The Top Five Law Firms for Project Finance

The top five law firms in Vault’s 2025 Project Finance prestige ranking are Milbank LLP, Latham & Watkins, Skadden, White & Case, and Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP.

Milbank

The No. 13 Firm in the Vault Law 100, the storied firm headquartered on Wall Street, Milbank, is Vault’s Best Firm for Project Finance in 2025. It is also among the Top 10 firms in Vault’s Clean Tech/Renewable Energy Law (No. 4), Banking & Financial Services (No. 6), Bankruptcy/Restructuring (No. 7), and Securities/Capital Markets (No. 10) practice areas. The sense of community and collaboration that the 1,000 associates at Milbank enjoy is fostered through its Milbank@Harvard training program. Collegiality is also prevalent because associates need not compete for hours—there is no billable requirement. The career outlook for Milbank associates is positive. With their stellar training and substantive work experience, associates can look forward to a reasonable chance of making equity partner as early as their ninth or tenth year. Moreover, the firm supports attorneys in the partnership track through development programs and offers counsel positions. Attorneys who choose to exit generally find positions in-house.

Latham & Watkins

Big in every way, Latham & Watkins is Vault’s No. 2 firm for Project Finance. The firm is holding three other No. 2 spots in the Vault practice area rankings: Antitrust, Clean Tech/Renewable Energy, and Securities/Capital Markets. In 29 offices (17 in the United States), Latham & Watkins attorneys have established a friendly and professional culture that offers opportunities to socialize at the level where one is comfortable; there is no pressure. With 3,000 attorneys, however, the likelihood of making partner varies. Therefore, the firm offers a formal service to help associates find their way—either at the firm or in the many exit opportunities available. Latham & Watkins attorneys who choose to leave can leverage the stellar reputation of their firm. For example, in addition to the No. 2 ranking in the practice areas mentioned above, Latham & Watkins ranks among the top five firms in 11 other Vault practice areas: Banking & Financial Services; Energy, Oil & Gas; Environmental Law; Media, Entertainment & Sports; Private Equity; Bankruptcy/Restructuring; General Corporate Practice; International; M&A; Real Estate; and Tax. It holds an additional 10 spots in Vault’s top 15 practice area rankings. Moreover, it is one of the best firms to work for in seven Vault-ranked regions: Southern California (No. 1); Northern California (No. 2); Chicago (No. 3); Texas (No. 3); Washington, DC (No. 3); Boston (No. 4); and New York (No. 7). With this kind of reputation, Latham & Watkins rightfully earned the No. 4 spot in the Vault Law 100, and it follows that hiring is competitive, as confirmed by the firm’s No. 6 place in Vault’s Best Firm for Selectivity prestige ranking.

Skadden

Another big firm headquartered in New York, Skadden, is home to 1,700 attorneys in 21 offices (8 in the United States). It holds the No. 3 ranking in both Project Finance and the Vault Law 100 prestige rankings. Associates describe the culture as inclusive, welcoming, and friendly. For example, one associate describes a spirit of partnership among colleagues that spans the firm. In addition to their positive feelings about their firm’s culture, Skadden associates are happy with their market compensation and 1,800-hour billable requirement. Moreover, attorneys outside the firm think highly of Skadden. Their rankings put Skadden in the Vault’s top 10 prestige rankings for every region in which it has an office: the Mid-Atlantic region (No. 1); the Midwest (No. 3), Chicago (No. 4); New York (No. 4); Southern California (No. 5); Washington, DC (No. 5); Boston (No. 6); Northern California (No. 6); and Texas (No. 9). Peers at other firms also rank Skadden in Vault’s top five for nine other practice areas: Skadden is No. 1 in Tax; No. 2 in Securities Litigation; No. 3 in M&A, Products Liability, Product Finance (as noted above), and Securities/Capital Markets; No. 4 in General Corporate Practice and Private Equity; and No. 5 in Banking & Financial Services. It holds 10 other top 20 spots in the Vault’s prestige rankings. Similar to that of other large firms ranking high on the Project Finance prestige list, the Skadden partnership pathway may not be available to everyone, but the exit opportunities, particularly in-house and in government, are excellent.

White & Case

Leveraging its international reach through 36 offices abroad and 8 offices in the United States, Case & White takes the No. 4 position in Vault’s Project Finance prestige rating. The firm is unique in its multiculturalism and diversity. Teamwork is highly valued, and the firm supports it by offering social events ranging from happy hours to rock climbing. Lockstep Cravath-scale compensation is the reward for meeting the 2,000-hour billable requirement. Notably, 200 of these hours can be earned through pro bono, diversity, or firm citizenship work. With its unique makeup of multilingual attorneys, the firm’s No. 1 ranking in Vault’s International prestige ranking and No. 17 ranking for Overall Diversity are unsurprising. In addition, Case & White ranks No. 6 in Vault’s Clean Tech/Renewable Energy and Energy, Oil & Gas and No. 8 in Vault’s Bankruptcy/Restructuring practice area rankings. It is in the top 25 in 10 other Vault practice area rankings and is the No. 3 firm in Vault’s Florida prestige ranking. Specifically citing clerkships and in-house positions, associates describe the exit opportunities as “endless.” Moreover, promotion to partnership seems to be realistic, and non-equity partner and stepping-stone or long-term counsel positions are viable options.

Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP

Another elite firm headquartered in New York, Davis Polk rounds out the top five Best Firms Law Firms for Project Finance. Similar to the other firms on this list, it holds multiple other Vault prestige rankings: No. 1 in Securities/Capital Markets, No. 2 in Banking & Financial Services, No. 4 in Bankruptcy/Restructuring and Tax, No. 6 in General Corporate Practice, No. 7 in Securities Litigation, No. 8 in M & A, No, 9 in Private Equity, and No. 10 in White Collar Defense & Internal Investigations, as well as three other top 20 rankings. These high rankings put Davis Polk No. 7 in the Vault Law 100 rankings. It is the No. 3 firm in Vault’s New York rankings. Unlike the other firms in Vault’s top five firms for Project Finance, however, Davis Polk has been in business for 175 years; it is the oldest law firm in the United States. This firm has a professional and polite culture, no billable hour requirement, and long-term roles for attorneys who want to stay with the firm. Attorneys in counsel roles can move into partnership. The exit opportunities, particularly in-house and government positions, are extensive. Approximately 1,000 attorneys work at Davis Polk, and they appreciate the many opportunities to work on pro bono matters and the market-rate compensation.

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With more than 1,000 associates and many international offices, the top five Vault firms for Project Finance seem to be very similar. All are Vault Law 100 firms and take top positions in many of the same practice areas. Moreover, attorneys at these firms gain the experience and attain the prestige to take their careers anywhere—in or out of the firm. Therefore, highly qualified, aspirational attorneys interested in practicing in Project Finance would love to land at any of these firms. However, they should do their research to find the best firm fit and location for them. We recommend that lawyers look at the Vault profiles of each of these firms to identify the underlying reasons that they earned high Vault prestige rankings. Moreover, they should investigate other Vault Law 100 firms to identify unique quality-of-life characteristics. Vault profiles present in-depth information about life as an associate at Vault Law 100 and top midsized firms, including associate’s own words describing their experience working at their own firms.

Best of luck from all of us at Vault Law on your legal job search!