Top BigLaw Firms for Commercial Litigation in San Francisco
Every firm in our directory with a San Francisco office that Chambers USA 2026 ranks for commercial litigation in California, strongest band first. Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP leads with Band 1 (The Elite), one of 4 firms in Band 1.
- Ranked firms
- 30
- Band 1 firms
- 4
- Median first-year base
- $225,000
30 ranked firms for commercial litigation in San Francisco
| # | Firm | Chambers 2026 | First-year base | 2L summer applications |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP Vault #8 |
| $225,000+ | Nov 2, 2026Deadline Feb 5, 2027 |
| 2 | Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP Vault #14 |
| $235,000+ | See the job board |
| 3 | Cooley LLP Vault #22 |
| $255,000+ | Expected November 2026 |
| 4 | Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP Vault #29 |
| $225,000+ | Jan 1, 2027 |
| 5 | Latham & Watkins LLP Vault #4 |
| $225,000+ | Nov 1, 2026Deadline Jan 29, 2027 |
| 6 | Kirkland & Ellis LLP Vault #6 |
| $225,000+ | Nov 1, 2026 |
| 7 | Morrison & Foerster LLP Vault #27 |
| $225,000+ | Opened Oct 1Deadline Feb 28, 2027 |
| 8 | O'Melveny & Myers LLP Vault #28 |
| $225,000+ | Opened Oct 1Deadline Jan 31, 2027 |
| 9 | Sidley Austin LLP Vault #11 |
| $225,000+ | Expected early November 2026 |
| 10 | Covington & Burling LLP Vault #12 |
| $225,000 | Not announced (last cycle Dec 1, 2025) |
| 11 | Jones Day Vault #26 |
| $240,000 | Not announced (last cycle Oct 27, 2025) |
| 12 | Paul Hastings LLP Vault #21 |
| $225,000+ | Expected mid-December 2026 |
| 13 | King & Spalding LLP Vault #36 |
| $225,000+ | Expected early November 2026 |
| 14 | Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP Vault #40 |
| $225,000+ | Expected early November 2026 |
| 15 | Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP Vault #15 |
| $225,000+ | Not announced |
| 16 | Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLP Vault #32 |
| $225,000+ | Expected early December 2026 |
| 17 | Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP Vault #37 |
| $225,000+ | Nov 2, 2026 |
| 18 | DLA Piper LLP (US) Vault #42 |
| $225,000+ | Expected early January 2027 |
| 19 | Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP Vault #66 |
| $225,000+ | Not announced |
| 20 | Mayer Brown LLP Vault #44 |
| $225,000+ | See the job board |
| 21 | Baker McKenzie LLP Vault #45 |
| $225,000+ | Nov 1, 2026Deadline Mar 1, 2027 |
| 22 | McDermott Will & Schulte LLP Vault #46 |
| $255,000+ | See the job board |
| 23 | Dechert LLP Vault #51 |
| $225,000 | Expected late October to November 2026 |
| 24 | Greenberg Traurig, LLP Vault #55 |
| Varies by office | Not announced |
| 25 | Crowell & Moring LLP Vault #65 |
| $215,000 | See the job board |
| 26 | Davis Wright Tremaine LLP Vault #74 |
| $225,000+ | See the job board |
| 27 | Reed Smith LLP Vault #59 |
| $225,000+ | Jan 4, 2027 |
| 28 | Shook, Hardy & Bacon L.L.P. |
| Not reported | See the job board |
| 29 | Baker & Hostetler LLP Vault #63 |
| $215,000 | Opened Sep 15Deadline Jan 15, 2027 |
| 30 | Ballard Spahr LLP Vault #92 |
| $225,000 | Expected December 2026 |
Chambers bands from Chambers USA 2026, California tables; Band 1 is the strongest, and a “Highly Regarded” band sits below every “Elite” band. Pay is each firm’s first-year base; summer dates come from each firm’s own page via the BigLaw job board. How rankings work
Commercial Litigation in other cities
- Commercial Litigation in New York55 firms
- Commercial Litigation in Washington, DC36 firms
- Commercial Litigation in Los Angeles35 firms
- Commercial Litigation in Chicago25 firms
- Commercial Litigation in Silicon Valley24 firms
- Commercial Litigation in Houston19 firms
- Commercial Litigation in Dallas19 firms
- Commercial Litigation in Miami19 firms
- Commercial Litigation in Boston18 firms
- Commercial Litigation in Philadelphia14 firms
- Commercial Litigation in Orange County13 firms
- Commercial Litigation in Atlanta13 firms
Other practices in San Francisco
- Labor & Employment35 firms
- Intellectual Property (Patent)31 firms
- Corporate / M&A22 firms
- White Collar Defense20 firms
- Healthcare18 firms
- Technology Transactions18 firms
- Environmental17 firms
- Insurance / Reinsurance17 firms
- Tax17 firms
- Antitrust16 firms
- Entertainment / Media / Sports16 firms
- Securities Litigation16 firms