The Best Lawyers in New York 2026

New York remains one of the most powerful legal markets in the world, with attorneys handling major corporate disputes, white-collar investigations, criminal defense, employment litigation, intellectual property, personal injury, matrimonial law, securities litigation, and high-profile civil-rights cases. This 2026 shortlist is not a universal ranking. It is a market-reputation selection based on peer recognition, legal expertise, years of experience, public case history, awards, client visibility, professional reputation, and online presence.

Theodore V. Wells Jr. is a partner and co-chair of the Litigation Department at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP in New York. His practice focuses on white-collar defense, complex civil litigation, corporate investigations, SEC matters, FCPA, AML, OFAC, healthcare fraud, environmental matters, and class actions. Wells has been trusted for more than three decades by major companies, political figures, and business leaders facing serious legal exposure. Chambers describes him as one of the country’s premier trial lawyers and places him among Star Individuals for trial work, while Paul Weiss highlights his long record in high-stakes civil and criminal matters. His public reputation is driven mainly by elite peer recognition and major institutional clients rather than consumer-review platforms. He was selected because he represents the top tier of New York trial lawyers for white-collar, commercial, and crisis litigation. Official profile: Paul Weiss.

Roberta A. Kaplan is a founding partner of Kaplan Martin LLP in New York. Her practice includes commercial litigation, civil-rights litigation, employment disputes, higher education matters, government regulation, and strategic litigation. Kaplan is widely known for high-impact civil litigation and public-interest matters, including major cases involving E. Jean Carroll and LGBTQ+ rights. Chambers describes her as a renowned civil litigator and trial lawyer with decades of experience, and Reuters reported that she launched Kaplan Martin after leaving Kaplan Hecker & Fink in 2024. Her online reputation is especially strong because of her media visibility, civil-rights work, and repeated coverage in national legal and business press. She was selected for combining elite courtroom skills with unusually high public impact. Official profile: Kaplan Martin.

David Boies is the founding partner and chairman emeritus of Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, a litigation firm with a major New York presence. His practice has focused on antitrust, constitutional litigation, commercial disputes, appellate matters, and high-profile trial work. Boies rose to national prominence through matters such as the government’s antitrust case against Microsoft, Bush v. Gore, and same-sex marriage litigation. His firm describes him as a founding partner and permanent member of the executive committee, while Chambers recognizes Boies Schiller as a firm of nationally known trial lawyers and strategic advisers. His reputation is extremely high in elite legal and media circles, though he has also attracted scrutiny for controversial representations in past matters, so client due diligence remains important. He was selected because few New York-connected litigators have had comparable influence on major national cases. Official profile: Boies Schiller Flexner.

Mary Jo White is Senior Chair and a litigation partner at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP in New York, where she also leads the firm’s Strategic Crisis Response and Solutions Group. Her practice focuses on white-collar defense, SEC enforcement, corporate investigations, regulatory matters, crisis response, and sensitive government-facing disputes. White previously served as Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York. Chambers lists her as an Eminent Practitioner for white-collar crime and government investigations in New York, noting her unparalleled experience in business-critical investigations and enforcement proceedings. Her reputation is institutionally elite, especially for boards, financial institutions, executives, and regulated companies. She was selected because her public-service credentials and private-practice experience make her one of New York’s most authoritative white-collar and regulatory lawyers. Official profile: Debevoise.

Marc E. Kasowitz is the founder of Kasowitz LLP in New York. His practice covers commercial litigation, securities litigation, real estate disputes, antitrust, complex financial products, employment, investigations, white-collar defense, product liability, and other high-stakes disputes. His firm profile notes recognition by Benchmark Litigation as one of the country’s top 100 trial lawyers and by Chambers, The Legal 500, Lawdragon, Law360, and other publications. Kasowitz is known for aggressive litigation strategy and major corporate and public-figure representations. His online visibility is high because of his firm leadership, political and business litigation history, and frequent media references. He was selected because he remains one of New York’s most recognizable commercial litigators for clients facing bet-the-company disputes. Official profile: Kasowitz LLP.

Sandra C. Goldstein is a litigation partner in the New York office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. Her practice focuses on securities litigation, M&A litigation, corporate governance disputes, and complex commercial matters. Kirkland states that her clients have included 3G Capital, Barnes & Noble, Constellation Brands, Grubhub, Honeywell, IBM, J. Crew, Novartis, Qualcomm, Target, United Airlines, Xerox, and other major companies. Chambers notes her formidable reputation in M&A litigation and high-value securities litigation. Best Lawyers and Legal 500 also identify her as a leading commercial litigation practitioner. Her reputation is strongest among corporate clients, boards, and peer directories rather than public review sites. She was selected because she is one of New York’s strongest litigators for corporate control, securities, and transaction-related disputes. Official profile: Kirkland & Ellis.

Robert J. Giuffra Jr. is Co-Chair of Sullivan & Cromwell LLP and a partner in the firm’s Litigation Group in New York. His practice includes bet-the-company litigation, securities disputes, white-collar criminal defense, product liability, commercial litigation, banking, insurance, and tax litigation. Sullivan & Cromwell notes that he joined the firm after clerking for Chief Justice William Rehnquist of the U.S. Supreme Court and Judge Ralph Winter of the Second Circuit. Chambers identifies him as a Star Individual in securities litigation and says he is a strong choice for major financial institutions and corporate issuers. His online reputation is highly institutional, with visibility through Chambers, Lawdragon, Benchmark Litigation, and major corporate matters. He was selected because he is one of New York’s leading securities and corporate-defense litigators. Official profile: Sullivan & Cromwell.

Dale Cendali is a partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in New York and heads the firm’s Copyright, Trademark, Internet and Advertising Practice Group. Her practice focuses on copyright, trademark, trade secrets, media and entertainment litigation, internet disputes, false advertising, right of publicity, privacy, and complex IP litigation. Chambers ranks her as a Star Individual for intellectual property involving trademark, copyright, and trade secrets, and also ranks her highly in media and entertainment litigation. Kirkland describes her as a nationally recognized first-chair trial lawyer who has won high-profile jury trials and argued before the U.S. Supreme Court. Her online reputation is strong across Chambers, Best Lawyers, Legal 500, Hollywood/media-law circles, and IP-focused rankings. She was selected because she gives this New York list essential coverage of elite intellectual property and entertainment litigation. Official profile: Kirkland & Ellis.

Benjamin Brafman is the principal of Brafman & Associates, P.C. in Manhattan. His practice focuses on criminal defense, especially white-collar criminal defense and high-profile criminal matters. His firm states that it specializes in criminal law with an emphasis on white-collar defense and that Brafman’s acquittal record in complex criminal trials is among the highest in New York City. He is widely known for representing public figures, executives, celebrities, and defendants in heavily covered criminal cases, including Dominique Strauss-Kahn and Martin Shkreli. His online reputation is strong among criminal-defense observers and media outlets, though consumer-review data is less meaningful for his type of high-profile defense practice. He was selected because he remains one of Manhattan’s most recognizable criminal defense attorneys. Official profile: Brafman & Associates.

Ben B. Rubinowitz is a trial attorney at Gair, Gair, Conason, Rubinowitz, Bloom, Hershenhorn, Steigman & Mackauf in New York. His practice focuses on plaintiff-side personal injury, medical malpractice, wrongful death, and catastrophic injury litigation. His firm describes him as a top-tier trial lawyer for major injury and medical malpractice matters, and Super Lawyers reported that he ranked #1 in the Top 10 New York Metro Super Lawyers for 2024. Additional public sources note a 40-year career with numerous seven- and eight-figure verdicts and settlements. His online reputation is strong because plaintiff-side lawyers are more visible on review platforms and verdict-ranking sites than most corporate litigators. He was selected because he is one of New York’s leading plaintiff trial lawyers for serious injury and medical malpractice cases. Official profile: Gair Gair.

Douglas H. Wigdor is the founding partner of Wigdor LLP in New York. His practice focuses on employment litigation, sexual harassment, sexual assault, discrimination, retaliation, civil rights, and high-profile plaintiff-side disputes. Wigdor LLP states that its lawyers take on major corporations and high-profile cases in employment litigation, and Wigdor’s official profile notes Band 1 recognition in New York labor and employment, Top 100 recognition by New York Metro Super Lawyers, and recognition by Benchmark Litigation, Law360, and The National Law Journal. He is publicly associated with major #MeToo, workplace accountability, entertainment, sports, and media-related disputes. His online visibility is unusually high for an employment lawyer because his cases often shape public narratives and policy conversations. He was selected because he is one of New York’s most prominent plaintiff-side employment and sexual-misconduct litigators. Official profile: Wigdor LLP.

Key Insights

New York’s legal elite is heavily concentrated in commercial litigation, white-collar defense, securities litigation, corporate crisis response, intellectual property, employment law, criminal defense, and high-value plaintiff litigation. Unlike consumer legal markets, many of the strongest New York attorneys do not have large public-review profiles because their clients are corporations, executives, boards, public figures, financial institutions, and high-net-worth individuals. For this market, the strongest selection signals are Chambers rankings, Best Lawyers recognition, Benchmark Litigation, Super Lawyers, Lawdragon, public case history, major client representations, and firm-level reputation.

For actual hiring, fame should not be the deciding factor. The best attorney is the one with recent, directly relevant experience in the exact legal issue, no conflicts of interest, appropriate bandwidth, transparent fees, and a communication style that fits the client’s needs.