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US IPO Market Most Active Law Firms of 2018
About Renaissance Capital
Renaissance Capital is a global IPO investment adviser providing pre-IPO institutional research (ipointelligence.com) and a premium IPO
data platform (ipopro.renaissancecapital.com). Renaissance Capital also manages the Renaissance IPO ETF (NYSE symbol: IPO) and the
Renaissance International IPO ETF (NYSE symbol: IPOS). For more information, visit www.renaissancecapital.com.
December 10, 2018
The 2018 IPO Market’s Law Firm Leaderboard
In 2018, 188 IPOs raised $45.7 billion, 18% more deals than 2017. With every IPO requiring at least two
legal firms, one for issuers and one for underwriters (and some hiring as many as five), there were 587
legal engagements with 140 law firms. Latham & Watkins and Cooley retained their #1 and #2 spots; the
California-based law firms again benefitted from a year dominated by tech and biotech. Known for its
Capital Markets practice, New York heavyweight Davis Polk appeared at #3. It paid to have a global
presence in 2018, particularly in China, and foreign issuers boosted New York-based Skadden and
Cayman Islands-based Maples to #4 and #5, respectively. A continued wave of blank check companies
propelled SPAC specialist Ellenoff Grossman to #6. The tech and biotech trend also helped Boston-based
biotech expert Goodwin Procter (#7) and Silicon Valley tech advisor Wilson Sonsini (#8).
To read the entire 2018 IPO Market Law Firm Leaderboard, sign up for a free trial of IPO Pro here.
US IPO Market Most Active Law Firms of 2018
About Renaissance Capital
Renaissance Capital is a global IPO investment adviser providing pre-IPO institutional research (ipointelligence.com) and a premium IPO
data platform (ipopro.renaissancecapital.com). Renaissance Capital also manages the Renaissance IPO ETF (NYSE symbol: IPO) and the
Renaissance International IPO ETF (NYSE symbol: IPOS). For more information, visit www.renaissancecapital.com.
#1
Latham & Watkins topped the list, working on 45 IPOs during 2018 with combined proceeds of $9.0
billion. Latham’s was the top choice for IPO underwriters, representing them on 30 deals. The firm mainly
appeared on healthcare (28; +133% YoY) and tech (8; +100%) IPOs. With a global presence, Latham
worked on IPOs based in 11 states and six countries. The Los Angeles-based firm’s top geographies were
California (13), Massachusetts (8), Pennsylvania (3), New Jersey (3) and China (3).
Latham’s largest role by deal size was underwriter representative for NIO’s $1-billion US IPO. It also was
the primary US legal advisor for Spotify during its direct listing. As of December 10, 2018, Latham’s 45
IPOs averaged a 13.1% return from the offer price.
2017 Rank: #1 (34 IPOs, $7.7B)
Headquarters: Los Angeles, CA
Website: www.lw.com
Worked alongside law firms: Cooley (12), Goodwin Procter (4), Ropes & Gray (3)
Underwriter rep for IPOs led by: BofA ML (7), J.P. Morgan (6), Morgan Stanley (5), Goldman (4)
Top Industries: Healthcare (28), Technology (8), Consumer Discretionary (4)
Top Geographies: California (14), Massachusetts (8), Pennsylvania (3), China (3)
45 IPOs
$9.0B
*Exclusively for IPO Pro Users
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To read the entire 2018 IPO Market Law Firm Leaderboard, sign up for a free trial of IPO Pro here.