US IPO Market Most Active Law Firms of 2018

About Renaissance Capital

Renaissance Capital is a global IPO investment adviser providing pre-IPO institutional research (ipointelligence.com) and a premium IPO

data platform (ipopro.renaissancecapital.com). Renaissance Capital also manages the Renaissance IPO ETF (NYSE symbol: IPO) and the

Renaissance International IPO ETF (NYSE symbol: IPOS). For more information, visit www.renaissancecapital.com.

December 10, 2018

The 2018 IPO Market’s Law Firm Leaderboard

In 2018, 188 IPOs raised $45.7 billion, 18% more deals than 2017. With every IPO requiring at least two

legal firms, one for issuers and one for underwriters (and some hiring as many as five), there were 587

legal engagements with 140 law firms. Latham & Watkins and Cooley retained their #1 and #2 spots; the

California-based law firms again benefitted from a year dominated by tech and biotech. Known for its

Capital Markets practice, New York heavyweight Davis Polk appeared at #3. It paid to have a global

presence in 2018, particularly in China, and foreign issuers boosted New York-based Skadden and

Cayman Islands-based Maples to #4 and #5, respectively. A continued wave of blank check companies

propelled SPAC specialist Ellenoff Grossman to #6. The tech and biotech trend also helped Boston-based

biotech expert Goodwin Procter (#7) and Silicon Valley tech advisor Wilson Sonsini (#8).

To read the entire 2018 IPO Market Law Firm Leaderboard, sign up for a free trial of IPO Pro here.

US IPO Market Most Active Law Firms of 2018

About Renaissance Capital

Renaissance Capital is a global IPO investment adviser providing pre-IPO institutional research (ipointelligence.com) and a premium IPO

data platform (ipopro.renaissancecapital.com). Renaissance Capital also manages the Renaissance IPO ETF (NYSE symbol: IPO) and the

Renaissance International IPO ETF (NYSE symbol: IPOS). For more information, visit www.renaissancecapital.com.

#1

Latham & Watkins topped the list, working on 45 IPOs during 2018 with combined proceeds of $9.0

billion. Latham’s was the top choice for IPO underwriters, representing them on 30 deals. The firm mainly

appeared on healthcare (28; +133% YoY) and tech (8; +100%) IPOs. With a global presence, Latham

worked on IPOs based in 11 states and six countries. The Los Angeles-based firm’s top geographies were

California (13), Massachusetts (8), Pennsylvania (3), New Jersey (3) and China (3).

Latham’s largest role by deal size was underwriter representative for NIO’s $1-billion US IPO. It also was

the primary US legal advisor for Spotify during its direct listing. As of December 10, 2018, Latham’s 45

IPOs averaged a 13.1% return from the offer price.

2017 Rank: #1 (34 IPOs, $7.7B)

Headquarters: Los Angeles, CA

Website: www.lw.com

Worked alongside law firms: Cooley (12), Goodwin Procter (4), Ropes & Gray (3)

Underwriter rep for IPOs led by: BofA ML (7), J.P. Morgan (6), Morgan Stanley (5), Goldman (4)

Top Industries: Healthcare (28), Technology (8), Consumer Discretionary (4)

Top Geographies: California (14), Massachusetts (8), Pennsylvania (3), China (3)

45 IPOs

$9.0B

*Exclusively for IPO Pro Users

2

To read the entire 2018 IPO Market Law Firm Leaderboard, sign up for a free trial of IPO Pro here.