Technology, Data & Privacy · speciality monitor
Artificial Intelligence: lateral monitor
Lawyers whose work centers on Artificial Intelligence and who changed firm over the last 12 months, set against the Technology, Data & Privacy practice and the market.
The last 12 months: November 2025 to October 2026
- 177
- Lateral moves, 12 monthsNovember 2025 to October 2026
- +42.5%
- Year on yearSettled 12-month windows
- 47.5%
- Partner share of moves
- 108
- Firms that hired
What the data show
From November 2025 to October 2026, Sartori & Partners recorded 177 lateral moves in Artificial Intelligence. Measured on settled 12-month windows, 181 moves against 127 the year before, the count rose 42.5%. The market as a whole moved +9.0%, so this flow outpaced it.
| Measure | Here | Technology, Data & Privacy | Market |
|---|---|---|---|
| Partner share of moves | 47.5% | 33.2% | 27.7% |
| Counsel share of moves | 13.0% | 13.4% | 12.7% |
| Associate share of moves | 39.5% | 51.2% | 58.5% |
| Moved up a level | 16.4% | 14.8% | 12.9% |
| Changed city | 15.1% | 18.4% | 20.5% |
| Hired by firms of 1,000+ lawyers | 64.4% | 58.4% | 53.6% |
| Year on year | rose (+42.5%) | rose (+32.6%) | rose (+9.0%) |
12 months to October 2026 unless the row says three years; a row switches to three years for every column when this page's 12-month value is not published. A dash is a value we do not publish. Flat means a change under 5% or inside the noise of the two counts.
Set against the Technology, Data & Privacy practice as a whole, the partner share stands out most: 47.5% here against 33.2%, above it. Year on year it moved with the Technology, Data & Privacy practice as a whole: both rose.
Over the three years to October 2026, 448 lawyers moved in Artificial Intelligence, 214 of them partners (47.8%). They joined 191 different firms. 17.0% stepped up a level on the move and 17.6% changed city, against 12.3% and 21.6% across the market over the same three years. 67.4% came from firms with 1,000+ lawyers.
- Partner47.5%
- Counsel13.0%
- Associate39.5%
This is a partner market: 47.5% of movers were partners, against 27.7% market-wide. Year on year, on windows that end a month early, partner moves alone grew 43.3% (60 to 86). A step up in title came with 16.4% of moves (market 12.9%).
108 firms hired at least one lateral in Artificial Intelligence in the window. Ten firms account for 27.6% of arrivals, against 12.9% across the market: moderately concentrated. First on the hiring table is Morrison & Foerster, with arrivals in the 6-10 band.
- 1,000+ lawyers67.4%
- 400-999 lawyers19.1%
- 150-399 lawyers4.9%
- under 150 lawyers8.5%
London ranks first among destination cities with 16.9% of arrivals, followed by New York (14.1%). A change of city came with 15.1% of moves (market 20.5%).
There were 292 open roles in Artificial Intelligence on law-firm career pages on November 11, 2026.
A firm recruiting in Artificial Intelligence is buying into a rising, partner-heavy flow, so the strongest candidates will hear from more than one firm.
Firms by rank and band
Each firm appears as a rank and a band, never an exact count, and only with at least 10 moves in the window.
| Rank | Firm | Moves (band) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Morrison & Foerster | 6-10 |
| 2 | Ashurst Perkins Coie | 6-10 |
| 3 | Jones Day | 6-10 |
| 4 | DLA Piper | 3-5 |
| 5 | Bird & Bird | 3-5 |
| 6 | Bass, Berry & Sims | 3-5 |
| 7 | Baker McKenzie | 3-5 |
| 8 | Holland & Knight | 3-5 |
| 9 | Osborne Clarke | 3-5 |
| 10 | Reed Smith | 3-5 |
| Rank | Firm | Moves (band) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ashurst Perkins Coie | 6-10 |
| 2 | Morrison & Foerster | 6-10 |
| 3 | White & Case | 3-5 |
| 4 | Keystone Law | 3-5 |
| 5 | DLA Piper | 3-5 |
| 6 | Reed Smith | 3-5 |
| 7 | Greenberg Traurig | 3-5 |
| 8 | Dentons | 3-5 |
| 9 | A&O Shearman | 3-5 |
| 10 | Baker McKenzie | 3-5 |
Deals in Artificial Intelligence
Sartori & Partners data count 33 dated deals in Artificial Intelligence in the 12 months to October 2026 and 76 over the three years to October 2026.
By client industry, Technology & Software comes first with 40.8%.
Bass, Berry & Sims ranks first among advising firms over the period, in the 6-10 band.
| Rank | Firm | Deals (band) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bass, Berry & Sims | 6-10 |
| 2 | Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner | 3-5 |
| 3 | Morgan, Lewis & Bockius | 3-5 |
| 4 | Fasken Martineau DuMoulin | 3-5 |
| 5 | Sidley Austin | 3-5 |
| 6 | Jones Day | 3-5 |
Time to partner in Artificial Intelligence
50 lawyers were promoted to partner in Artificial Intelligence in the 12 months to May 2026, 245 over five years, according to Sartori & Partners data.
The median time from first year of practice to partner is 10.0 years, with the middle half between 9.0 years and 12.0 years, against a market median of 10.0 years. 75.6% made partner within 12 years.
These figures rest on 176 promotions.
Related monitors and reports
Other specialities in Technology, Data & Privacy
Hiring in this market
Reports
- Artificial Intelligence Lawyer Hiring Outruns the Market in 2026
Sartori & Partners data show artificial intelligence hiring rose 42.5% while the market rose 9.0%, with partners and London carrying more of it than anywhere else in the technology practice.
November 11, 2026 · November 2026
Edition November 2026. Window: November 2025 to October 2026. Source: Sartori & Partners, from public law-firm announcements, firm websites and professional profiles, checked monthly. Methodology. Spot an error? [email protected].
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