The Texas Lawbook 50 rankings by revenue debuted eight years ago this week.
Vinson & Elkins topped the 2017 charts with $484 million in revenue generated by their Texas lawyers. They were followed by Baker Botts, Norton Rose Fulbright, Hunton Andrews Kurth, Haynes Boone and Jackson Walker.
Ranked 11th in the chart was a relative newcomer to the state: Kirkland & Ellis, which reported $187 million in Texas revenue — double what the firm had reported a year earlier.
This week, The Lawbook 50 will unveil the top 50 firms that generated the most revenue in their Texas offices.
Kirkland will, for the fifth year in a row, be at the top of the Texas revenue rankings. And it is not even close.
The Chicago-founded firm generated a record-smashing $1.39 billion in revenue in Texas in 2025 — a 21 percent increase over 2024.
Kirkland’s $1.39 billion is more than any other two law firms operating in Texas combined. In fact, Kirkland’s revenue increase of $240 million in 2025 was itself more than the amount 36 of the 50 law firms reported in total Texas revenue.
Kirkland added 51 lawyers to its Texas operations in 2025, putting its total full-time equivalent attorney headcount at 500 — making it the first in Texas history with 500 lawyers or more operating in the Lone Star State.
“If you can find me 51 more lawyers to hire, let me know,” Kirkland partner Andrew Calder told The Lawbook. “We are still hiring strategically when the opportunities arise. There are still some great lawyers in Texas that we would like to hire.”
“Client demand for our services has been so robust that we’ve had to grow — no other choice,” he said. “The Texas market is just so robust. All practice areas have been incredibly busy, but the power sector, which has been slow in previous years, was particularly busy, especially as it related to the data center business.”
Calder said that the first three months of 2026 “have started better than the first quarters of any of the 12 years that I’ve been in Texas.”
Firmwide last year, Kirkland reported revenues of $10.56 billion and profits per equity partner of $11.1 million.
Helping to drive that growth was a robust corporate practice. According to The Lawbook’s exclusive Corporate Deal Tracker, Kirkland finished first in Texas-led M&A last year. The firm led 254 M&A transactions where one of its Texas offices represented a buyer, seller or target in a deal, for a total value of $393.3 billion for 2025. By comparison, the second-ranked firm was Gibson Dunn with 99 Texas-led deals.
For overall M&A, Kirkland finished first in Texas-related deal count, advising on 266 transactions last year for a value of $413.1 billion. Latham & Watkins finished first in Texas-related deal value with $446 billion, according to the CDT.
Kirkland also had the top five dealmakers when ranked by Texas-related deal value in 2025, according to CDT data: Calder ($78 billion), Kim Hicks ($77.5 billion), Brittany Sakowitz ($58.4 billion), Melissa Kalka ($58.1 billion) and Doug Bacon ($43.9 billion).
Multiple law firm leaders, speaking on the condition that they not be identified, said Kirkland is a “beast” with deep pockets, which makes it hard to beat in the fight for talent.
“It is remarkable what Andy and the Kirkland have been able to achieve in such a short period,” said Kent Zimmermann, a law firm consultant with Zeughauser Group.