Biglaw, In-House Counsel

The Biglaw Firms That General Counsel Absolutely Adore

Which Biglaw firms have forged the strongest relationships with their corporate clients?

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Which Biglaw firm is most beloved by general counsel? That’s what the BTI Consulting Group set to find out with its latest Power Rankings. In case you’re unfamiliar with the BTI Power Rankings, they measure which law firms are best positioned with the most prestigious clients. These are either the firms that general counsel use as their go-to outside counsel, or in the alternative, the firms they recommend most to their peers. If a firm is able to woo a corporate client into such a state of bliss that general counsel both recommend that firm to peers and consider that firm to be a core firm, then it is one of the lucky few firms that has achieved a state of “clientopia,” having formed an ideal relationship with outside counsel.

According to the BTI Power Rankings report, which was compiled based on 960 in-depth telephone interviews that took place between March 2015 and February 2017, only 33 percent of general counsel find themselves in a state of “clientopia” with their go-to law firms.

Which Biglaw firms have forged the strongest relationships with their corporate clients? Which Biglaw firms have made their way into the paradise that is clientopia? Twenty-four firms stand out above all the rest, with the more ideal client relationships than any other firms.

  1. Jones Day
  2. Skadden
  3. Dentons
  4. Latham & Watkins
  5. McGuireWoods
  6. Cooley LLP
  7. DLA Piper
  8. Sidley Austin
  9. Kirkland & Ellis
  10. Polsinelli
  11. Hogan Lovells
  12. WilmerHale
  13. Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe
  14. Reed Smith
  15. Ogletree Deakins
  16. Wachtell Lipton
  17. BakerHostetler
  18. Gibson Dunn
  19. Norton Rose Fulbright
  20. Bryan Cave
  21. Cleary Gottlieb
  22. Paul Weiss
  23. Crowell & Moring
  24. Alston & Bird

If you’re disappointed that your firm didn’t make the list this year, there are some things you can improve upon. Law360 (sub. req.) has more information:

The biggest area in which law firms are falling short from achieving client service bliss, according to BTI President Michael Rynowecer, is that many have a lack of understanding of their clients’ businesses, something he says is becoming “a bigger and bigger problem.”

“The average law firm only gets an eight out of 10 when it comes to understanding their clients’ businesses, and clients say that kind of understanding isn’t going to improve the nature of the legal advice they get, which needs to be put into a business context,” Rynowecer said. …

Law firms also often fall short when it comes to communication and the consistency of their client service, Rynowecer said.

“Clients want updates on where matters stand more often because they’re being asked to report more frequently to management on the business risks the company faces and what their status is,” he said.

If attorneys at your firm make more of an effort to better understand your clients’ businesses and provide them with more frequent updates, then you may find your place of work on this list next time around. Congratulations to all 24 firms that made the “clientopia” list. You’ve proven yourselves to be outstanding when it comes to making corporate clients happy, and that’s worth celebrating.

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BTI Industry Power Rankings 2017 [BTI Consulting Group]
BTI Clientopia 24—The Strongest Client Relationships [BTI Consulting Group]
The 24 Firms GCs Love The Most [Law360 (sub. req.)]

Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky has been an editor at Above the Law since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

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