Tiers of Legal Awards Forum

[Anonymous User]

Let's talk legal awards for a moment. Which ones are actually useful for business development? Which ones are absolutely useless? I put together the below list, but curious if others have any other thoughts, or if I missed any.

The best of the best (if you have this, you're probably (though not definitely) good at what you do):
Chambers

The next tier down (looks nice, might as well list it):
Legal 500
BTI Consulting
Who's Who of Legal

The popularity contest (better than nothing, but that's about it):
Super Lawyers
Best Lawyers

Absolutely useless (why would you pay for an award?):
Anything you have to pay for

[Anonymous User]

I would add the AmLaw yearly rankings to the second tier from the top (e.g., https://www.event.law.com/americanlawye ... 1-honorees). Also, I might recharacterize that second tier. Getting onto (to use my suggestion) an AmLaw list isn't just a "might as well add it"--it's a good indicator about your industry reputation, although I think you're right that Chambers is in its own singular space.

There are also some niche awards that are very practice specific but carry a lot of weight within the individual practice (vs. the rankings you're showing which tend to be national / broadly relevant). E.g., for litigators there's some sort of (I always forget the right name) Trial Lawyers Inn of Court Super Society sort of thing where you have to get elected and it's a good indication that you're an actual elite trial lawyer. I'm guessing there are similar examples in transactional spaces, IP, etc. -- if you know, you know sort of lists.

[Anonymous User]

Put Lawyers of Distinction in the useless category. The mere fact that they reached out to me proves that they use "distinction" ironically.

[Anonymous User]

Let's talk legal awards for a moment. Which ones are actually useful for business development? Which ones are absolutely useless? I put together the below list, but curious if others have any other thoughts, or if I missed any.

The best of the best (if you have this, you're probably (though not definitely) good at what you do):
Chambers

The next tier down (looks nice, might as well list it):
Legal 500
BTI Consulting
Who's Who of Legal

The popularity contest (better than nothing, but that's about it):
Super Lawyers
Best Lawyers

Absolutely useless (why would you pay for an award?):
Anything you have to pay for

I got randomly put without any action on anyones part on super lawyers as a second year listing a practice group I had rotated out of and never worked in, then received automated monthly emails asking me if I wanted to update my profile or download a certificate lol. I think they just randomly add associates at top vault firms to populate their ranks. Would definitely include them in the bottom “meaningless” category,

[Anonymous User]

Super Lawyers is a total joke. My old firm (surprisingly high-end boutique for this sort of behavior, TBQH) used to ensure young partners became "Super Lawyers" by buying a large ad congratulating them on their selection. Totally pay to play if you want it.

[Anonymous User]

I think OP's list is good, but I thought Best Lawyers was more akin to a second tier like Legal 500 and Who's Who is more like third tier/popularity contest.

How does one actually get ranked to Super Lawyers? I've been practicing for over a decade and I'm Chambers/Legal 500/Best Lawyers ranked but have never been Super Lawyers (or Rising Stars) ranked.

[Anonymous User]

Think who’s who is trash. Would not list that on my bio.

[Anonymous User]

BestLawyers "Ones to Watch" is where random large firm associates and junior/fake partners get listed and means even less than SuperLawyers Rising Stars. It seems random, and the abilities of those with this recognition varies wildly.

BestLawyers, however, is otherwise much more credible. It depends on recognized peer review that, unlike SuperLawyers, is committee-vetted and much more selective. I have participated in the peer review process and seen that the volume of nominees is much, much higher than those who end up receiving BestLawyers recognition. The survey questions for panelists are much more in-depth.

[Anonymous User]

Let's talk legal awards for a moment. Which ones are actually useful for business development? Which ones are absolutely useless? I put together the below list, but curious if others have any other thoughts, or if I missed any.

The best of the best (if you have this, you're probably (though not definitely) good at what you do):
Chambers

The next tier down (looks nice, might as well list it):
Legal 500
BTI Consulting
Who's Who of Legal

The popularity contest (better than nothing, but that's about it):
Super Lawyers
Best Lawyers

Absolutely useless (why would you pay for an award?):
Anything you have to pay for

I think for M&A/corporate at least, AmLaw Dealmakers of the Year are very prestigious - maybe at least on par with Chambers and perhaps even higher (just looking at the types of people who make the cut and the deals they worked on)? Also, Law360 MVPs and Rising Stars should be in your "best of the best" tier, in that order of descending prestige. MVPs probably correspond to Senior Statespeople through Band 3/4 in Chambers, while Rising Stars are more likely Band 4, 5, and Up and Coming. Idk where LawDragon 500 should fit, but it's probably similar to Chambers.

[gregfootball2001]

Think who’s who is trash. Would not list that on my bio.

Out of curiosity, what's the reasoning here? We had to submit client referees and such to Who's Who, unlike Super Lawyers and BestLawyers. Would think that puts it mid-tier at least.

[Anonymous User]

Who's Who Legal is not a trash tier.

[2013]

Best Lawyers is a joke. I saw that more than half of the lawyers at a mid tier Florida firm were ranked there.

[Anonymous User]

Who's Who Legal is not a trash tier.

I was the person above calling it trash. Admit my perception may be off and will reevaluate, thanks all.

[jimmythecatdied6]

Why is anyone anon in this thread? Is talking trash about a legal award now a privacy concern?

[2013]

Who's Who Legal is not a trash tier.

I was the person above calling it trash. Admit my perception may be off and will reevaluate, thanks all.

I think you’re thinking of who’s who of high school / college awards, which are trash. Who’s who legal is completely different.

[Pedrolito]

So how does one get listed in Chambers?

[Anonymous User]

So how does one get listed in Chambers?

I can help explain this one a little. The biz dev people for my practice make a submission to Chambers each year. It involves listing the attorneys they are seeking Chambers rankings for, a list and description of transactions/offers/other projects that those attorneys worked on during the last year and then around 5-10 client referees/references. Chambers reviews the submission and reaches out to the client referees for feedback on the applicable attorneys and the practice group as a whole. The attorneys are supposed to reach out to their respective clients to make sure they got the Chambers email and are responsive. Then the next year, Chambers publishes its rankings. Not all of the attorneys that are submitted get ranked, so Chambers is filtering out on their end based on work and/or client feedback.

[Pedrolito]

Thanks!

[nealric]

So how does one get listed in Chambers?

I can help explain this one a little. The biz dev people for my practice make a submission to Chambers each year. It involves listing the attorneys they are seeking Chambers rankings for, a list and description of transactions/offers/other projects that those attorneys worked on during the last year and then around 5-10 client referees/references. Chambers reviews the submission and reaches out to the client referees for feedback on the applicable attorneys and the practice group as a whole. The attorneys are supposed to reach out to their respective clients to make sure they got the Chambers email and are responsive. Then the next year, Chambers publishes its rankings. Not all of the attorneys that are submitted get ranked, so Chambers is filtering out on their end based on work and/or client feedback.

I've been interviewed as a client a few times. It's a pretty informal process on that end. Basically just describe what the lawyer did for you and what were your thoughts about it. Felt like they were just looking for a good quote to stick in the descriptor line. But the folks I've been interviewed about were already featured in Chambers, so at most it was just a question of what band they were going to be put in (which is heavily dependent on the firm name). Basically, if you want to be in Band 1 Chambers, you need to be a partner in a Band 1 firm in that practice area.