Year after year, decade after decade, Davis Polk remains one of the small handful of firms that leading companies around the world turn to for counsel on their most significant business and legal matters. Groundbreaking IPOs, industry-shifting mergers, bet-the-company litigation – this is the work we do every day. Maintaining this preeminent practice requires relentless efforts to hire, develop and promote the very best lawyers across a uniquely broad range of legal disciplines.

Great lawyers attract great work and vice versa. This cycle of success offers our associates invaluable ongoing exposure to matters of consequence and the opportunity to work with and learn from exceptional colleagues. A commitment to excellence underpins everything we do as a firm, from our training programs, to our support staff and resources, to our offices, to our compensation and benefits.

Of Note

• Davis Polk is perennially among the top five firms in Vault’s “Prestige” rankings.

 

• Davis Polk has been included in every edition of The American Lawyer’s A-List rankings of elite U.S. law firms, which measure the firm’s financial performance, pro bono activity, associate satisfaction and lawyer diversity. In 2010, we ranked fourth among the top 20 firms.

 

• We rank first among law firms across a remarkably broad range of our practice. A sampling of our recent rankings include:
  
  
  

  Antitrust			1st tier among New York law firms in antitrust matters (Chambers USA 2011)
  Capital Markets			According to Bloomberg's 1Q 2011 league tables, we ranked 1st in 12 Global and U.S. categories (no other firm placed 1st in more than seven categories). Our rankings include: 1st in Global Equity/Equity-Related/Rights Offerings Manager Advisers 1st in U.S. IPO Manager Advisers 1st in U.S. Equity-Linked Manager Advisers 1st in U.S. Corporate Debt Issuer and Manager Advisers 1st in U.S. Investment-Grade Debt Offerings Manager Advisers 1st in U.S. High-Yield Corporate Debt Issuer Advisers   Davis Polk was named "Derivatives Law Firm of the Year" by Risk magazine as part of its 2011 Risk Awards.
  Credit			"Banking and Finance Law Firm of the Year in New York" (Corporate INTL, January 2011) 1st tier in banking transactions (Chambers USA 2010 and Legal 500 U.S. 2010) 1st tier in project finance, according to the U.S. News and World Report Best Law Firms Rankings for 2010 2nd in overall volume in credit M&A transactions in 1Q 2011 (Reuters LPC Loan Connector) 2nd as lender's counsel in credit M&A transactions in 1Q 2011 (Reuters LPC Loan Connector)
  Environmental			1st tier among New York law firms in environmental matters (Chambers USA 2011)
  Executive Compensation / Employee Benefits			1st tier among New York law firms in employee benefits and executive compensation matters (Chambers USA 2011)
  Financial Institutions			1st tier in Financial Services Regulation: Banking (Compliance) (Chambers USA 2011) 1st tier in Financial Services Regulation: Financial Institutions M&A (Chambers USA 2011) Davis Polk was named "Derivatives Law Firm of the Year" by Risk magazine as part of its 2011 Risk Awards.
  Insolvency and Restructuring			Davis Polk ranked in the 1st tier in Insolvency and Restructuring in Chambers USA 2011. Davis Polk was named "Global Insolvency Advisory Firm of the Year" by Corporate INTL 2010.
  Investment Management			Davis Polk ranked among the top law firms nationwide in various investment fund and management categories, including private equity funds and hedge funds (Chambers USA 2011, IFLR1000 2011 and Legal 500 U.S. 2010). Davis Polk ranked among the top law firms nationwide in Private Equity: Fund Formation (Chambers USA 2011).
  Litigation			1st tier among elite New York law firms in General Commercial Litigation (Chambers USA 2011) 1st tier among law firms in Shareholder Litigation (Legal 500 U.S. 2011) 1st tier among law firms in White Collar Crime and Government Investigations (Legal 500 U.S. 2011) 1sttier among New York law firms in White Collar Crime and Government Investigations (Chambers USA 2011)
  M&A			1st in worldwide M&A transactions completed and 2nd in worldwide M&A transactions announced in the first quarter of 2011 (Thomson Reuters) 1st in any U.S. involvement M&A transactions completed and 2nd in any U.S. involvement M&A transactions announced in the first quarter of 2011 (Thomson Reuters) Ranked in the 1st tier among U.S. law firms advising on M&A transactions by Chambers USA 2010, IFLR1000 2011 and Legal 500 U.S. 2010 Named "M&A Team of the Year" at the International FInancial Law Review's 2010 Americas Awards
  Private Equity			Davis Polk ranked among the leading law firms in global private equity announced transactions in 2010 (Bloomberg).
  Tax			Davis Polk ranked in the 1st tier among law firms in tax matters, according to Chambers USA 2011.
  Asia			Davis Polk's rankings in Chambers Asia 2011 include: Asia-Pacific Region 1st tier in Capital Markets: Debt 1st tier in Capital Markets: Equity 1st tier in Capital Markets: High-Yield Products 1st tier in Corporate/M&A China 1st tier in Capital Markets: U.S. Law (International Firms) 1st tier in Capital Markets: U.S. Law: High-Yield (International Firms) Japan 1st tier in Capital Markets: International: U.S. Law Singapore 1st tier in Corporate/M&A: Lawyers Based Abroad Named 2010 “Private Equity Law Firm of the Year” by Corporate INTL China Business Law Journal. Awarded “Deal of the Year” by Corporate INTL China Business Law Journal 2010 for advising Sunac China Holdings on its HK$2.6 billion IPO. Awarded Asian Legal Business’s 2010 Asia Awards for “Equity Market Deal of the Year” in connection with advising China Merchants Bank on its $3.2 billion global rights offering and “Taiwan Deal of the Year” in connection with advising on the KGI Securities GDS offering and Taishin acquisition. In 2010, Davis Polk won both Asian Legal Business’s China “Equity Market Deal of the Year” and Corporate INTL China Business Law Journal’s “Deal of the Year” in connection with advising Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) on its $22 billion global IPO. Named “International Deal Firm of the Year” at the 2011 Asian Legal Business Japan Law Awards. Awarded Asian Legal Business’s 2011 Japan “M&A Deal of the Year” in connection with our representation of Morgan Stanley in its joint venture with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group that integrated their securities operations in Japan. Awarded both Asian Legal Business’s 2011 “Japan Deal of the Year” and “Structured Finance Deal of the Year” in connection with advising Aiful Corporation on its consensual debt restructuring and CDS auction. Awarded Asian Legal Business’s 2011 Westlaw Japan Award for “TMT Deal of the Year” in connection with advising Symantec on its $1.28 billion acquisition of Verisign’s authentication and identity security business. Awarded IFLR’s 2011 Asia Awards “M&A Deal of the Year” in connection with advising Nippon Mining on its business integration with Nippon Oil. The firm was also awarded “Most Innovative U.S. Law Firm in Asia.” Awarded the 2010 IFLR/Asialaw India “International Private Equity Team of the Year” award. Awarded Asian Legal Business’s 2011 Southeast Asia Awards “Debt Market Deal of the Year” in connection with advising ICICI Bank on its US$1 billion bond offering.