LB100 2026: the firms that stand out from the crowd

This year’s LB100 paints a picture of a UK legal market firmly in growth mode, with total turnover rising 8% to £43.3bn and more than 90% of the group seeing revenues rise.

But the headline figures tell only part of the story. While 44 firms posted double-digit growth, others made their mark through standout profit gains, sharp improvements in productivity or ambitious plays for scale. Here, we spotlight some of the year’s most notable performers.

HSF Kramer – one giant leap

The merger of Herbert Smith Freehills and US firm Kramer Levin created a £1.8bn firm – 32% up on legacy HSF’s pre-merger revenue of £1.36bn, moving it to within touching distance of eighth-place CMS on £1.86bn.

The increase put it among just six firms to grow turnover by 20% or more during the year, and one of only two in the top 30.

The merger gave legacy HSF a headcount increase of around 300 lawyers, equating to an increase of 11%, meaning revenue per lawyer (RPL) grew by nearly 20% year-on-year.

The firm is now 73% larger in revenue terms than HSF was five years ago, when it posted turnover of just over £1bn.

Announcing the firm’s financial results, global CEO Justin D’Agostino (pictured) made reference to its ‘transatlantic and transpacific capabilities,’ saying they have ‘propelled the firm into a new league.’

BCLP – PEP in its step

BCLP saw the highest year-on-year PEP increase of any firm in the LB100, up nearly 40%.

The sharp increase came on the back of a challenging period for the firm, which returned to revenue growth in 2024-25 after two years of decline.

The performance can be attributed in part to a 6% dip in equity partners, down to 171 from 182, while the firm also streamlined its back office teams, cutting around 8% of its global business services function during the year. But underlying profitability was strong, with net income up more than 18% from £147m to £174m.

Profit per lawyer also increased by double digits, rising 15% from £134,000 to £154,300.

CEO Steve Baumer attributed the performance to a strategic refocus on ‘the sectors, markets and issues that matter most to our clients.’

He said the firm had ‘accelerated growth while maintaining a flat cost base’ through greater financial discipline and a continued focus on modernising the business.

‘By embracing new ways of working, investing in technology and operating more efficiently, we have strengthened our ability to serve clients while enhancing profitability,’ Baumer added.

A&O Shearman – less is more?

A&O Shearman was one of only a handful of firms to see revenue dip in GBP last year, though it was flat in USD. The results mark the first time that the firm has failed to post an increase since the immediate aftermath of the financial crisis in 2008-09.

However, the firm argues that this has come as part of a post-merger strategy to ‘sharpen its focus’ and become ‘a nimbler and differently shaped firm,’ with managing partner Hervé Ekué (pictured) pointing to how it has ‘streamlined’ its operation.

This is borne out by the data, with the firm boosting both PEP and net income by more than 10%.

The firm also saw notable decreases in total headcount and total partners, which in turn meant that RPL increased by 3% to £936,000 – second only to Slaughter and May across the LB100.

Addleshaw Goddard – eyes on the prize

Newly crowned as UK Law Firm of the Year at the Legal Business Awards, Addleshaw Goddard has posted nine consecutive years of growth in both revenue and PEP, and six consecutive years of double-digit growth.

A 17% revenue increase for 2025-26 puts it among the top ten fastest-growing firms, with a 10% PEP increase meaning it is one of just 24 of the LB100 to have notched double-digit growth.

The PEP hike was achieved despite an increase in equity partners from 148 to 157. Net income increased by 17% from £148m to £172.7m.

Pay for the highest earner at the firm increased by 40% to £2.5m. Earlier this year the firm voted ‘overwhelmingly’ to extend the top of its partner pay ladder to enable it to pay top earners close to £3m – a move that managing partner Andrew Johnston (pictured) said sent ‘a clear signal of our ambition.’

Fletchers Solicitors – the accumulator

Fletchers had the highest year-on-year revenue increase of any firm in the LB100, with turnover up more than 40%. It is also the fastest-growing firm over five years, rising nearly 250% from £32m to £111.8m.

This year, the firm also saw its lawyer headcount nearly double to 771 from 387. This growth has been driven by an ambitious strategy to acquire clinical negligence and personal injury teams from other firms, in particular from national players looking to focus on more profitable practices.

Last summer, the firm took on Shoosmiths’ serious injury and medical negligence practice, and this year it acquired Freeths’ clinical negligence and Court of Protection teams and Moore Barlow’s clinical negligence, PI, and Court of Protection practices as the rest of that firm was acquired by Knights.

However, the firm’s performance is less strong on other metrics. As it is privately owned by US investor Sun Capital Partners, it does not report profit, but the headcount surge impacted RPL, which dropped by nearly 30% year-on-year, down to £145,000 from £206,000.

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Photo by Sasun Bughdaryan on Unsplash