Year after year, you think your firm – or yourself – should have been ranked in a higher band by, say, Chambers and Partners or Legal 500. Despite submitting the forms and referee spreadsheets, your rankings in the legal directories still fall short of where you deserve to be.
If that sounds familiar, fear not. This troubleshooting guide will help you to avoid the pitfalls, and show you how to improve every submission you make to your target legal directories. You can put your best foot forward by following these 4 steps:
1) Understand the legal directories submission process
Understanding the stages that make up their research process will ensure you are able to follow them successfully. For each legal directory, familiarise yourself with their submission form and carefully read each of the fields that you will need to complete. Consult the submission guidelines provided on their websites and note all key dates in their research schedule.
2) Understand the practice area definitions of each directory
Many legal cases involve work across a range of areas, making it unclear how to best report them to the directories. Should a real estate litigation case that you handled, for example, be reported on a real estate or a litigation submission form? By checking the criteria used by that directory in each practice area, you will be sure to provide descriptions of work highlights that are directly relevant and best suited to each submission.
3) Review your past submissions in light of what you have learned about each legal directory’s research process
Now that you have a clearer understanding of the research processes for each of your target legal directories, take some time to evaluate your previous submissions and spreadsheets. As you go through them, notice whether your submissions provided the information that would do justice to your law firm’s achievements. Did you follow all the guidelines? Did you provide all of the information requested? Was the information you provided clear and easy to follow? Did you provide the maximum number of referees possible? Did your list contain the best referees you could have selected? By interrogating your past performance in this way, the answers you arrive at will prepare you for success in the final step of the process.
4) Create a clear and honest new working strategy and implement it
Your careful review will likely have turned up some mistakes that you can now avoid. You might have realised, for example, that you had been sending your submissions and referees much later than the actual deadlines. Or that you were not including enough information, for instance, sending only 5 work highlights to Chambers and Partners, when you should have been aiming for 20.
By consulting the submission guidelines for each directory while also referring to your previous submissions and referees, you will be able to create a strategy of work that ensures your target legal directories will receive all the material needed by their researchers – in enough detail and in sufficient time – for them to give full consideration of your firm’s professional achievements.
By familiarising yourself in depth with the submission process of each target legal directory, and identifying where you may have fallen short on previous submissions, you will be able to change your approach to one that maximises your chances of finally getting the band promotion that you have always deserved.
This article was written by Danielle Vidigal, an expert in legal directories and awards. Danielle is also a results-driven legal marketer and founder of Vidigal Marketing.
If you need any help navigating the legal directories process, please do get in touch here. Danielle will be able to assist you in the preparation of your submissions and (in all stages) beyond.