Biglaw

The Best Biglaw Firms In The World According To Corporate Clients (2022)

Through the ups and downs of the pandemic, these firms came out on top.

By  
on

Thanks to the pandemic, Biglaw firms have been on a roller coaster complete with very high highs (bigger and better salaries, bonuses, and perks) and very low lows (salary cuts, layoffs, and furloughs) ever since 2020. Throughout these tumultuous times, law firms have attempted to maintain their brands — the image they want clients to see when making hiring decisions and their overall reputations in the marketplace.

But which Biglaw firm has the best brand in the world? Thanks to the 2022 Global Elite Law Firm Brand Index, you’re about to find out.

Thomson Reuters ranks Biglaw firms based on feedback from their most important clients, general counsel at the world’s largest multinational organizations. Here’s how the survey was conducted:

The main survey incorporates more than 50 questions designed to gather clients’ insight into such areas as law firm brand, firm usage, and legal market trends. The responses are distilled down into four different and non-related measures….

• Top-of-mind awareness — This is based on the first five law firms that come to a survey respondent’s mind, captured in order of mention, with up to five firm names captured.
• Favorability — This is based on which three law firms that survey respondents said they feel most favorable towards, with up to three firms captured in order of mention.
• Consideration for multi-jurisdictional litigation — This represents up to three firms that survey respondents said they are most likely to consider for litigation work across three or more countries, captured in order of mention.
• Consideration for multi-jurisdictional deals — This represents up to three firms that survey respondents said they are most likely to consider for deal-making or mergers & acquisitions work across three or more countries, captured in order of mention.

Biglaw firms have navigated uncharted waters due to COVID-19, and in 2021, corporate clients tended to once again stand by firms they’ve known and worked with for years — especially those with strong M&A practices. Elizabeth Duffy, Senior Director of Global Client Services at Thomson Reuters, noted:

“Looking at this year’s top 20, it is clear that brand favorability and multi-jurisdictional deals have been the most important success factors this year for global law firm brands, out of the four that make up the index.” …

“In 2021, as businesses emerged from the crisis, legal service buying patterns focus on forward facing factors like understanding the client’s business and knowledge of their sector,” Duffy explains. “And we are seeing clients prioritizing specialist expertise over historical relationships or reputation.”

Sponsored

So, which firm is tops when it comes to its global brand? That would be Baker McKenzie, which kept its lock in the #1 spot for the twelfth year in a row. Here are the top firms (with two ties):

1. Baker McKenzie (no change)
2. DLA Piper (no change)
3. Clifford Chance (+2)
4. Dentons (-1)
5. Norton Rose Fulbright (+2)
6. Allen & Overy (+1)
6. Hogan Lovells (-1)
6. Skadden (+8)
9. King & Wood Mallesons (+2)
9. Latham & Watkins (+8)
9. Linklaters (-5)

Click here to access the complete ranking of the Top 20.

Once again, this ranking speaks volumes as to which Biglaw firms are on top when it comes to client loyalty, but there are just a few U.S.-based firms among the ranks of the Global Elite. What does this say about our lawyers? Our Biglaw firms might be doing something right, but surely there’s a way to do things differently to propel additional firms to success.

Baker McKenzie, DLA Piper, and Clifford Chance Top the 2022 Thomson Reuters Global Elite Law Firm Brand Index [Thomson Reuters]

Sponsored

Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

Topics

, , , ,