Corporate & M&A · speciality monitor
Corporate Governance: lateral monitor
Lawyers whose work centers on Corporate Governance and who changed firm over the last 12 months, set against the Corporate & M&A practice and the market.
The last 12 months: November 2025 to October 2026
- 68
- Lateral moves, 12 monthsNovember 2025 to October 2026
- 0.0%
- Year on yearSettled 12-month windows
- 67.6%
- Partner share of moves
- 52
- Firms that hired
What the data show
In the Sartori & Partners lateral record, 68 lawyers joined a new firm in Corporate Governance from November 2025 to October 2026. On settled windows the count went from 66 to 66 (0.0%), which we read as flat. The market as a whole moved +9.0%, so this flow lagged it.
| Measure | Here | Corporate & M&A | Market |
|---|---|---|---|
| Partner share of moves | 67.6% | 29.9% | 27.7% |
| Counsel share of moves | 10.3% | 11.3% | 12.7% |
| Associate share of moves | 20.6% | 57.7% | 58.5% |
| Moved up a level | 20.6% | 12.4% | 12.9% |
| Changed city | 17.9% | 21.2% | 20.5% |
| Hired by firms of 1,000+ lawyers | 54.4% | 62.6% | 53.6% |
| Year on year | flat (0.0%) | rose (+15.8%) | 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 A dash is a value we do not publish.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 Corporate & M&A practice as a whole, the partner share stands out most: 67.6% here against 29.9%, above it. Year on year it held flat while the Corporate & M&A practice as a whole rose.
Over the three years to October 2026, 185 lawyers moved in Corporate Governance, 114 of them partners (61.6%). They joined 108 different firms. 15.1% stepped up a level on the move and 15.4% changed city, against 12.3% and 21.6% across the market over the same three years. 62.8% came from firms with 1,000+ lawyers.
- Partner67.6%
- Counsel10.3%
- Associate20.6%
This is a partner market: 67.6% of movers were partners, against 27.7% market-wide. On settled windows partner moves alone went from 39 to 44 (+12.8%), a change inside the noise of the two counts, so we read it as flat. 20.6% of movers stepped up a level when they changed firm, against 12.9% for the market.
- 1,000+ lawyers54.4%
- 400-999 lawyers25.0%
- 150-399 lawyers13.2%
- under 150 lawyers7.4%
The 12-month firm table is below our naming threshold, so this part reads the three years to October 2026. Lateral hires in Corporate Governance were spread across 108 firms. The ten firms at the head of the hiring table took 24.2% of arrivals (12.2% market-wide), so hiring here is moderately concentrated. First on the hiring table is Baker McKenzie, with arrivals in the 6-10 band.
- 1,000+ lawyers62.8%
- 400-999 lawyers16.3%
- 150-399 lawyers13.4%
- under 150 lawyers7.6%
City figures here cover the three years to October 2026. New York ranks first among destination cities with 24.9% of arrivals. A change of city came with 17.9% of moves (market 20.5%).
There were 42 open roles in Corporate Governance on law-firm career pages on November 11, 2026.
With volume in Corporate Governance holding level, a hire depends on a specific reason to move, which a firm has to put in front of the candidate.
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 | Baker McKenzie | 6-10 |
| 2 | Sullivan & Cromwell | 6-10 |
| 3 | Holland & Knight | 3-5 |
| 4 | Sidley Austin | 3-5 |
| 5 | Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton | 3-5 |
| 6 | DLA Piper | 3-5 |
| 7 | Paul Hastings | 3-5 |
| 8 | Vinson & Elkins | 3-5 |
| 9 | Taft Stettinius & Hollister | 3-5 |
| 10 | Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison | 3-5 |
Deals in Corporate Governance
Sartori & Partners data count 58 over the three years to October 2026.
Olshan Frome Wolosky ranks first among advising firms over the period, in the 6-10 band.
| Rank | Firm | Deals (band) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Olshan Frome Wolosky | 6-10 |
| 2 | Jones Day | 6-10 |
| 3 | Latham & Watkins | 3-5 |
| 4 | McDermott Will & Schulte | 3-5 |
| 5 | Willkie Farr & Gallagher | 3-5 |
| 6 | Sidley Austin | 3-5 |
| 7 | Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison | 3-5 |
| 8 | Gleiss Lutz | 3-5 |
Time to partner in Corporate Governance
89 lawyers were promoted to partner in Corporate Governance 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 11.5 years, against a market median of 10.0 years. 81.0% made partner within 12 years.
These figures rest on 63 promotions.
Related monitors and reports
Other specialities in Corporate & M&A
Hiring in this market
Reports
- Corporate Governance Hiring: Partners Make 67.6% of Moves
Corporate governance is a partner market: partners made 67.6% of its lateral moves in the 12 months to October 2026, against 29.9% in corporate and M&A. The pool is not growing: governance hiring held flat (+0.0%) year on year.
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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