Kirkland & Ellis LLP vs. Sidley Austin LLP
Category by category. Sources: Vault 2027, Am Law 200 FY2025, and reported Chambers records from the years shown.
Who Wins Each Category
Each row stands on its own. There is no overall winner; weigh what matters to you.
| Category | Kirkland & Ellis | Sidley Austin |
|---|---|---|
| Higher pay winsTie | $225,000 | $225,000+Market base |
| Higher wins | $11.12M (wins this category) | $5.97M |
| Lower rank wins | #6 (wins this category) | #11 |
| Lower rank wins | #1 (wins this category) | #6 |
| Higher wins | $10.56B (wins this category) | $3.74B |
| More lawyers wins | 4,145 (wins this category) | 2,300 |
| OfficesMore offices wins | 27 (wins this category) | 20 |
| Nationwide, Chambers USA 2026More Band 1 tables wins | 26 tables (wins this category) | 15 tables |
| 2L OpensSummer 2028Earlier date winsTie | Opened Nov 1, 2026 | Opened Nov 1, 2026 |
| 1L OpensEarlier date winsNot Comparable | Opened Nov 1, 2026Summer 2027 (1L stint for 2L offer holders; apply once for the 2L summer) | Not announcedSummer 2027 |
Sources: Vault 2027 and Am Law 200 FY2025 rankings, Chambers USA 2026, first-year pay as each firm or the market reports it, and program dates from firm career pages on the Job Board. Missing data reads Not Reported and never counts as a loss.
Full Comparison
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Est. 1909
- Sidley Austin LLP
Est. 1866 · Chicago
Est. 1909
Kirkland & Ellis LLP is a 2,000-plus-attorney global firm, Vault #6 / Am Law #1. Jurisdiction-specific Chambers rankings include Band 1 in Antitrust, Asset Management M&A, and Banking & Finance. Operates from 27 offices worldwide.
Est. 1866 · Chicago
Sidley Austin LLP is a 2,000-plus-attorney global firm, Vault #11 / Am Law #6, founded in Chicago, IL. Jurisdiction-specific Chambers rankings include Band 1 in Accountant and Auditor Liability, Banking & Finance, and Capital Markets: Securitization: ABS.
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP#6
- Sidley Austin LLP#11
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP#1
- Sidley Austin LLP#6
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP65 records
- Sidley Austin LLP29 records
- #6
- #1
- 65 records
- Vault rank
- #11
- Am Law rank
- #6
- Reported Chambers Band 1 records
- 29 records
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP$225,000
- Sidley Austin LLP$225,000+
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP$11.12M
- Sidley Austin LLP$5.97M
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP$10.56B
- Sidley Austin LLP$3.74B
Revenue per lawyer
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP$2.55M
- Sidley Austin LLP$1.83M
- $225,000
- $11.12M
- $10.56B
- Revenue per lawyer
- $2.55M
- First-Year Comp
- $225,000+
- Profits Per Partner
- $5.97M
- Firm revenue
- $3.74B
- Revenue per lawyer
- $1.83M
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPNot Reported
- Sidley Austin LLP2,000
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP6 years
- Sidley Austin LLPNot Reported
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP1.2:1
- Sidley Austin LLP1.9:1
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP~4,150
- Sidley Austin LLP~2,300
Offices
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP27
- Sidley Austin LLP20
- Not Reported
- 6 years
- 1.2:1
- ~4,150
- Offices
- 27
- Billable target
- 2,000
- Partnership track
- Not Reported
- US associates per partner
- 1.9:1
- Firm size (rounded to 50)
- ~2,300
- Offices
- 20
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPNot Reported
- Sidley Austin LLPNot Reported
Class size
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP957 (year not confirmed)
- Sidley Austin LLP198 (year not confirmed)
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPFree market
- Sidley Austin LLPFree market
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPYes
- Sidley Austin LLPCase by Case
- Not Reported
- Class size
- 957 (year not confirmed)
- Free market
- Yes
- Offer rate
- Not Reported
- Class size
- 198 (year not confirmed)
- How associates get work
- Free market
- Specific practice area
- Case by Case
1L program
- Kirkland & Ellis LLP1L summer program
- Sidley Austin LLP1L events
1L applications open
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPOpened Nov 1
- Sidley Austin LLPNot announced
2L applications open
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPOpened Nov 1
- Sidley Austin LLPOpened Nov 1
2L deadline
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPNot announced
- Sidley Austin LLPNot announced
- 1L program
- 1L summer program
- 1L applications open
- Opened Nov 1
- 2L applications open
- Opened Nov 1
- 2L deadline
- Not announced
- 1L program
- 1L events
- 1L applications open
- Not announced
- 2L applications open
- Opened Nov 1
- 2L deadline
- Not announced
Green marks the stronger for the same practice, market and year. Shared results are listed once. split some top tables.
Shared rankings
Rank differences
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 4
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 3
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 4
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 4
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 3
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 4
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 2
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1 · Elite
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 3 · Elite
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1 · Elite
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 5 · Elite
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 4
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 2
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 1
- Kirkland & Ellis LLPBand 1 · Elite
- Sidley Austin LLPBand 2 · Elite
Firm-only and additional rankings remain available on each firm profile so missing coverage is not mistaken for a head-to-head loss.
See which of these firms are open on the Job Board
Data sources: Vault 2027, Am Law 200 FY2025, and reported Chambers records from the years shown. Chambers record counts can span years and reporting coverage varies; missing years or markets are not compared. Current Chambers bands were checked against each firm’s Chambers profile on Sep 26, 2026; where Chambers splits a table, every Elite firm ranks above every Highly Regarded firm. Missing values read “Not Reported”.
More head-to-head comparisons
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- Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom vs. Kirkland & Ellis
- Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom vs. Sidley Austin
- Latham & Watkins vs. Kirkland & Ellis
- Latham & Watkins vs. Sidley Austin
- Sullivan & Cromwell vs. Kirkland & Ellis
- Sullivan & Cromwell vs. Sidley Austin
- Kirkland & Ellis vs. Davis Polk & Wardwell
- Kirkland & Ellis vs. Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher
Firm data comes from each firm’s own publications, Chambers USA and Vault; see Kirkland & Ellis and Sidley Austin for sources and dates.