Litigation & Disputes · speciality monitor
Securities Litigation: lateral monitor
Lawyers whose work centers on Securities Litigation and who changed firm over the last 12 months, set against the Litigation & Disputes practice and the market.
The last 12 months: November 2025 to October 2026
- 183
- Lateral moves, 12 monthsNovember 2025 to October 2026
- +8.2%
- Year on yearSettled 12-month windows
- 41.0%
- Partner share of moves
- 102
- Firms that hired
What the data show
Sartori & Partners data show 183 lateral moves in Securities Litigation from November 2025 to October 2026. On settled windows the count went from 171 to 185 (+8.2%), a change inside the noise of the two counts, so we read it as flat.
| Measure | Here | Litigation & Disputes | Market |
|---|---|---|---|
| Partner share of moves | 41.0% | 27.4% | 27.7% |
| Counsel share of moves | 13.1% | 14.4% | 12.7% |
| Associate share of moves | 45.4% | 57.7% | 58.5% |
| Moved up a level | 9.3% | 13.4% | 12.9% |
| Changed city | 16.0% | 19.6% | 20.5% |
| Hired by firms of 1,000+ lawyers | 54.9% | 43.3% | 53.6% |
| Year on year | flat (+8.2%) | rose (+7.5%) | 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 A dash is a value we do not publish.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.
Against the Litigation & Disputes practice as a whole, the widest gap is the partner share, which is higher here: 41.0% against 27.4%. Year on year it held flat while the Litigation & Disputes practice as a whole rose.
Over the three years to October 2026, 546 lawyers moved in Securities Litigation, 212 of them partners (38.8%). They joined 201 different firms. 12.3% stepped up a level on the move and 16.1% changed city, against 12.3% and 21.6% across the market over the same three years. 61.1% came from firms with 1,000+ lawyers.
- Partner41.0%
- Counsel13.1%
- Associate45.4%
Partners make up 41.0% of arrivals, against 27.7% across the market: a partner-heavy flow. Year on year, on windows that end a month early, partner moves alone grew 38.2% (55 to 76). 9.3% of movers stepped up a level when they changed firm, against 12.9% for the market.
- 1,000+ lawyers54.9%
- 400-999 lawyers23.1%
- 150-399 lawyers11.5%
- under 150 lawyers10.4%
Lateral hires in Securities Litigation were spread across 102 firms. Ten firms account for 26.9% of arrivals, against 12.9% across the market: moderately concentrated. McGuireWoods ranks first by lateral arrivals, in the 6-10 band.
- 1,000+ lawyers61.1%
- 400-999 lawyers16.3%
- 150-399 lawyers7.9%
- under 150 lawyers14.7%
New York ranks first among destination cities with 36.1% of arrivals. A change of city came with 16.0% of moves (market 20.5%).
Group moves were 6.0% of the total (market 1.5%).
There were 50 open roles in Securities Litigation on law-firm career pages on November 11, 2026.
For a firm planning a hire in Securities Litigation, a flat market means candidates are not being pulled by a wave: the case for a move has to come from the platform.
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 | McGuireWoods | 6-10 |
| 2 | Morgan, Lewis & Bockius | 6-10 |
| 3 | Paul Hastings | 6-10 |
| 4 | Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher | 3-5 |
| 5 | Latham & Watkins | 3-5 |
| 6 | Greenberg Traurig | 3-5 |
| 7 | Davis Polk & Wardwell | 3-5 |
| 8 | Benesch Friedlander Coplan & Aronoff | 3-5 |
| 9 | Freshfields | 3-5 |
| 10 | Cooley | 3-5 |
Deals in Securities Litigation
Sartori & Partners data count 216 dated deals in Securities Litigation in the 12 months to October 2026 and 597 over the three years to October 2026.
Disputes & investigations work is involved in 98.2% of them.
By client industry, Asset Management & Funds comes first with 14.7%.
Sullivan & Cromwell ranks first among advising firms over the period, in the 21-40 band.
| Rank | Firm | Deals (band) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sullivan & Cromwell | 21-40 |
| 2 | Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison | 21-40 |
| 3 | Labaton Sucharow | 21-40 |
| 4 | Cooley | 21-40 |
| 5 | Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP & Affiliates | 21-40 |
| 6 | Latham & Watkins | 21-40 |
| 7 | King & Spalding | 11-20 |
| 8 | Berger Montague | 11-20 |
| 9 | Potter Anderson & Corroon | 11-20 |
| 10 | Willkie Farr & Gallagher | 11-20 |
Time to partner in Securities Litigation
66 lawyers were promoted to partner in Securities Litigation in the 12 months to May 2026, 359 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. 79.1% made partner within 12 years.
These figures rest on 325 promotions.
Related monitors and reports
Other specialities in Litigation & Disputes
Hiring in this market
Reports
- Securities Litigation Hiring in 2026: A New York Market
Securities litigation hiring is centered on New York to a degree litigation as a whole is not: 37.7% of moves over 3 years, against 12.9%. Partner hiring rose 38.2% while hiring at all levels held flat (+8.2%).
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].
For law firm leaders
Planning a partner hire in this market?
We run retained partner searches using the same data behind this page.