Weil leads US-dominated list of world's top M&A advisers

Weil Gotshal, Simpson Thacher and Wachtell Lipton take the top three spots in a global M&A ranking in which US firms win nine of the top ten places.

Thomsom Reuters data shows 2014 to be the best year for M&A activity since 2007 - as the value of global deals pushed up 47% from US$2.4 trillion to $3.5t in 12 months. Weil Gotshal & Manges acted in 207 deals worth $406b. Coming second, Simpson Thacher & Bartlett acted in 157 deals, worth $313b.

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer

Freshfields, coming 7th (211 deals worth $240b), is the only non-US firm in the top 10. Davis Polk comes 4th, Jones Day is 5th and Skadden Arps is 6th. Source: The Lawyer