Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, Jones Day Reavis & Pogue and Gibson Dunn & Crutcher have emerged as leading performers in the US M&A market – despite evidence of the continued lull in the world’s biggest corporate market.

Third-quarter M&A figures from Thomson Financial show New York-based Skaddens maintaining its position at the top of the rankings for announced US deals this year, acting on 101 deals with a total value of $111.8bn (£72.12bn).