It’s a winner-take-all environment in M&A activity now as some law firms continue to land on mega M&A deals, but the total volume of M&A continues to shrink. That’s led to more financial divergence in the legal industry, with some law firms optimistic about deal work in 2026 but many others concerned about the lack of inventory in the pipeline, according to interviews with legal industry sources, especially as energy prices continue to rise. According to preliminary figures from the London Stock Exchange Group, the first quarter of 2026 has continued the trend of rising deal value but shrinking total volume. As of March 23, 2026, the market saw at least 9,521 deals valued at just under $1 trillion ($990 billion), LSEG said. The deal count for Q1 2026 is a 20% dip from the same time period last year — which was a 1.4% decline from 2024, which was a 13.8% decline from 2023, according to LSEG figures. Overall, since deal volume hit a high for the 2020s of 13,961 in 2023, deal volume has decreased 31.8%. Goodwin is second in the leagues for deal volume at 148 deals so far this year. Goodwin chair Anthony McCusker has said the firm’s increase in deal value last year was a consequence of the firm’s clients entrusting the firm with higher-stakes work. "We are being called into deals before they are structured. We are in boardrooms more frequently. As those opportunities increase, you are getting more strategic types [of deals].”
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