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Top BigLaw Firms for Restructuring / Bankruptcy

Research on bankruptcy code issues, drafting motions and plan documents, and supporting negotiations among creditors when companies are in distress. Chambers USA 2026 ranks 42 firms in our directory nationwide for restructuring and bankruptcy, 7 of them in Band 1. Pick a city for the local tables.

Ranked nationwide
42
Cities with 3+ ranked firms
21

Restructuring / Bankruptcy by city

Ranked nationwide, Chambers USA 2026

  1. 1.Latham & Watkins LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 1 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  2. 2.Kirkland & Ellis LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 1 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  3. 3.Davis Polk & Wardwell LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 1 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  4. 4.Milbank LLPFirst-year base $235,000+Band 1 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  5. 5.Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 1 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  6. 6.Paul Hastings LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 1 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  7. 7.Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 1 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  8. 8.White & Case LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 2 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  9. 9.Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & KatzFirst-year base $450,000+Band 3 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  10. 10.Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 3 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  11. 11.Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 3 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  12. 12.Sidley Austin LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 3 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  13. 13.Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLPFirst-year base $235,000+Band 3 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  14. 14.Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 3 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  15. 15.Jones DayFirst-year base $240,000Band 3 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  16. 16.Morrison & Foerster LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 3 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  17. 17.Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 3 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  18. 18.Sullivan & Cromwell LLPFirst-year base $235,000+Band 4 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  19. 19.Ropes & Gray LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 4 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  20. 20.Proskauer Rose LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 4 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  21. 21.McDermott Will & Schulte LLPFirst-year base $255,000+Band 4 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  22. 22.Greenberg Traurig, LLPFirst-year base Varies by officeBand 4 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  23. 23.O'Melveny & Myers LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 5 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  24. 24.Vinson & Elkins LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 5 (The Elite) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  25. 25.Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 1 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  26. 26.King & Spalding LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 1 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  27. 27.Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 1 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  28. 28.Norton Rose Fulbright US LLPFirst-year base $235,000+Band 1 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  29. 29.Reed Smith LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 1 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  30. 30.Baker & Hostetler LLPFirst-year base $215,000Band 1 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  31. 31.McGuireWoods LLPFirst-year base $215,000Band 1 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  32. 32.Katten Muchin Rosenman LLPFirst-year base $235,000+Band 1 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  33. 33.Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 2 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  34. 34.Hogan Lovells CadwaladerFirst-year base $225,000+Band 2 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  35. 35.DLA Piper LLP (US)First-year base $225,000+Band 2 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  36. 36.Dentons US LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 2 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  37. 37.Fox Rothschild LLPFirst-year base $205,000Band 2 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  38. 38.ArentFox Schiff LLPFirst-year base $215,000Band 2 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  39. 39.Blank Rome LLPFirst-year base $210,000Band 2 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  40. 40.Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 3 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  41. 41.Mayer Brown LLPFirst-year base $225,000+Band 3 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring
  42. 42.Duane Morris LLPFirst-year base $215,000Band 3 (Highly Regarded) · Bankruptcy/Restructuring

Is restructuring and bankruptcy a fit?

Who tends to thrive

  • People who like high stakes and fast-changing situations
  • Those who enjoy mixing litigation and deal skills
  • Anyone interested in why companies fail

What a 1L can do this year

  • Take Bankruptcy or Corporate Reorganization when available
  • Read coverage of a recent Chapter 11 case to see the moving pieces
  • Ask whether the group represents debtors, creditors or both
Not sure this practice fits? Take the quiz Filter the directory by restructuring and bankruptcy

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