Kirkland & Ellis has become the baseball Hall of Famer Bob Gibson of corporate law firms — fiercely competitive and dominant, despised and envied by opponents and outrageously successful.
Entering its second decade with offices in Texas, Kirkland achieved a new high in 2024 that even its Texas leader, Andy Calder, never conceived they could accomplish.
Lawyers in the Houston, Dallas and Austin offices of Kirkland recorded an astonishing $1.15 billion in revenue last year — a 33 percent jump from 2023, according to the Texas Lawbook 50, which tracks revenue of law firms operating in Texas.
“I never thought we would ever grow this large and have this much success,” said Calder, who led Kirkland’s launch in Texas in April 2014. “Texas is an incredibly attractive marketplace. Texas is one of our most important markets.”
“We have been busy across all practice areas,” he said. “Energy and infrastructure and private equity have been very active. Litigation has also been a big revenue driver.”
Kirkland lawyers worked on 202 M&A transactions in 2024 — more than double any other law firm, according to The Texas Lawbook’s Corporate Deal Tracker database, which documents corporate transactions handled by Texas lawyers.
Lawbook 50 data shows that Kirkland’s Texas attorneys topped $2.75 million in revenue per partner in 2024 and profits per partner exceeding $9 million.
Firmwide, Kirkland is the largest corporate law firm in the world by revenue — $8.8 billion.
Since 2014, the firm’s Texas operations have grown from seven lawyers to 414 in 2024 and are now home to nearly 450 attorneys.
“It is amazing to see what they’ve accomplished in only a decade,” said Kent Zimmermann, a law firm consultant for the Zeughauser Group. “It’s really remarkable. That number — $1 billion — is eyepopping.”
Jackson Walker managing partner Wade Cooper said Kirkland has built an impressive Texas operation.
“Having Kirkland here is good for all of us,” Cooper said.
Greg Bopp, the managing partner at Bracewell, agreed.
“Kirkland’s growth has been super impressive,” Bopp said. “Their success has been extraordinary.”
And there’s more bad news for competitor law firms hoping Kirkland’s growth is nearing its pinnacle.
“I don’t think we are at our peak yet,” Calder said. “There are definitely great Texas lawyers out there that we would love to have as part of our team. We can definitely grow more.”
Texas Lawbook 50 Articles Already Published
- Texas Firm Headcount Inched Up 1%
- Susman Godfrey Scores ‘Second Best Year Ever’
- Eight Firms — All Texas, All the Time, All Profitable
Upcoming Texas Lawbook 50 Articles
- The Top 50 Law Firms Ranked by Revenue Generated by Their Texas Lawyers. “The Firm’s Numbers are Just Eye-Popping.”
- Three Texas Legacy Firms Grow East, West and Overseas
- Annual Revenues of the Texas Legacy Firms — In and Outside of Texas
- Firms from Five Cities (Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles and New York) Battle for Texas Lawbook 50 Revenue Supremacy.
- The Texas Magnificent Seven: The Seven Fastest-Growing Firms Added More Than $500 million to the Top 50