Covington & Burling and Dentons were the top mergers and acquisitions (M&A) legal advisers in the automotive sector for Q1 2021 by value and volume, respectively. Covington & Burling advised on two deals worth US$8.8bn, which was the highest value among all the advisers. Meanwhile, Dentons led in volume terms having advised on three deals. A total of 193 M&A deals were announced during Q1 2021, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

GlobalData’s ‘Global and Automotive M&A Report Legal Adviser League Tables Q1 2021’ reveals that deal value increased by 60% from US$15bn in Q1 2020 to US$24bn in Q1 2021.

Ravi Tokala, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Mavis Tire Express’ acquisition by investor group led by BayPine, turned the tables in this sector, as three of its advisers made it to the top five by value. Despite equaling Covington & Burling on the highest number of deals, Latham & Watkins settled at the bottom of the table due to low-value transactions.”

Kirkland & Ellis occupied the second position by value with two deals worth US$6bn followed by Ropes & Gray with one deal worth US$6bn and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher with two deals worth US$5.4bn.

Covington & Burling also occupied the second position by volume followed by Kirkland & Ellis and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher.