Chambers & Co – Improvement with submissions in law firm rankings / directories

It starts with the selection: which rankings, which practice areas, which office locations. We then gather the reference matters, write the matter descriptions, agree the client referees within the permitted limits and file on time. Support continues after filing — researcher queries, interview scheduling, the review once the guide is published. You decide how much sits with us: from a plain strengths-and-weaknesses report on a submission you wrote yourself, through to running the whole process.

With the rankings themselves: nothing. Chambers puts it plainly — “The process is free. There is no cost involved in providing us with submissions.” Costs there arise only for add-on products such as profile pages or plaques, and those have no bearing on the assessment. Our fee depends on scope: how many rankings, how many practice areas, and which of our five service packages you choose. That is why we quote for your specific case rather than publish a flat rate. An initial conversation is free of charge.

Yes — rankings assess the practice group, not the size of the firm. Chambers also makes clear that firm and individual rankings are independent: “Individual lawyers can be ranked while their law firm is not and similarly law firms can be ranked while individual lawyers are not.” A boutique of three lawyers in one clearly defined area is often better placed than a full-service firm spread across twelve. Chambers even runs a dedicated Spotlight guide for smaller and mid-size firms.

That depends on your practice area and where your offices are. For the German-speaking market, Chambers, The Legal 500 and JUVE are the base; in IP, IAM Patent 1000, WTR 1000 and IP STARS come in; in arbitration, GAR; in finance and tax, IFLR1000 and ITR World Tax. Office location matters: Chambers runs a separate Germany guide with its own form, while Austria and Switzerland go through the Europe guide. Firms filing for both complete two different forms.

There is no single annual deadline. Chambers states: “Deadlines depend on guide updates and vary by practice area.” What governs is always the provider’s current research schedule. So that you do not have to check ten providers separately, we maintain every deadline by jurisdiction in our deadlines overview — each one can be added to Outlook or Google Calendar with a single click, with a reminder 30 days before.

Because we have done nothing else since 2004. That is where our benchmark comes from: we know what a matter description has to look like for a researcher to see the work behind it, and where submissions routinely fall short. And we know the individual providers’ forms in detail — what belongs in which field, which entries stay confidential and which are published.