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Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP vs. Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP

Side-by-side on the metrics that actually drive the student's call. Sources: Vault 2027, AmLaw 200 FY2025, and reported Chambers records from the years shown.

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Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP

Est. 1849

Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP is a 1,000-plus-attorney firm, Vault #7 / AmLaw #14. Jurisdiction-specific Chambers rankings include Band 1 in Antitrust, Banking & Finance, and Bankruptcy/Restructuring.

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP

Est. 1884

Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP is a 2,000-plus-attorney global firm, Vault #10 / AmLaw #10. Jurisdiction-specific Chambers rankings include Band 1 in Asset Management M&A, Banking & Finance, and Capital Markets: Debt & Equity. Operates from 15 offices worldwide.

Rankings & prestige
Vault rank
#7
AmLaw rank
#14
Reported Chambers Band 1 records
29 records
Vault rank
#10
AmLaw rank
#10
Reported Chambers Band 1 records
22 records
Compensation
First-year comp
$225,000+
Profits per partner
$9.80M
Firm revenue
$3.20B
Revenue per lawyer
$2.59M
First-year comp
$225,000+
Profits per partner
$8.57M
Firm revenue
$3.55B
Revenue per lawyer
$2.02M
Work & scale
Billable target
-
Partnership track
-
US associates per partner
4.3:1
Firm size (rounded to 50)
~1,250
Offices
7
Billable target
-
Partnership track
-
US associates per partner
3:1
Firm size (rounded to 50)
~2,000
Offices
15
Summer program
Offer rate
-
Class size
220 (year not confirmed)
How associates get work
Centralized staffing
Specific practice area
No
Offer rate
-
Class size
265 (year not confirmed)
How associates get work
Centralized staffing
Specific practice area
No
Chambers by practice, market and year

Shared results are listed once. Green marks only a lower reported Chambers band for the same exact practice, market and year. Records with a missing year or market are not compared. Historical records are retained; individual ranking verification status is not available.

Shared rankings

Banking & Finance · Nationwide · 2026Band 1
Banking & Finance · New York · 2026Band 1
Capital Markets: Debt & Equity · California · 2026Band 1
Capital Markets: Equity: Issuer Counsel · Nationwide · 2026Band 1
Capital Markets: High-Yield Debt · Nationwide · 2026Band 1
Capital Markets: Investment Grade Debt: Manager Counsel · Nationwide · 2026Band 1
Corporate/M&A · Nationwide · 2026Band 1 · The Elite
Corporate/M&A · New York · 2026Band 1 · The Elite
Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation · New York · 2026Band 1
Litigation: Securities · New York · 2026Band 1
Securities: Litigation · Nationwide · 2026Band 1
Tax · New York · 2026Band 1
Tax: Corporate & Finance · Nationwide · 2026Band 1
Antitrust: Cartel · Nationwide · 2026Band 2
Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation · Nationwide · 2026Band 2
Environment: Mainly Transactional · Nationwide · 2026Band 2
Litigation: General Commercial · New York · 2026Band 2 · The Elite
Private Equity: Secondaries · Nationwide · 2026Band 2
Antitrust · District of Columbia · 2026Band 3
Investment Funds: Regulatory & Compliance · Nationwide · 2026Band 3
Litigation: General Commercial · Nationwide · 2026Band 5 · The Elite

Rank differences

AntitrustNew York · 2026
Band 1
Band 4
Bankruptcy/RestructuringNationwide · 2026
Band 1 · Elite
Band 2 · Highly Regarded
Bankruptcy/RestructuringNew York · 2026
Band 1 · Elite
Band 5 · Elite
Capital Markets: Convertible DebtNationwide · 2026
Band 1
Band 2
Capital Markets: Equity: Manager CounselNationwide · 2026
Band 1
Band 2
Capital Markets: Investment Grade Debt: Issuer CounselNationwide · 2026
Band 1
Band 2
Corporate Crime & InvestigationsNationwide · 2026
Band 1 · Elite
Band 3 · Elite
Corporate GovernanceNationwide · 2026
Band 1
Band 2
Environment: Mainly TransactionalNew York · 2026
Band 1
Band 2
Financial Services Regulation: Banking (Compliance)Nationwide · 2026
Band 1
Band 5
Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government InvestigationsNew York · 2026
Band 1 · Elite
Band 2 · Elite
Private Equity: BuyoutsNew York · 2026
Band 3
Band 1

Firm-only and additional rankings remain available on each firm profile so missing coverage is not mistaken for a head-to-head loss.

Data sources: Vault 2027, AmLaw 200 FY2025, and reported Chambers records from the years shown. Chambers record counts can span years and reporting coverage varies; missing years or markets are not compared. Current Chambers bands were checked against each firm’s Chambers profile on Sep 26, 2026; where Chambers splits a table, every Elite firm ranks above every Highly Regarded firm. Missing values shown as “-”.