A ranking from Chambers and Partners is among the most sought-after and trusted accolades in the legal profession, given the company’s long history, global reach, and significant brand recognition. However, knowing how to attain or improve a ranking can be challenging – especially if your position has remained static despite years of engagement with the Chambers research process.
Chambers does offer solutions to this problem, front and centre being Insight, which it claims will provide you with “tailored guidance to improve your firm’s rankings.” This sounds promising, but what can you expect if you buy?
Let’s talk about this product in this forthcoming series of articles, starting with what an Insight report actually is and contains. Join me for the insight scoop.
What is Insight?
Insight is a bespoke, paid-for online business report that aims to give firms a clearer understanding of their performance in current research and, by extension, the rationale behind Chambers’ ranking decisions.
Firms can choose to purchase by guide and practice area, allowing them to tailor the size and focus of their order. For example, a firm could get a report on its entire practice, or on just the tables it wants to improve in, or on something in between.
Reports come in two varieties: the Client and Market Intelligence (CMI) report and the Client Intelligence (CI) report. But what is the difference in terms of content?
In short, the CMI has two main features a CI lacks: peer feedback and analysis of up to three other firms in the table in question. While these analyses do not divulge confidential information, they should shed light on what competitors are doing to earn their rankings.
What is included in an Insight report?
For the overall team:
For individuals who this year have or have lost a ranking or an internal Potential designation:
For individuals without a ranking in the last 2+ years:
*Please note, these features are new additions for Europe 2025 and beyond. As a result, there might be a bedding-in period while Chambers builds up the data sets that power them. Certain features might not initially be included in the final version of the Insight report if they are drawing on incomplete data sets.
Which one is right for me?
The choice of report type – or whether even to buy at all – will be a personal decision, informed by your department’s goals, budget, and intentions for the report. However, here are some possible uses and benefits for both products.
- Gain an understanding of what Chambers thinks are your team’s and individuals’ strengths and weaknesses. Understanding how Chambers views your performance can help you pinpoint and address perceived areas of weakness.
- Find out how your department might improve its performance. An Insight report’s recommendations for improvement can shed light on perceived successes or shortcomings in your work highlights and client response. Knowing this might provide clear pathways to stronger performances.
- See what clients are saying about your team and individuals. Feedback is anonymised, allowing clients to speak honestly and openly about their experiences and opinions. These comments highlight aspects of the service that clients highly value and areas they think could do with addressing. By knowing what clients think, you can enhance your offering.
- Obtain quotes for marketing purposes. As long as firms credit Chambers as the source, they can use any of the quotes in their Insight report for marketing, as testaments to their service standard.
CMI only
- Learn what the market thinks. Insight into how other firms perceive your practice might give you a better idea of how to market yourself to ensure you are always putting your best foot forward.
- Understand what competitors are doing differently or similarly. The analysis of other firms should shed light on what makes groups in higher tiers stand out. This can offer deeper insight into the factors underpinning these higher rankings.
Conclusion
Chambers offers two types of bespoke report for firms seeking to improve their rankings. Both the CI and the CMI provide insight into team and individual performances across Chambers’ research metrics and offer recommendations for improvement. However, the CMI goes further, for an added financial cost, providing customers with feedback from wider market sources and analysis of competitors’ strengths.
Neither report is necessary to attain or improve a Chambers ranking, but both can be a useful addition to a firm’s submission toolkit. By finding out what research thinks of your performance and where you are falling short, you can work to address these perceived weaknesses and present your practice to Chambers in the best light, which could in turn lead to progress within the guides.
About the Author: Robert Charters is a Legal Directories Editor at Tier One Rankings with a decade of experience as an editor and Principal Research Specialist on Chambers Insight.