The first seven months of 2007 saw ever-increasing volumes
of equity work in the US. And since August, despite volatility
in the credit and debt markets, that work has shown resilience.
The law firms that have benefited from this consistency are a
mixed bag. Unlike some areas such as derivatives or high-yield
debt, many of the larger firms are getting a share of the
pie.
Overall the first half of the year saw high yield become
more concentrated, as investors gravitated towards bank loans,
structured finance continue to accelerate, and initial public
offerings hit record levels, partly due to private-equity
capital. That last group...