With every Legal 500 and Chambers launch, social media is naturally flooded with firms celebrating positive developments, namely team promotions and new lawyer rankings, though flying under the radar will, of course, be other practices who received a demotion, failed to obtain a ranking, or were removed from a section.

This can be frustrating for all parties involved, from lawyers to the BD team, particularly as the directories do not automatically communicate the rationale behind every decision to participating firms.

At Tier One Rankings, here are some tips, based on our decades of experience working at the directories, on how to best overcome this frustration and ensure that you put your best foot forward for next year:

Step 1. Conduct An Internal Review

The most common reasons for a demotion/non-ranking are often related to:

• Did your firm provide enough work? Both Chambers and Legal 500 permit a maximum of 20 matters and recommend that you send over the full amount. Firms that send over fewer than a dozen or so matters are unlikely to achieve any positive results, especially if they are currently unranked.
• Did your firm describe the work highlights in sufficient detail? A crucial criterion for both directories is the quality of the work, and this cannot be accurately assessed when firms only write a sentence or two for each matter. If the table was transactional in nature, were enough deal values disclosed? This a crucial gauge for researchers that is often overlooked.
• Did you fail to showcase a broad breadth of work? If, for example, your Commercial, Corporate and M&A submission focused on too many private equity deals, or had an overwhelming number of matters within a specific industry, this could be a likely cause for demotion. The scope of work is one of the most important considerations after the assessment of its quality. Whilst it is important to play to your strengths, the highest ranked firms will be able to showcase their abilities across that practice area.
• Was all the work relevant to the table you submitted for? For example, did you include an abundance of energy/construction/project matters in a real estate submission? This can be double-checked by referring to the respective practice area definitions.
• Did you have any major partner departures? This is a very common reason for demotion, especially if the departing lawyer was ranked on an individual basis- directories may therefore conclude that a team is weaker than previously.
• Did you fail to include enough new instructions? Both directories understand that the most complex matters will span multiple years, but firms should be sure to relay that their practice continues to thrive by providing at least a handful of new instructions. Ongoing matters should also be updated to focus on what has occurred over the last 12 months.
• How was your referee response rate? If it was particularly low, you should certainly consider providing more easily reachable contacts for the next research cycle. Directories such as Chambers offer features such as the Research Management Tool to help keep track of responses.

Step 2. Seek Feedback Internally

Discuss the ranking results with your team, partners, and colleagues. Get their insights and input on where improvements can be made. Were there any changes in the preparation of the submissions these years, and could these have had a detriment on their quality?

Step 3. Check the Editorial for Clues

The editorial produced by directories is often overlooked as a source of information, but it will actually give you a lot of clues about why some law firms are ranked higher than others. Read all the editorial for the practice area and make notes about what type of work is being mentioned the most often. These types of work will be what the directories are value the most. Consider what your teams strengths are vs these areas that get are getting praised. If your practice is already strong in these areas, make sure you are emphasising that work in your next submission. If you are better known for other areas of work, you can build an argument that your team has unique strengths that other ranked firms don’t.

Step 4. Contact the Directories for Feedback

Both Legal 500 and Chambers will provide a limited amount of feedback in most circumstances, which should be enough to point you in the right direction for next year.

A simple sentence such as ‘We felt that your submission focused too heavily on leasing matters, whereas the firms above showed a greater breadth’ can be all you require to better prepare next year’s submission.

Firms who would like a more detailed breakdown will also have the option of purchasing premium products such as Research Plus and Chambers Insight.

Step 5. See the Bigger Picture

The rankings are influenced by various factors and are fundamentally comparative in nature. It may be a case that your submission was just as strong as in previous years, but a number of your competitors improved.

It is worth keeping a tab on the firms above you, especially those who have received promotions, and noting any developments that may have positively influenced their positions e.g., the growth of the team, several standout cases, or increased activity within a particular sector.

Patience and persistence are key. The directories keep track of your performance year-on-year and factor in your recent track record.

If you were expecting a promotion on this occasion and felt that there was a notable uptick in the quality of your submission, this was most likely noted by the directory. It may simply be that they are taking a wait and see approach, particularly when it comes to promotions at the very top of the table. In this case, it is important to stay patient and persist- if your team continues to excel over a few years, you will eventually achieve that recognition.

Finally, the directories can only work with the information you provide to them. T meaning that firms need to be on top of any developing assumptions and ensure that these are countered by the relevant evidence.