35 billion in a US IPO.
Selected Press:
SK Hynix launches $28 billion Nasdaq listing to fund chip expansion and broaden its investor base.
SpaceX joins the Nasdaq-100 with limited float, prompting index funds to buy in.
Private Credit and Infrastructure
Capital is flowing into private credit platforms and emerging market infrastructure. Abu Dhabi's Mubadala is opening its $25 billion credit portfolio to outside investors for the first time and committing an additional $4.65 billion to support expansion. CVC raised about €3 billion for a new mid-market buyout fund across Europe. In Latin America, Mexico is courting BlackRock, KKR, and local pension funds with a clearer framework for private infrastructure investment, backed by legal changes to speed approvals. Investors are targeting mid-teens returns, with early momentum in renewable energy tenders.
Selected Press:
Mubadala opens $25 billion credit business to outside investors under a long-term management agreement.
Mexico courts BlackRock, KKR for energy and highway infrastructure with a new regulatory framework.
Investors sought to pull $16 billion from private credit funds in Q2, pressuring fund liquidity.
Financial Services and Payments
JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and PNC Financial have held preliminary talks to acquire a Fiserv debit-card network, a move that could bypass debit-fee caps but may face antitrust and regulatory scrutiny. A bank-owned network would give the largest card issuers more control over transaction routing and pricing, potentially shifting the competitive balance against Visa and Mastercard. The deal would generate mandates across financial regulatory, antitrust, fintech M&A, and payments advisory work.
Selected Press:
Major banks explore Fiserv debit-card network acquisition to bypass fee caps and reshape payments infrastructure.
Where the Work Sits
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The wave of multi-billion-dollar deals and the record pace of activist campaigns are generating advisory mandates across corporate M&A, leveraged finance, and antitrust. Sell-side mandates, fairness opinions, regulatory filings, and post-close integration work will keep elite transactional teams busy through the rest of 2026.
The banks’ preliminary talks to acquire a Fiserv debit-card network would open mandates across financial regulatory, antitrust, fintech M&A, and payments advisory — with additional work if the deal triggers scrutiny from the DOJ or bank regulators. Capital markets work is broadening as the AI-driven IPO rush in power and clean technology produces securities, financing, and regulatory mandates tied to data center infrastructure.
Private credit and infrastructure are creating cross-border advisory work. Mubadala’s move to open its $25 billion platform to outside investors will require fund formation, regulatory, and financing structuring. Mexico’s infrastructure push is generating project finance, energy regulatory, and cross-border investment advisory mandates for firms with Latin American practices.
Global Markets
Clients are watching the start of a busy week for macro data and geopolitical events. ISM Services PMI is due today, a key gauge of the dominant U.S. services sector and law firm client activity. FOMC minutes land Wednesday, and Existing Home Sales follow Thursday. France lowered its 2026 economic growth forecast to 0.7%, down from 0.9%, citing a weaker-than-expected start to the year and geopolitical uncertainty — a signal that could slow law firm expansion plans on the continent. The NATO summit begins this week with President Trump set to meet Ukrainian President Zelensky as allies debate defense spending targets. OPEC+ agreed to raise August output targets by 188,000 barrels per day, pushing oil prices lower.
Selected Press:
France cuts 2026 growth forecast to 0.7%, down from 0.9%, on weak domestic activity and geopolitical drag. (Reuters)
OPEC+ raises August output targets by 188,000 bpd; oil prices fell on expectations of weaker demand.
NATO summit this week as Trump meets Zelensky and allies push for higher defense spending.
Dow hit a fresh ATH Thursday; Europe’s Stoxx 600 posted its fourth straight weekly gain.
That’s the rundown. See you next where law meets the markets.
-The BigLaw Markets Team
*DISCLAIMER: BigLaw Markets analyzes publicly available information, filings, press releases, and news stories published by reputable media sources to deliver newsletters that highlight the drivers of demand for legal services.
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