{"id":148815,"date":"2026-04-14T14:59:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T22:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/04\/14\/the-top-biglaw-firms-in-california-2027\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T14:59:00","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T22:59:00","slug":"the-top-biglaw-firms-in-california-2027","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/04\/14\/the-top-biglaw-firms-in-california-2027\/","title":{"rendered":"The Top Biglaw Firms In California (2027)"},"content":{"rendered":"

California has a certain kind of easy-going vibe that\u2019ll make you appreciate that business casual lifestyle. Depending on where your office is located, you may even be able to see the beach from your window. In fact, we wouldn\u2019t be surprised if your firm handed out flip-flops emblazoned with their logo (we see you, Quinn Emanuel). Whether you\u2019re into tech, litigation, or representing celebrities, there really is something for everyone. California really is top notch, but which firms are considered the best in the Golden State?<\/p>\n

Thanks to Vault\u2019s recently released\u00a0regional rankings<\/a>, we now know which Biglaw firms are dominating the legal scene in California. This ranking is based on votes tabulated from associates who were asked to rate firms on a 1 to 10 scale based on their prestige within the region.<\/p>\n

Here are the top 10 most prestigious firms in Northern California (you can see the full list from Vault by clicking\u00a0here<\/a>):<\/p>\n

1. Cooley
1. Latham & Watkins
3. Morrison Foerster
4. Wilson Sonsini
5. Kirkland & Ellis
6. Skadden
7. Gibson Dunn
8. Fenwick (+1)
9. Orrick (-1)
10. Perkins Coie (+8)<\/p>\n

Much like WilmerHale saw in the DC ranking, Perkins Coie, another firm that\u2019s fighting against Trump\u2019s executive order, is taking a star turn in the ranking, moving up by quite a bit. There\u2019s nothing more prestigious than standing up for justice and the rule of law.<\/p>\n

And here are the top 10 most prestigious firms in Southern California (you can see the full list from Vault by clicking\u00a0here<\/a>):<\/p>\n

1. Latham & Watkins
2. Gibson Dunn
3. Kirkland & Ellis
4. O\u2019Melveny & Myers
5. Skadden
6. Munger Tolles & Olson
7. Paul Hastings
8. Quinn Emanuel (+1)
9. Sidley Austin (-1)
10. Morrison Foerster (+1)<\/p>\n

Congrats to all of the Biglaw firms that made the latest edition of Vault\u2019s California rankings. How did your firm do this time around?\u00a0Email us<\/a>, text us at (646) 820-8477, or tweet us\u00a0@atlblog<\/a>\u00a0to let us know how you feel.<\/p>\n

2027 Best Law Firms in Northern California<\/a>\u00a0[Vault]
2027 Best Law Firms in Southern California<\/a>\u00a0[Vault]<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Staci Zaretsky<\/a>\u00a0is the managing editor of Above the Law, where she\u2019s worked since 2011. She\u2019d love to hear from you, so please feel free to\u00a0email<\/a>\u00a0her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on\u00a0Bluesky<\/a>,\u00a0X\/Twitter<\/a>, and\u00a0Threads<\/a>,\u00a0or connect with her on\u00a0Linke<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The post The Top Biglaw Firms In California (2027)<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n

California has a certain kind of easy-going vibe that\u2019ll make you appreciate that business casual lifestyle. Depending on where your office is located, you may even be able to see the beach from your window. In fact, we wouldn\u2019t be surprised if your firm handed out flip-flops emblazoned with their logo (we see you, Quinn Emanuel). Whether you\u2019re into tech, litigation, or representing celebrities, there really is something for everyone. California really is top notch, but which firms are considered the best in the Golden State?<\/p>\n

Thanks to Vault\u2019s recently released\u00a0regional rankings<\/a>, we now know which Biglaw firms are dominating the legal scene in California. This ranking is based on votes tabulated from associates who were asked to rate firms on a 1 to 10 scale based on their prestige within the region.<\/p>\n

Here are the top 10 most prestigious firms in Northern California (you can see the full list from Vault by clicking\u00a0here<\/a>):<\/p>\n

1. Cooley
1. Latham & Watkins
3. Morrison Foerster
4. Wilson Sonsini
5. Kirkland & Ellis
6. Skadden
7. Gibson Dunn
8. Fenwick (+1)
9. Orrick (-1)
10. Perkins Coie (+8)<\/p>\n

Much like WilmerHale saw in the DC ranking, Perkins Coie, another firm that\u2019s fighting against Trump\u2019s executive order, is taking a star turn in the ranking, moving up by quite a bit. There\u2019s nothing more prestigious than standing up for justice and the rule of law.<\/p>\n

And here are the top 10 most prestigious firms in Southern California (you can see the full list from Vault by clicking\u00a0here<\/a>):<\/p>\n

1. Latham & Watkins
2. Gibson Dunn
3. Kirkland & Ellis
4. O\u2019Melveny & Myers
5. Skadden
6. Munger Tolles & Olson
7. Paul Hastings
8. Quinn Emanuel (+1)
9. Sidley Austin (-1)
10. Morrison Foerster (+1)<\/p>\n

Congrats to all of the Biglaw firms that made the latest edition of Vault\u2019s California rankings. How did your firm do this time around?\u00a0Email us<\/a>, text us at (646) 820-8477, or tweet us\u00a0@atlblog<\/a>\u00a0to let us know how you feel.<\/p>\n

2027 Best Law Firms in Northern California<\/a>\u00a0[Vault]
2027 Best Law Firms in Southern California<\/a>\u00a0[Vault]<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Staci Zaretsky<\/a>\u00a0is the managing editor of Above the Law, where she\u2019s worked since 2011. She\u2019d love to hear from you, so please feel free to\u00a0email<\/a>\u00a0her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on\u00a0Bluesky<\/a>,\u00a0X\/Twitter<\/a>, and\u00a0Threads<\/a>,\u00a0or connect with her on\u00a0Linke<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

California has a certain kind of easy-going vibe that\u2019ll make you appreciate that business casual lifestyle. Depending on where your office is located, you may even be able to see the beach from your window. In fact, we wouldn\u2019t be surprised if your firm handed out flip-flops emblazoned with their logo (we see you, Quinn […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":148816,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-148815","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/xira.com\/p\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Staci-Zaretsky-Mx8zTg.jpg?fit=150%2C100&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148815","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=148815"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148815\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/148816"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=148815"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=148815"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=148815"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}