PLC Which lawyer? is regarded worldwide as the essential guide to lawyers and law firms in more than 110 countries. By providing independently researched market intelligence on lawyers active in core commercial practice areas, PLC Which lawyer? has been tracking the most important trends in the legal profession since 1995.
PLC Which lawyer? is intended for use by in-house counsel, lawyers and law firms seeking market information and referral partners in foreign or unfamiliar jurisdictions. Our findings are based on independent research.
PLC Which lawyer? is updated continuously online to reflect the latest market developments. Recommendations also appear in our series of PLC Cross-border Handbooks (www.practicallaw.com/T16), practical guides to the law and leading lawyers around the world in core practice areas.
It is not possible to "buy" a recommendation. All of the PLC Which lawyer? editorial content is researched by our team of experienced editorial staff.
Our research is based on three key factors:
Firm and lawyer track records (via submissions and/or interviews)
Client feedback (drawn from our regular contact with in-house lawyers and client referees provided by firms)
Peer review
At the beginning of each research cycle, we invite firms to send us a submission on all practice areas they wish to be considered for. The main focus of the submission should be on the track record of the firm and its team of lawyers in the particular practice area.
Depending on the level of detail provided in the form, researchers will also follow up with a phone interview to seek further information on key points raised in the submission.
Our submission forms can be found here (www.practicallaw.com/7-386-4261).
We also follow major market, legal and economic developments, and keep track of the advisors on major domestic and cross-border transactions, disputes and projects worldwide.
The general counsels listed in the PLC Law Department Profiles (www.practicallaw.com/2-201-4985), a continually updated database of 6,000+ general counsel contacts around the world, are all given the opportunity to comment on the firms they have instructed worldwide on a regular basis. PLC's intimate relationship with the in-house legal community puts us in a strong position to secure good quality feedback.
We also invite firms to send us client references who will then be contacted during the research process.
We ask in-house legal departments:
what work they outsource
which outside lawyers they instruct
what they think of the legal services outside firms provide to them
During our interviews and meetings with leading lawyers, we will be seeking their views on the market. All feedback is on a confidential basis.
All our researchers adopt practice area focuses for their research. This ensures that they are aware of all relevant cross-border trends affecting a practice/industry area, as well as giving them a more in-depth understanding of the fields they are researching.
If you have any general queries regarding the research, please contact Andre Brown (Head of research).