Linklaters has reported record profitability as the UK’s largest international firms publish annual results and continue investing in the US.
Average profit per equity partner reached £2.48 million for the year ended 30 April 2026, following the £2.2 million reported by A&O Shearman and ahead of Clifford Chance’s forthcoming figures. It was Linklaters’ third consecutive year of double-digit profit growth.
Revenue increased by 6.8% to £2.47 billion, while pre-tax profit rose by 11.6% to £1.2 billion. Profit grew across all the firm’s core markets, rising by 39% in the US, 36% in Asia, 10% in continental Europe and 7% in the UK. Firmwide managing partner Paul Lewis said Linklaters had doubled its US revenue and quadrupled its profit there over the past four years.
The US partnership has expanded by more than 75% since 2021, while the firm announced 37 partner elections and 12 lateral partner appointments globally.
Capital markets, private equity and cross-border transactional work contributed to the performance. Linklaters advised on four of Hong Kong’s 10 largest initial public offerings by funds raised in 2025, including CATL’s $4.6 billion debut on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
It also advised EQT Group on BPEA Private Equity Fund IX, the largest Asia-Pacific-dedicated private equity fund raised to date, and acted on New World Development’s HK$88.2 billion financing.
Other mandates included advising the UK government on the £38 billion Sizewell C project and Unilever on the demerger and subsequent listings of The Magnum Ice Cream Company in London, Amsterdam and New York.
Linklaters rolled out Legora across all 30 offices and launched applied intelligence, bringing together lawyers, AI specialists and data scientists to develop bespoke systems for client work.
Law firms pursuing comparable recruitment and technology strategies will want to track the revenue generated across practice groups, the cost of integrating lateral teams and the effect of changes in partner numbers and remuneration structures on reported profit.
Linklaters has continued its US expansion by appointing H. Christopher Boehning as chair of its global sports practice and US strategic disputes practice, and Daniel H. Levi as a partner in its litigation, arbitration and investigations practice. Both joined from Paul Weiss in New York. Their appointments increase competition for senior US lawyers as Linklaters seeks further growth in international disputes, sports law and cross-border mandates.