Fewer Deals. Larger Stakes. What New Data Means for In-House Legal.
In-house legal teams are being asked to do more with less while the M&A landscape grows more complex, not less. Firms waiting for a broad recovery are still waiting. The legal departments moving with confidence right now aren't waiting for it to materialize. They're reading the market for what it is and advising the business accordingly.
In-house legal teams are being asked to do more with less while the M&A landscape grows more complex, not less. Firms waiting for a broad recovery are still waiting. The legal departments moving with confidence right now aren't waiting for it to materialize. They're reading the market for what it is and advising the business accordingly.
Litera’s Global M&A Trends Q1 2026 Report, built on PitchBook data across 38,285 transactions, gives you the numbers behind the transition.
What the Data Shows:
What the Data Shows:
- The Widest Value-Volume Split Since the Pandemic: Deal value grew 11.4% year over year, the strongest since 2021, while transaction count fell 14.1%. The market isn't stalling; it's concentrating
- Bigger Checks, Fewer Names: Average deal size jumped from $78M to $101M, with PE buyout multiples holding at 12.3x, well above the 10x global median
- Where Volume Is Actually Happening: Manufacturing, industrials, and legacy B2B sectors still drive over 40% of global deal count. The headlines are tech; the floor is traditional sectors.
- Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a Strategic Imperative, Not a Theme: AI-related acquisitions reached $152.8B across 1,409 deals in 2025. This is structural, not cyclical, and it rewards legal teams that can advise on AI transactions with precision and auditability the business can stand behind.