London giant Linklaters has emerged as the leading European and global M&A adviser in 2002 after a year in which the 2,000-lawyer firm consistently dominated the deals tables.

Figures from Mergermarket released in January show the top five UK firm acting on 208 announced deals during the year with a cumulative value of $201.6bn, followed by London rival Clifford Chance (CC) with 187 deals totalling $169bn.