Next time a City lawyer tells you they do not care where their firm ranks in the M&A league tables, do not believe a word of it. It is probably bothering them a lot more than they would like to let on.

Deal week has discovered that there is a spat going on between some of the City’s most respected M&A partners over the criteria used by the providers of the tables. And it is all going on with the release of the yearly round up just over a month away.