Baker McKenzie has promoted 30 to partner across its international network in its annual summer promotions round, following 17 partner promotions across North and Latin America in January.
This year’s 47 promotions form the smallest cohort for the firm in the past decade, during which it has regularly made up more than 80.
Two London lawyers – M&A specialist Ben Saraci and dispute resolution lawyer Ben Ko – have made the cut this year, down from the seven that were made up in London in 2025.
The firm's M&A practice saw the largest number of promotions overall this time, with 10, followed by seven in dispute resolution and six in the tax team. Five moved up in the employment and compesation practice, and four in the real estate team. Women represented 43% of this year’s partner promotions, down from 47% last year and 2024's record high of 52%.
By region continental Europe welcomed the most new partners, with 16, including three in Brussels and two apiece in Vienna, Warsaw, Amsterdam, Paris and Milan.
Meanwhile there were 14 promotions across the US, including four in Los Angeles and three in Bakers' Chicago headquarters. There were also two promotions each in New York and San Francisco.
The Americas promotions, which were effective 1 January 2026, were completed by four promotions split between Bogota, Santiago, Juarez and Monterrey.
The international round, effective 1 July 2026, also saw two made up in Australia, seven in Asia, including three in Taipei, and two in the Middle East across Riyadh and Abu Dhabi.
The promotions are the first announced under global chair Sunny Mann, who took over the role from Milton Cheng last October.
Mann said the promotions reflected the firm's focus on remaining a "high-performing, inclusive firm that can deliver for our multinational clients on their most critical work."
Bakers has also secured 44 lateral partners this financial year, meaning it has added a total of 91 partners globally since 1 July 2024.
Last November it recruited senior Ashurst partners Simon Bullock and Stuart Rubin in London, as the firm moved to capitalise on an expected upswing in capital markets in 2026. Bullock had been Ashurst’s London head of equity capital markets, while Rubin served as global head of US securities.
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