Law Firms
US News Law Firm Rankings: Coming in 2010
Posted Jul 7, 2009 12:26 PM CST
By Sarah Randag
US News & World Report announced today that readers can look forward to a law firm rankings feature in the fall of 2010.
"We can feel law-firm marketing directors getting a little twitchy already," the Wall Street Journal Law Blog writes.
There will in fact be two sets of rankings, according to a press release (PDF provided by Wall Street Journal Law Blog): the best law firms, and the best law firms to work for. The rankings will evaluate more than 3,000 U.S. law firms using "a wide range of objective data as well as individual assessments from more than 40,000 private practice lawyers, 20,000 clients, and thousands of law firm employees." The survey will be conducted this fall, the release says.
This fall, the US News site will host Best Lawyers' search engine, which contains profiles of more than 50,000 U.S. lawyers. Best Lawyers is partnering with US News for the law firm rankings.
Above the Law points out that Vault.com was actually the first to arrive at this party. But US News is no wallflower.
"What if the new US News rankings differ significantly from the Vault rankings?" Elie Mystal writes at Above the Law. "Will industry professionals still trust Vault, while clients are starstruck by US News? Or vice versa? Or will US News end up as a late entry into a field that Vault already dominates?"
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Comments
Cynic
Jul 7, 2009 1:07 PM CST
Since there is no feasible way USNWR can evaluate the tens of thousands of multi-attorney law firms across the country, let me be the first to surmise that these rankings will be limited to firms of more than, say 100 attorneys, which employ but a small fraction of attorneys in this country. Therefore, we will get one more list proclaiming that everyone goes into BigLaw, everyone makes +$120k out of the gate, blah blah blah. All the usual mouthpiece sentiments espoused by the ABA and law school admissions committees. This is the very last thing that the profession needs.
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B. McLeod
Jul 7, 2009 1:14 PM CST
Plus, it would be much more fun to see these same rankings ventured by Above The Law.
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J
Jul 7, 2009 9:17 PM CST
I hope this isn’t how they plan to save the publication from going under.
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LS
Jul 8, 2009 5:05 PM CST
One can only hope that firms will be better able to resist the urge to please US News. But since the magazine has been able to cast prospective students and admission committees under the spell of its otherwise irrelevant rankings, I’m afraid law students and firms will probably give in and start worshiping their firm rankings. Maybe we’ll get lucky and see the publication go under before we get to that point.
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Astounded
Jul 10, 2009 5:30 AM CST
USNWR became prominent in ranking colleges adn graduate schools because they were the first to competently occupy the field. The filed for law firm rankings is already well occupied. Between Vault (prestige), Chambers (reputation by specialty) and US Legal 500(reputation by specialty) the top 500 to 1000 law firms and the best in any state for most areas are already well defined and covered. How does USNWR expect to compete when Chambers has been ranking firms for years.
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Jason
Jul 10, 2009 6:21 AM CST
These rankings don’t mean anything. They are bought just like the law school ones. If you want a high ranking you just need to wine and dine the right people. I have no faith in them and will not use them.
Hopefully, they will include the average billable rate per attorney so I can use it as a referrence guide for which firms not to use because they charge to much.
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B. McLeod
Jul 10, 2009 7:17 AM CST
Maybe they will just go by which ones have the most listings in “Best Lawyers” and “Super Lawyers” publications.
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fed gov't employee
Jul 10, 2009 8:38 AM CST
It will be fun to watch the 2nd, 3rd and 4th tier law firms scramble and sputter to explain their rankings ... and it will also help those firms recognize that the law SCHOOL rankings are equally as flawed.
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Kalifornia Arnold
Jul 10, 2009 9:11 AM CST
I would tender a joke here but the USNWR rankings and whatever rationale purports to be behind the published “results” speaks for themselves (‘RES IPSA” to coin a phrase)
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Dan K.
Jul 10, 2009 9:19 AM CST
Good. Hopefully this will be the end of law school rankings. As law firm partners see how arbitrary and ridiculous the law firm rankings are, hopefully a light bulb will go off in their head and they’ll realize the same is true of the school rankings.
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sumppump
Jul 10, 2009 2:42 PM CST
#10
Hate to say it, but I doubt that you are correct - Note how long it took for biglaw to realize (and Im not sure it does yet) that the lockstep/ Cravath compensation method for associates was a crock. It took a global economic meltdown and the implosion of a number of firms. If it has the “Chivas Regal effect” and appears to covey clout and prestige they will lick it off the floor of a public rest room.
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