Last year saw significant gains for big banks, driven largely by an increase in transactional activity, a factor that has also been beneficial for major law firms. According to Sidley’s Yvette Ostolaza, this uptick in transactions has had a favorable impact on law firm results. However, while banks’ strong performance may generally suggest positive outcomes for Big Law, the extent of benefits these firms might receive is subject to certain constraints. Notably, legal work stemming directly from big banks is often rate-constrained and, therefore, not a substantial revenue driver for large firms despite being a potential source of business.
For more on this development and its implications for the legal industry, see the full analysis in The American Lawyer.