Within the 成人VR视频 Institute, we鈥檝e noticed when speaking to law firm leaders, that most of what they talk about taking up their attention relates to law firm economics, talent recruitment and retention, and the like. This makes us curious: Is this just what is top of mind for firm leaders? Or, has it permeated down into how they interact with their clients? More specifically, how are law firm leaders and their top lawyers seeking out and hearing the voices of their clients?

You can access , featuring a discussion with 成人VR视频鈥� Lizzy Duffy, here.

Over the past two years or so, lawyers have not been traveling to see their clients nearly as often as they did before the pandemic times. Without the same cadence of in-person meetings and check-ins that would have happened in the past, a key means by which lawyers connect with their clients is diminished. Thus, efforts to truly hear and understand the voice of the client need to be more intentional as law firms must proactively seek out their clients鈥� thoughts and attitudes. That likely means some sort of formal client feedback program.

But what does a formal program look like? And how does it run?

聽available on the聽 channel, we invited Elizabeth Duffy, Senior Director of Global Client Services at the 成人VR视频 Institute, to help shed some light on these questions. Duffy leads a team of subject matter experts who are responsible for delivering insights to law firms and legal departments, helping to connect the dots between the data and their business.

Duffy also regularly leads custom research projects including client review and thought leadership programs and presents research results to the management boards and partnerships of Am Law 50 firms.

In our podcast, we discuss how prevalent client feedback programs are among law firms, why more firms aren鈥檛 employing proactive efforts to engage their clients for frequent feedback, and why feedback even really matters. Duffy also shares with us how a robust and meaningful feedback program can create a competitive advantage for firms, something that is likely to become much more important as the legal markets return to its pre-pandemic existence.

In this old-yet-new-again atmosphere, the legal market has matured with little 鈥渘et new鈥� demand, but the possibility of a lot of work shifting between firms. In such a market, clients are looking to shift work toward law firms that can consistently deliver good value relative to what clients are being asked to spend.

And how can a law firm understand the value they deliver to the client if they鈥檙e not asking the client what they value and how the firm is performing?

As Duffy says in the podcast, there is no bad time to begin an intentional and thoughtful effort at client feedback. Those law firms that already have begun the effort, or those that make the quickest move to do so now 鈥� they will be the ones that benefit the most from what they learn.

For more on building a client feedback program within your firm, view the new webinar here.

In a new blog series, , we will examine the data pointing to several strategies that law firms can pursue to increase their bottom line

As law firms worldwide try to move past the deepest impacts of the pandemic, many are looking for ways to use the lessons of the recent crisis to create improved work strategies that will reflect the value they place on their best lawyers.

To this end, firms will go to great lengths to determine which professional attributes are viewed most highly by clients in the lawyers they hire; however, this leaves one side of the equation unanswered: What are the most valuable attributes that lawyers see within themselves?

To provide a better answer to this, 成人VR视频鈥� recent legal talent research illuminated several pathways that law firms can follow to arrive at a successful talent strategy in the post-pandemic era, including determining and enhancing the value of their top lawyers. Our market research study takes an in-depth look at more than 2,400 stand-out lawyers 鈥� those nominated as such by clients in 成人VR视频鈥� ongoing, randomly sampled global 鈥� and what makes them stand out in clients鈥� minds.

Previously, we saw how having just three stand-out lawyers on a firm鈥檚 roster can make a great deal of difference to clients and can lead to a four-fold increase in the portion of clients鈥� legal spend the firm might gain. The research also revealed a lot of characteristics about stand-out lawyers themselves, including what can push them to leave their current firms, what can be done to retain them, and how engagement, culture, and compensation can make a great deal of difference in firms鈥� retention efforts.

What makes a stand-out lawyer stand out?

To get a better idea of the question of a stand-out lawyer鈥檚 value, firms usually first seek to ascertain what makes those particular lawyers stand-out in the minds of clients. More revealing, however, may be determining whether these are the same high-quality characteristics these lawyers see within themselves.

Clients tend to view their stand-out lawyers as valuable if they can offer proactive, business-savvy advice; deliver exceptional client service; and integrate well within the client鈥檚 current legal team. And while the results are similar to that of clients, stand-out lawyers鈥� views of their own ability differ in emphasis in that they are most likely to believe that service factors strongly drive their stand-out status.

In our recent survey, almost two-thirds (64%) of stand-out lawyers said it was their service ability 鈥� specifically around areas of responsiveness, service quality, and communications 鈥� that made them stand out in their clients鈥� minds. In fact, that response rose eight percentage points compared to last year鈥檚 survey, a greater climb than any other response.

Interestingly, attributes such as having a strong business acumen and keen legal expertise were ranked much lower 鈥� 49% and 38%, respectively, than was service, even though clients themselves ranked these attributes much higher when naming stand-out lawyers. It is also worth noting that having a close relationship with the client was cited by 56% of stand-out lawyers as a reason for their status; however, that response dropped by five percentage points since last year.

There is likely a logical reason for all this. Lawyers, even those with highly regarded expertise and skill, are surrounded every day by other technical experts and legal specialists. Thus, they are much less likely than their clients to perceive their legal expertise as the source of their unique value. Rather, they see their ability to deliver beyond the core technical offering 鈥� excelling on service and relationship factors 鈥� as what sets them apart.

As stand-out lawyers strive to give clients more beyond clients鈥� expected norm of technical expertise, the lawyers begin to expand their own horizons by, for example, moving into areas of specialized knowledge.

According to these lawyers, this growing shift in the importance of their service factors reflects clients鈥� expectations in the post-pandemic world, as stand-out lawyers are generally very well-tuned to what matters most to their clients and must continually adapt to accommodate changes in demand.

If you examine these lawyers鈥� perception deeper, it sheds some interesting light on what lawyers themselves see as is expected of them as lawyers, and where, in their minds, their true value lies. As stand-out lawyers strive to give clients more beyond clients鈥� expected norm of technical expertise, the lawyers begin to expand their own horizons by, for example, moving into areas of specialized knowledge.

It makes sense. By seeing their technical and legal expertise as mere table stakes, at least among other lawyers, stand-out lawyers are striving for more 鈥� honing their existing skills and acquiring additional abilities 鈥� in order to better serve their clients. This then creates a mutually beneficial relationship between client and lawyer that serves both sides well.

But what does this mean for law firms? These survey results should give law firms a great starting point to better understand the qualities that they should seek and nurture as they hire and retain what clients see as the most-valued types of lawyers. In addition, it would be wise for firm leaders to better understand where their lawyers see their own value, and then offer ways in which they can enhance or expand that value.

Pursuing a strategy such as this would allow law firms to join in on this beneficial relationship by giving clients more of the kind of lawyers they want, while pushing their best lawyers to make themselves even better.

You can learn more about how your firm can better understand the value of its stand-out lawyers as part of its , here.

In the legal industry, this compulsion was keenly felt. And now, many law firms and other legal organizations are looking to use the lessons of the pandemic to forge post-pandemic work strategies that will elevate their employees while increasing efficiency and enhancing effectiveness.

Stellar Performance 2022: A Survey of Stand-out Talent is the 6^th annual report published by 成人VR视频, which closely examines law firms鈥� talent strategy in the post-pandemic era.

The report takes an in-depth look at what the state of stand-out talent looks like, what can push stand-out lawyers to leave their current firms, and what can be done to retain them. Further, the report explores how engagement, culture, and compensation can each impact firms鈥� talent strategy.

This report discusses the findings of a self-completed web survey, distributed to lawyers who were nominated as stand-out lawyers in 成人VR视频鈥� ongoing, randomly sampled Sharplegal survey of clients. This year, 2,457 stand-out lawyers responded to the survey 鈥� 89% of whom were law firm partners.

Using this input, the report lays out key talent challenges faced by law firms today and how firms might best address them. For example, the report notes that even as virtual client relationship management has become commonplace, most law firms are finding it much harder than before to connect with new prospects due to the continued absence of in-person networking and business development opportunities.

This clearly indicates that it鈥檚 more important for firms today to leverage existing client relationships, and the report also shows one way that can be accomplished. Having three or more stand-out lawyers on a team can make a big impact on how much of current clients鈥� legal spend goes to that firm. That means even as virtual client relationship management may still hold clout, a firm looking to boost its revenue from established clients should ensure that its bank of stand-out lawyers is visible across the client accounts that have the strongest growth potential.

If you would like to gain a deeper understanding of talent strategy, please request 成人VR视频’ full Stellar Performance report and find out how our Market Insights research can help your firm refine its strategic decisions.

The report also suggests ways that firm management and colleagues can focus on recognition and appreciation of the efforts and contributions made by individual lawyers. Indeed, each lawyer within the firm can act on this initiative by informally acknowledging the work of their colleagues on both a day-to-day basis and for more substantial achievements. Seemingly small changes 鈥� even a simple, Thank you! 鈥斅� when replicated by many individuals across the firm, can build a positive culture of change that鈥檚 capable of making a big impact.

Other key findings in this year鈥檚 report include:

• • • Law firms need to be on guard against high lawyer turnover, especially among new associates 鈥� The report states that associates are at especially high flight risk right now. And while the associates surveyed told us that compensation is their main concern, our research shows that a host of other cultural factors 鈥� such as flexible working schedules, better communication and engagement, and support for mental well-being 鈥� also contribute to better associate retention.
    • Firm leaders should work to boost connections with colleagues in hybrid work environments 鈥� At firm-wide level, firm and team leaders should seek opportunities to bring all colleagues together in new and innovative ways both formally and informally. Leaders may have to reconsider firm values and determine whether they should consult the workforce on a potential refresh to better reflect the new working norms caused by the pandemic. Importantly, the report notes that everyone should be particularly conscious of the differing needs of more junior lawyers who may have missed out on the level of feedback and mentoring available to their predecessors in pre-pandemic times.
    • Firms should not overlook the role leadership and strategy plays in retention 鈥� The manner in which law firm leaders and managers interact with lawyers is critical in those lawyers鈥� decision to either leave or stay with their firms. Firms should genuinely engage with lawyers at all levels to ensure their top talent doesn鈥檛 look elsewhere.
    • Firm culture is critical to lawyer engagement and job satisfaction 鈥� The overall tenor of working life, whether it鈥檚 feeling included and visible, or being treated in a manner that鈥檚 friendly and respectful, as well as clearly defined opportunities for career progression, advancement, and professional growth are all strong contributors to higher employee engagement among stand-out lawyers, the report shows. In order to maintain an engaged workforce and defend against other firms poaching their stand-out talent, firms need to ensure that the foundations of a good work culture are present.
    • Lawyer compensation is rapidly increasing, and firms should have a plan for this 鈥� The report notes an overall 16% increase in mean annual compensation among lawyers. For firms to remain competitive in the compensation packages that they offer, firms must measure their own evaluations and craft a clear strategy, especially in today鈥檚 hot market for legal talent.

Finally, the report reminds law firm leaders that every lawyer at every level can contribute to the success of the firm by playing an active role in creating a culture that identifies, attracts, nurtures, and retains stand-out talent.

You can download your copy of the Executive Summary of the 成人VR视频鈥� 鈥淪tellar Performance 2022: A Survey of Stand-out Talent鈥� report below:

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Further, UK law firms are seeing the legal needs of their corporate clients shift and evolve as well, a process that started even before the pandemic crisis. Indeed, even as the pandemic crisis ebbs, law firms need to demonstrate new skills and levels of efficiency to meet clients鈥� increasing demands.

A new report, State of the UK Legal Market 2022, from the 成人VR视频 Institute, examines the UK legal ecosystem and sees how many of the main trends and developments that occurred in 2021 were 鈥� not surprisingly 鈥� strongly client-centric and client-driven, from a move toward increased legal spending to what clients want to see from their external firms in terms of expertise, tech-savviness, and efficiency.

UK clients are willing to spend

In terms of legal spending, the report shows that the UK legal market is experiencing its highest level of spend optimism of the last five years. Indeed, the percentage of UK legal buyers saying they鈥檙e anticipating growth in their overall legal spend in the coming months saw a huge increase, especially in practice areas like regulatory.

That means, the report advises, that UK law firms need to target their service offerings to clients to best address the areas in which clients are indicating they most need assistance in order to capture a larger share of this spending.

After having bounced back strongly in 2021, the UK legal market is poised for continued growth this year, even as challenges for law firms remain and their clients鈥� legal needs continue to evolve, the report shows.

In fact, the report shows that legal demand among global law firms with operations in the UK (admittedly, just a slice of the overall UK legal market), grew 8.7% in 2021 compared with 2020, and was even up 6% compared with 2019 鈥� the last pre-pandemic year. Given this, UK law firms would be wise to keep a strong focus on their clients鈥� strategic priorities, engage those drivers that most impact client favorability, and meet client expectations in the delivery of legal services, the report explains.

For example, the report shows how UK-based corporate law departments are primarily concerned with helping their organizations recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, staying on top of the rapidly changing regulatory landscape (due mostly to Brexit), and leveraging a digital strategy in order to work more efficiently. To this end, UK law firms need to present themselves as capable, proactive partners that can help these law departments deliver on these goals.

As the report illustrates, UK legal buyers continue favoring those outside law firms that demonstrate a deep understanding of clients鈥� businesses and advanced technical acumen. Not surprisingly, client satisfaction rests on the ability of outside law firms to provide this kind of consistency and innovation.

The report also discusses the environment of new law firms or alternative legal service providers and how their use has grown within the UK legal market. That means traditional UK law firms need to be wary of this development and demonstrate their own ability to handle clients鈥� work efficiently and effectively.

鈥淎fter having bounced back strongly in 2021, the UK legal market is poised for continued growth this year,鈥� says Lucinda Case, head of Legal Professionals Europe for 成人VR视频, adding that businesses are anticipating an increased need for legal services such as regulatory work, mergers & acquisitions, and labor & employment. 鈥淭hose UK law firms that emphasize a holistic approach that focuses on thoroughly understanding a client鈥檚 business and applying proactive legal service supported by efficiency-enhancing technologies are likely to be most sought after by clients.鈥�

The State of the UK Legal Market 2022 report combines research of more than 265 senior corporate counsel and the financial results of 29 global law firms operations within the UK.

You can see the full digital version of the 成人VR视频 Institute鈥檚 State of the UK Legal Market 2022 report here.

As corporations鈥� responses continue to evolve moving forward in 2022, there is appetite and readiness for even greater transformation pulsing throughout the different industry, organizational, departmental, and individual levels. Where 2020 and 2021 saw the emergence of new ways of working rapidly imposed because of the pandemic, 2022 looks to offer the law departments the opportunity to embed entirely new dynamics.

Not surprisingly, then 43% of those corporate law department leaders surveyed in a new report said they expect their departments鈥� total legal spend to increase in the coming 12 months, as opposed to just 21% that said they were anticipating a reduction in spending. This is the strongest indication to date of a significant upturn in the level of legal expenditure that the survey has tracked over the last decade.

In 成人VR视频鈥� just-published report, we examine how the most successful law departments will be those that leverage the momentum of the past two years to actively embrace transformative change, in how they integrate and operate both within their organization and in utilizing outside legal expertise.

As corporations鈥� responses continue to evolve moving forward in 2022, there is appetite and readiness for even greater transformation pulsing throughout the different industry, organizational, departmental, and individual levels.

鈥淐orporate law department leaders continue to navigate their organizations through a global pandemic and increased global uncertainty and market disruptions,鈥� said Hillary McNally, general manager in Corporates for 成人VR视频.聽 鈥淭he relationship between the in-house team and the outside counsel remains important, with three themes rising to the surface for better partnership 鈥� pricing, scoping and project management.鈥�

The report was compiled by looking at benchmarking data and anecdotal interviews through three key data sources, including 成人VR视频 Sharplegal; the Stellar Performance research panels; and the 成人VR视频 Legal Department Operations Index.

Top law department priorities

The report highlights the key factors that corporate law department leaders identified as their top priorities for the coming 12 months. Interestingly, much of this list is unchanged from last year鈥檚 report, despite the extreme turbulence for corporations worldwide, perhaps indicating departments鈥� desire for stability and a focus on core duties as the world comes out (slowly) from the pandemic crisis.

Looking at the data in the report, it鈥檚 clear that the long-standing purpose of a corporation鈥檚 law department 鈥� to safeguard the business from risk and legal trouble 鈥� was still high on many leaders list, with 46% of leaders citing this as a top priority. However, a slightly higher number of survey respondents cited efficiency as a stronger priority for the department. Again, this could be a reflection of the pressure many corporate law departments are feeling from the company itself to be more efficient and cost-effective in its delivery of legal services to the business.

Another highly ranked 鈥� and very similar 鈥� priority was the ability for the department to deliver work effectively even in the face of challenges. Given this, report brings into focus what has become the two pillars among top departmental priorities 鈥� the efficient and effective delivery of legal work 鈥� that in fact, support the rest, especially the enduring function of safeguarding the business.

In addition to the data analysis of the survey responses, the report will provide insight to corporate law departments and their leaders that will help them with several analytical and innovative exercises themselves. For example, the report will allow departments to benchmark key metrics, such as their legal spend and team size, against the latest peer data. The report will also allow leaders to see how other departments and their teams are optimizing their legal systems and work processes in order to drive greater efficiency for their organizations.

Finally, the report provides an understanding of how other corporate law departments are implementing transformational change within their own departments, allowing other forward-thinking department leaders and team members to better innovate their departments to prepare for the future.

You can download 成人VR视频鈥� report, here.

In the corporate world, strategic priorities set the stage for this kind of goal setting. So where are corporate law departments focusing this year?

In our annual study of the legal market, we asked roughly 400 law department leaders to tell us about the key strategic objectives and challenges their departments were facing. We wanted to go beyond specific legal matters to help us understand where law department leaders are turning their focus in the year ahead.

We discerned four main areas on which department leaders indicated they were focused. These included providing an effective delivery of legal work, doing so efficiently, proactively safeguarding against risk, and investing in the talent development of the legal team for the long term.鈥�

Efficiency of operations

Half (50%) of our law department respondents were clear that efficiency is their number one priority. This means managing the growing pressure from the business to handle or reduce costs without compromising the department鈥檚 ability to deliver quality legal service even in the face of an increasing workload. For many, the pressure to do more with less has pushed them more quickly toward technology solutions and digitalizing operations while others focus on driving more efficient operations and processes.

One respondent cited the challenge of catching up with the digital era and modernizing how the department does its work. 鈥淚 mean getting on board with e-billing, internal matter management systems 鈥� we really need to evolve to become more modern,鈥� they said. 鈥淲hich often means just using the technology that’s there that, but we aren’t using.鈥�

Safeguarding the business from risk

Almost half (46%) of respondents said they are focused on protecting the organization from risk 鈥� much of which comes in the form of an almost constantly shifting regulatory and compliance landscape.

For a global corporation operating across many jurisdictions, the first question often is how to keep up with changing regulations across multiple geographies? And second, how to communicate the implications of those changes to the wider business?

Besides complex and changing regulations, many corporations are still dealing with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their business, while others are trying to avoid the risk of litigation by anticipating and mitigating such risks preemptively. And of course, cybersecurity and data security are also high on the list of concerns for many law departments.

Safeguarding the business as a category of concern has increased the most since 2019, with the pandemic introducing risks that were not present two years ago.

鈥淭he challenge nowadays is, for lack of a better word, the regional regulatory madness,鈥� said one survey respondent who works in the law department at a retail company in Spain. 鈥淓very day there are new regional regulations, and we are the ones responsible for keeping the entire organization updated with each regulation because it affects us.鈥�

Effective delivery of legal work

The next most frequently mentioned area by more than one-third of respondents (39%) is how their law department can adapt to the new and dynamic set of external pressures to continue running the legal function as effectively as possible.

Some businesses found new growth opportunities in the pandemic. The digitalization of services due to remote working and lockdowns meant growth for a lot of tech companies, for example, so the big challenge facing their law departments is rapidly scaling the activity of the department itself.

Another area of focus is improving the聽level聽of integration between the law department and the rest of the business so that the department can become an enabler of the business鈥檚 overall strategy.

Interestingly, factors relating to the effectiveness of the law department have been mentioned less often in 2021, but it is still a concern for about two-in-every-five department leaders as they seek to meet their companies鈥� strategic goals and facilitate business growth.

鈥淏ecause we just merged, [the challenge] is integration,鈥� said one department leader at a U.S.-based engineering company. 鈥淭he current legal function in the two firms is critical, so supporting the day-to-day operation internally with basic needs of the organization, trying to understand what’s needed, and then being responsive.鈥�

Talent development

The fourth area, mentioned by a smaller group (14%) is all about developing and retaining talent. As we experience the Great Resignation spurred on by much reflection by individuals on their position in life, at work, and in their careers, employers have been forced to think hard and long about their talent strategy and how best to attract, retain, and develop the right people and skills in-house for the longer term.

Talent is another issue that is occupying minds of general counsel more now than two years ago as the pandemic has transformed the way we work. Here, the priorities are to attract and retain high quality talent, to manage a transition to hybrid working as a more permanent feature of work life, and to ensure good collaboration across the team.

鈥淐oming out of the pandemic there are people who are stepping back, moving away, and moving on, so retention and recruitment are the other priorities,鈥� said one survey respondent. 鈥淚t has been a tough year in that regard 鈥� you’re trying to keep the hearts and minds of people globally when you can’t see them. I meet with them regularly, but the opportunism from other companies is taking its toll.鈥�

Next in this series: Mind the gap! The mismatch between what corporate law departments are trying to achieve and what they are measuring

So, law firms need to set a strategy that is built on their strengths and informed by objective, comprehensive market intelligence. This will show the direction of travel for their clients and how the firm can best adapt to any directional change. Firm leaders need to execute on this strategy while keeping close check on progress and contributing objectives. Over time, say in three to five years, the firm should see results.

成人VR视频鈥� newly published 12th annual Global Elite Law Firm Brand Index 2022 shows how law firms that set these longer term strategies, while keeping their clients鈥� needs as a North Star, have best navigated the still-choppy waters of the legal environment in 2022.

Indeed, the shifts in client sentiment during the pandemic led to some suddenly turning their back on their most trusted high-reputation lawyers 鈥� at least in the short-term 鈥� were the kind of temporary change that can elevate or damage of a brand visibly, even within a 12-month cycle 鈥� depending, of course, on relevance of the firm鈥檚 strategy to its clients at that time.

Finding the way that works for your firm

There is no one formula for success. Some law firms have gained above-average levels of favorability for providing great quality expertise at a good value; others are doubling down on key practice strengths like M&A and accepting no low-ball work offers. Still, what works for one firm won鈥檛 necessarily work for another, and what makes one firm different could be its very own superpower. So, while it鈥檚 important to keep close check on your competition, it鈥檚 not a winning game to try to emulate them too closely either.

Looking ahead then, where is the greatest growth opportunity for law firms?

First, firms would be wise to pay attention to two key practice areas, based on clients鈥� legal spend projections. M&A saw the biggest shift in terms of predicted growth over the last 12 months, so we expect this area to continue to provide a brand boost for those law firms that can demonstrate their strength in M&A. Also, regulatory work is the area of legal budget expected to see the greatest increase this year, according to our research. Regulatory work is a very fragmented practice area because the work type is so specific to each client, depending on their business, industry sector, and geographic footprint as international companies have to comply with local regulators in multiple markets, not all of which have a consistent approach.

You can download a copy of the Global Elite Law Firm Brand Index 2022 here, and 听丑别谤别.

Second, all law firms would benefit from building a brand that will be relevant and differentiating in 10 years鈥� time. More than a decade of research has shown us increasing levels of client satisfaction 鈥� law firms seem to be doing a better job at pleasing clients. And, as the bar rises, clients鈥� expectations are increasing around how they will be serviced. High levels of satisfaction with factors like Quality of advice, Speed of response, Communication and even Business understanding are becoming the norm, which unfortunately decreases the opportunity for a firm to stand out by doing a particularly good job in that area.

Innovation and Value are the only two aspects of service (out of the 12 that we measure) in which we see a gap in the market. Few firms get high scores in these areas, yet both are important to client relationships. And as corporate law departments come to rely more on external counsel, value in particular will become even more important.

Proactive risk mitigation and Cost/value control also represent key strategic focus areas for clients. Unfortunately, our research shows that these areas are also where clients say their law firms are not landing coordinated, innovative solutions. As a result, clients are not waiting for firms to catch up 鈥� they increasingly are building their own mechanisms to control, monitor, and assess spend and efficiency of legal service delivery.

Keeping client communication open

So, what can firms do to address this? The number one way is to talk to your legal clients. Firms should ask clients what they are anticipating for the year ahead. What are their greatest challenges and strategic priorities? What is most important to them in the working relationship, and how best you can support them in issues big and small? What does value mean to your clients? Gathering all of this insight can deliver the data that law firms need in order to make good decisions about where to invest their resources, time, and talent.

While our research shows us that legal spend is on the rise with unprecedented predictions of growth, firms will have to undertake careful targeting of clients and be strategic about where to focus efforts in order to capture that increased spend. Identifying which clients or segments on which to focus and where return is expected to be greatest for the effort required are not easy tasks. Nor is assembling a team that draws expertise from across disciplines and geographies, and collaborating effectively across this team and with clients.

Yet, for the best chance of success, law firms need up-to-date reliable intelligence about their clients and market. More importantly, firms need to act on this knowledge and use it to inform, shape, and adjust their strategy.

As the new Global Elite Law Firm Brand Index shows, the strong connection between brand strategy and client service strategy is undeniable, and those firms that execute well on their legal service delivery strategy also will continue to strengthen their brand in the minds of their clients.

And within the legal industry, that proved to be especially true. As many clients sought out their most trusted legal advisors during the crisis, strong relationships, favorability, and brand awareness continued to be viewed as critically important.

成人VR视频鈥� newly published 12th annual Global Elite Law Firm Brand Index 2022 shows that those law firms that clients most strongly associate with M&A and those which were among the most favored by clients saw the most growth in this year鈥檚 Index. (You can download the full report below.)

You can read further analysis of the Global Elite Law Firm Brand Index 2022 here, and here.

The Global Law Firm Brand Index score for each law firm was based on four different measures related to how legal clients choose law firms for work. Two of the measures 鈥� Top-of-mind awareness and Favorability 鈥� relate directly to a client鈥檚 perception of a law firm鈥檚 brand, and, as our research has shown, are the first steps in determining which law firms will be selected for client work. The other two measures 鈥� Consideration for multi-jurisdictional litigation and Consideration for multi-jurisdictional deals 鈥� illustrate the importance of law firms being global in scope and able to handle a wide variety of legal matters in multiple jurisdictions.

鈥淟ooking at this year鈥檚 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,鈥� says Elizabeth Duffy, Senior Director of Global Client Services at 成人VR视频. Five of the seven fastest growing law firm brands showed above-average consideration levels for multi-jurisdictional deals, Duffy notes, and it is the strength of their brand for M&A that has truly elevated their overall Brand Index position this year. Another two of the fastest growing brands this year have above-average levels of favorability, indicating a close alignment between these firms鈥� client offerings and the drivers of legal service demand.

鈥淚n 2021, as businesses emerged from the crisis, legal service buying patterns focus on forward-facing factors like understanding the client鈥檚 business and knowledge of their sector,鈥� Duffy explains. 鈥淎nd we still see clients prioritizing specialist expertise over historical relationships or reputation.鈥�

In this year鈥檚 index, Baker McKenzie continues to hold the top spot, marking its dominance for the 12th consecutive year ever since the Index was first launched. DLA Piper, which moved into second place in 2020, continued to hold that spot, even nudging slightly closer to Baker McKenzie in this year鈥檚 Index.

The first big movement among the top firms occurred as Clifford Chance became the third-strongest global brand, raising its Brand Index score 9 points and elevating itself from a fifth-place tie in the 2021 Index. Dentons, in fourth place, has been one of the biggest rising legal brands over the past decade, breaking into the top 10 in last year鈥檚 Index and further increasing its Index score again this year. Only one new firm joined the Global Elite Law Firm top 20 this year, Gibson Dunn.

You can download the 成人VR视频 Global Elite Law Firm Brand Index 2022 report here:

If you look at the top 10 most-read blog posts on the 成人VR视频 Institute blog 鈥� a platform that covers those professional industries as well as courts, academia, risk & security, and talent 鈥� you can see several themes emerge that strongly attracted readers in 2021 and may offer a clue to the hot topics of 2022.

Cryptocurrency

The ups and downs of the crypto market were seemingly on everyone鈥檚 minds in 2021. The top two most-read blog posts of the year involved crypto issues, including a thought piece by Paul Marrinan, Head of Investigations at Inca Digital, about the fork in the road faced by cryptocurrency and whether it will pursue a fraudulent path populated by scammers or whether it will become a pillar of decentralized finance.

Also, a special report on the growth of cryptocurrencies around the world and how different jurisdictions are seeking to regulate them, which featured a global map identifying the regulatory 鈥渉ot spots鈥� in the crypto-realm, was also very popular with readers. Compiled by 成人VR视频鈥� Senior Regulatory Intelligence Experts Susannah Hammond and Todd Ehret, the report is due to be updated in the months ahead as cryptocurrencies continue to be a most talked about topic.

Supply chain

Keith Haurie, Vice President of Business Development for ONESOURCE Global Trade Management in the Tax & Accounting unit of 成人VR视频, wrote a timely piece that described how data analytics is transforming supply chain management, an issue that is only gaining more steam as supply chain disruptions continue to plague companies, consumers, and governments around the world. Indeed, if data analytics or any other solution can help ease this problem, as Haurie suggests, it would be most welcome.

Similarly, an informative piece by Paul Horowitz, Senior Legal Editor at 成人VR视频 Practical Law, that outlined how the 2022 tariff schedule will reflect new product streams and global environmental & social issues provided an in-depth look at how trade and taxation will be adapting to the new realities of 2022 as environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) issues continue to command a great importance and a greater share of our readers鈥� attention.

Future tech

成人VR视频鈥� resident Technologist & Futurist, Joseph Raczynski, wrote a couple of far-looking pieces that resounded with readers. First, his piece on Decentralized Finance asked how close we were to a truly bankless society; and another offering, describing the concept of the Metaverse and how it may impact the legal industry were both big reader favorites.

Market insight reports

As always, the proprietary reports complied by the 成人VR视频 Institute from data drawn from its resources like Peer Monitor or Sharplegal, were extremely popular, including its annual and the Legal Department Operations Index. However, one stand-out among these reports 鈥� at least in readers鈥� eyes 鈥� was the mid-year Stand-Out Lawyers survey, which detailed how top lawyers still harbor some deep concerns about their role in the post-pandemic legal environment.

ESG

As mentioned earlier, key issues of environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) concern are strongly resonating with corporations, and with their legal teams, tax teams, and outside law firms, as well as with other organizations. Nadya Britton, manager for Tax & Accounting content at 成人VR视频 Institute, penned a piece earlier in the year that pointed out exactly why ESG issues should be of great interest to corporate tax departments and what corporate tax team leaders need to understand to better handle these issues.

On the law firm side of things, Natalie Runyon, Director of Talent, Culture & Inclusion Content, wrote that ESG and the increase in legal clients鈥� need for transparency around these issues has pushed law firms to create new sustainability practice areas, which are likely to be source of continued investment in 2022 and beyond.

Legal marijuana

Finally, rounding out our Top 10, was Gina Jurva鈥檚 look at what increasing marijuana legalization means for those financial institutions that seek to serve marijuana distributors, growers, and retailers. As Jurva, manager for Corporate & Government content at 成人VR视频 Institute, points out, as more states legalize marijuana use, many state-based banks could see a boom in marijuana-related businesses seeking their services.

We appreciate all our readers devotion over the past year, as turbulent as it often seemed, and we look forward to serving up content that enlightens, informs, and challenges in 2022.