The Brief:
HSF Kramer takes #1 in Australasia by both value and deal count in 1Q26, per Mergermarket.
Total Australasian deal value hits A$53.6bn across 188 deals, up from A$43.1bn on 283 deals.
The value race
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer has taken out the top spot in Australasia, posting US$25.7bn (A$36.5bn) in value across 25 deals — a 122% jump on 1Q25.
Allens was a major mover, rocketing from 8th to 2nd with US$19.2bn (A$27.3bn) across 12 deals — up 575% year-on-year. Ashurst held 3rd with US$9.2bn (A$13.0bn) across 17 deals.
Last year’s #1 has had a tougher quarter.
Mallesons — formerly part of King & Wood Mallesons — dropped from 1st to 4th, recording US$8.8bn (A$12.5bn) across 19 deals, down 24.4% year-on-year.
Corrs Chambers Westgarth was the quarter's biggest faller by value, dropping from 3rd to 13th with US$1.3bn (A$1.9bn) — down 74.8%.
Here's how the value table looks:
1Q26 | 1Q25 | Law Firm | Value (A$)* | Value Chg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | HSF Kramer | $36.52bn | +121.9% |
2 | 8 | Allens | $27.26bn | +575.0% |
3 | 4 | Ashurst | $13.03bn | +80.9% |
4 | 1 | Mallesons | $12.50bn | -24.4% |
5= | - | Barrett & McNagny | $9.87bn | - |
5= | 12 | Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom | $9.87bn | +177.7% |
7 | - | Bredin Prat SAS | $7.38bn | - |
8 | 6 | Gilbert & Tobin | $3.55bn | -31.4% |
9 | 45 | Hamilton Locke | $2.72bn | +999.2% |
10 | 87 | Khaitan & Co | $2.26bn | - |
11 | 56 | Cooley | $2.00bn | +1308.0% |
12 | 13 | MinterEllison | $1.95bn | -41.4% |
13 | 3 | Corrs Chambers Westgarth | $1.86bn | -74.8% |
14 | 28 | Thomson Geer | $1.41bn | +112.5% |
15 | - | HopgoodGanim | $1.18bn | - |
16= | - | Latham & Watkins | $1.08bn | - |
16= | - | Gibson Dunn & Crutcher | $1.08bn | - |
18 | 48 | Russell McVeagh | $865.08m | +297.4% |
19 | - | Dorsey & Whitney | $758.57m | - |
20 | 38 | K&L Gates | $703.16m | +128.1% |
*USD-AUD exchange rate as at 13 April 2026
Count it up
HSF Kramer swept the deal count category too, finishing on 25 deals — no change year-on-year.
Mallesons dropped to 2nd with 19 deals. Ashurst climbed to 3rd from 9th with 17 deals under its belt.
Thomson Geer went the other way, falling from 1st to tied-7th.
Here's the deal count table:
1Q26 | 1Q25 | Law Firm | Deal Count | Count Chg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 3 | HSF Kramer | 25 | - |
2 | 1 | Mallesons | 19 | -7 |
3 | 9 | Ashurst | 17 | +2 |
4 | 9 | Gilbert & Tobin | 15 | - |
5= | 8 | Hamilton Locke | 13 | -3 |
5= | 4 | Corrs Chambers Westgarth | 13 | -8 |
7= | 6 | Allens | 12 | -5 |
7= | 1 | Thomson Geer | 12 | -14 |
9 | 12 | Johnson Winter Slattery | 10 | - |
10 | 29 | Dentons | 9 | +6 |
11= | 21 | Talbot Sayer | 8 | +3 |
11= | 6 | HWLE | 8 | -9 |
13 | 5 | MinterEllison | 7 | -13 |
14 | 11 | K&L Gates | 6 | -5 |
15= | 37 | Russell McVeagh | 5 | +3 |
15= | 15 | DLA Piper | 5 | -4 |
15= | 12 | Baker McKenzie | 5 | -5 |
15= | 37 | Jones Day | 5 | +3 |
15= | 29 | Gadens | 5 | +2 |
20 | 18 | Clayton Utz | 4 | -4 |
The bigger picture
Total Australasian deal volume hit US$37.8bn (A$53.6bn) across 188 deals, up from US$30.3bn (A$43.1bn) across 283 deals in 1Q25. Fewer deals, bigger tickets.
Globally, 1Q26 M&A volume reached US$1.38tn — up 20% year-on-year — with 20 megadeals worth a combined US$508bn.
Source: Mergermarket