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Vault Law 100

Vault’s national ranking of the most prestigious law firms based on the assessments of lawyers at peer firms. This year, more than 20,000 associates rated the reputations of firms other than their own. Vault's 2023 Rankings are derived from Vault's Annual Associate Survey conducted from January 2022 through March 2022.
Survey Methodology

How does Vault come up with its list of the Top 100 firms in the country? The first step is to compile a list of the most renowned law firms by reviewing the feedback we receive from previous surveys, consulting our previous lists, poring over legal publications, talking to lawyers in the field, and checking out other published rankings. We then asked these top firms to distribute a password-protected online survey to their associates. This year, more than 20,000 associates from all over the country returned anonymous surveys to Vault. We heard from lawyers in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Orlando, Palo Alto, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Francisco, and Seattle—among many other locations. The online survey asked attorneys to score each of the law firms on a scale of 1 to 10 based on how prestigious it is to work for the firm. Associates were asked to ignore any firm with which they were unfamiliar and were not allowed to rate their own firms.

We collected all the surveys and averaged the score for each firm. The firms were then ranked in order, starting with the highest average prestige score as No. 1 on down to determine the Vault Law 100. Remember that in the Top 100, Vault is not assessing firms by profit, size, lifestyle, number of deals, or quality of service; we are ranking the most prestigious law firms based on the perceptions of practicing lawyers at peer firms.

Vault's 2023 Rankings are derived from Vault's Annual Associate Survey conducted from January 2022 through March 2022.

Take Our Survey

Each year Vault invites eligible law firms to participate in our annual Law Survey. Please contact us if you’re interested in having your firm considered for inclusion.

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2023 Vault Law 100

#1
SCORE 9.052
2022 Rank 1

Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP

With two centuries under its belt, Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP is one of the nation’s preeminent law firms. Cravath has settled on a lean-and-mean approach to world dominance with two strategically placed offices in New York and London. ...

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#2
SCORE 8.729
2022 Rank 2

Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz

Each year, a significant chunk of the world’s dealmaking—major mergers and acquisitions, antitrust and shareholder litigation, big-name restructurings, and multi-billion-dollar real estate ventures—gets cranked through the well-oiled machine...

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#3
SCORE 8.651
2022 Rank 3

Skadden

Skadden is one of the most profitable and well-known law firms in the world. It was the first law firm to report $1 billion in annual revenue, now an industry brass ring. While the firm may be best known for its M&A prowess, it is an...

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#4
SCORE 8.386
2022 Rank 7

Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP

Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP boasts one of the nation’s best and most comprehensive corporate departments, with impressive teams in capital markets, M&A, finance, restructuring, and tax. Its lauded litigation practice includes top-notch...

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#5
SCORE 8.353
2022 Rank 5

Latham & Watkins

Latham is one of the world’s largest law firms. With more than 3,000 attorneys in 31 offices around the world, Latham practices in all the major jurisdictions in the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, and regularly represents companies...

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#6
SCORE 8.302
2022 Rank 4

Sullivan & Cromwell LLP

A BigLaw powerhouse, Sullivan & Cromwell has followed—if not created—the blueprint for legal success: It has grown internationally and in response to the increasing cross-border M&A, restructuring, and finance transactional demands of...

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#7
SCORE 8.245
2022 Rank 6

Kirkland & Ellis

Kirkland & Ellis, one the world’s most elite law firms, is known for its corporate, intellectual property, litigation, M&A, private equity, and restructuring work. With more than 3,000 lawyers, the firm is regularly recognized as one of...

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#8
SCORE 7.948
2022 Rank 8

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP

A Wall Street institution, Simpson Thacher houses elite teams in M&A, banking, capital markets, private equity, and litigation. With more than 1,000 lawyers across 10 global offices, Simpson Thacher has long held its spot among the most...

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#9
SCORE 7.876
2022 Rank 9

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP

For almost 150 years, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison—and its predecessor firms—has been a mainstay in the New York City legal market, initially as a general commercial practice. The firm began expanding its litigation practice in...

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#10
SCORE 7.836
2022 Rank 10

Gibson Dunn

With more than 1,600 attorneys across 10 countries, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher is a force. Among the top firms in the country, Gibson Dunn is well known for its litigation and trial work—especially its bustling Appellate Litigation and...

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