The decline in mergers and acquisitions in 2002 dramatically shook up the lawyer league table rankings, with several of last year's strong contenders dropping several places.

Total M&A activity in the region declined from $691bn (€663bn) in 2001 to $569bn last year. Linklaters, the UK-based law firm, held on to its first place ranking in the Thomson Financial European league tables, despite operating with a much reduced deal flow. The total value of European deals the law firm advised on dropped by about $65bn in 2002 to $133bn.