Litigation & Disputes in Boston: lateral monitor

Sartori & Partners data show 120 lateral moves in Litigation & Disputes in Boston from November 2025 to October 2026, 2.1% of the practice's moves. On settled windows the count went from 96 to 109 (+13.5%), a change inside the noise of the two counts, so we read it as flat.

Over the three years to October 2026, 326 lawyers moved in Litigation & Disputes in Boston, 101 of them partners (31.0%). They joined 98 different firms. 14.1% stepped up a level on the move and 17.7% changed city, against 12.3% and 21.6% across the market over the same three years. 46.6% came from firms with 1,000+ lawyers.

The level mix sits close to the market: partners are 28.3% of arrivals, against 27.7% market-wide. On settled windows partner moves alone went from 27 to 29 (+7.4%), a change inside the noise of the two counts, so we read it as flat. 12.5% of movers stepped up a level when they changed firm, against 12.9% for the market.

The 12-month firm table is below our naming threshold, so this part reads the three years to October 2026. Lateral hires in Litigation & Disputes in Boston were spread across 98 firms. The ten firms at the head of the hiring table took 25.9% of arrivals (12.2% market-wide), so hiring here is moderately concentrated. First on the hiring table is Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, with arrivals in the 11-20 band.

The practice accounts for 32.9% of all lateral moves in Boston. Over the three years to October 2026, 68.4% of movers came from another firm in Boston itself. 18.2% of movers also changed city, against 20.5% market-wide.

There were 46 open roles in Litigation & Disputes in Boston on law-firm career pages on November 11, 2026.

For a firm planning a hire in Litigation & Disputes in Boston, a flat market means candidates are not being pulled by a wave: the case for a move has to come from the platform.

Sartori & Partners data count 38 dated deals in Litigation & Disputes in Boston in the 12 months to October 2026 and 101 over the three years to October 2026.

Disputes & investigations work is involved in 97.0% of them.

Cooley ranks first among advising firms over the period, in the 6-10 band.

Over the three years to October 2026, Commercial Litigation was involved in 35.6% of moves in Litigation & Disputes in Boston, then Class Actions with 12.6%.