The Lawdragon selection process has been created over 30 years of researching and reporting on the legal profession and creating lists and guides to the most effective legal professionals. Our team brings more than 100 years in the lawyer reporting and information business.
The foundation of our selection is in journalism. We research each guide extensively, studying which professionals have had significant impact, including an emphasis on recent matters handled. We accept submissions and review them alongside hundreds of candidates we identify and consider for the Lawdragon Global 100 Leaders in Legal Strategy & Consulting. We also work with editorial advisors to stay current on the focus of the guide and identify talent. Should you wish to stay current on our guide calendar or submit nominations, you may do so here.
To make a Lawdragon guide, a legal consultant will have been working in the industry for a decade, with extremely rare exceptions. More often, the professional will have 20+ years of deep experience advising lawyers and firm leaders on their most pressing choices. While there are lawyers (or, to be accurate, mostly former lawyers) among the 100 Consultants, those selected are frequently from business, media, HR or finance backgrounds.
The professional focus of those included in the Global 100 Leaders in Legal Strategy & Consulting is, broadly speaking, advisors in hiring, marketing, communication, strategy and vision. First published in 2017, this guide initially included Legal Finance experts; with the ascendance of litigation funding, they have been given their own, independent guide. Recruiters are long a mainstay, as are marketing and communication afficionados as well as high-level strategists. Every year, we survey the type of professionals most in demand by firms and adjust to reflect current priorities.
We rely heavily on research of client engagement and results achieved in our selection. The assessment of clients is paramount and outranks many prominent consultants frequently quoted or admired more by peers than those who hire them. Leadership within the professional’s organization and stature within the professional community is a considered factor.
For the Global 100 Leaders in Legal Consulting, we researched international legal strategists. Within each market we identified a cross-section of respected and often pioneering strategists, communication professionals and recruiters with decades of experience as well as more junior talent already making an impact in the field. An important note on our process is that it is ongoing throughout the year as we survey new placements and other results and assessment from clients and leaders throughout the legal industry.
Lawdragon is an advocate for inclusion in the legal profession and searches extensively for female candidates and others who represent diversity.