Firms included in the 2017 “Best Law Firms” list are recognized for professional excellence with persistently impressive ratings from clients and peers. Achieving a tiered ranking signals a unique combination of quality law practice and breadth of legal expertise.
WASHINGTON – November 1, 2016 – U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers, for the seventh consecutive year, announce the “Best Law Firms” rankings.Firms included in the 2017 “Best Law Firms” list are recognized for professional excellence with persistently impressive ratings from clients and peers. Achieving a tiered ranking signals a unique combination of quality law practice and breadth of legal expertise. “U.S. News is the global authority in rankings,” says Tim Smart, executive editor of U.S. News & World Report. “Evaluating law firms is a natural extension of what we do best.”
The 2017 rankings are based on the highest number of participating firms and highest number of client ballots on record. To be eligible for a ranking, a firm must have a lawyer listed in The Best Lawyers in America, which recognizes the top 4 percent of practicing attorneys in the U.S. Over 10,000 attorneys provided more than 800,000 law firm assessments, and over 10,000 clients provided more than 90,000 evaluations. “For seven years now, we have added law firm rankings to our rankings of individual lawyers,” says Steven Naifeh, CEO and co-founder of Best Lawyers. “It has been a daunting task. This year we reviewed 13,803 law firms across the United States and across 122 practice areas, for a total of 2,005 firms receiving a national law firm ranking. Each year, we have expanded our reach while also trying to simplify the process, as much as possible, for the law firms that provide us with the information that we use to create the rankings. We are proud that the legal profession has come to view our law firm rankings each year with such deep and widespread respect.” Ranked firms, presented in tiers, are listed on a national and/or metropolitan scale. Receiving a tier designation reflects the high level of respect a firm has earned among other leading lawyers and clients in the same communities and the same practice areas for its abilities, its professionalism and its integrity. Awards were given in 74 national practice areas and 122 metropolitan practice areas. One "Law Firm of the Year" is named in each of the 74 nationally ranked practice areas. The 2017 “Best Law Firms” list will be featured in two publications. The national First Tier rankings will be featured in the Third Edition of the “Best Law Firms” Legal Issue, which will be distributed in January to more than 35,000 C-level executives. National and metropolitan First Tier rankings will be featured in the “Best Law Firms” General Counsel Publication, which will be distributed in December to more than 30,000 in-house counsel, and in digital format to more than 60,000 private practice lawyers worldwide. The 2017 “Best Law Firms” rankings can be seen in their entirety by visiting bestlawfirms.usnews.com.
The U.S. News – Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms” rankings are based on a rigorous evaluation process that includes the collection of client and lawyer evaluations, peer review from leading attorneys in their field, and review of additional information provided by law firms as part of the formal submission process. To be eligible for a ranking, a law firm must have at least one lawyer listed in the 22nd Edition of The Best Lawyers in America© list for that particular location and specialty.
U.S. News & World Report is a digital news and information company that empowers people to make better, more informed decisions about important issues affecting their lives. Focusing on Education, Health, Personal Finance, Travel, Cars and News & Opinion, USNews.com provides consumer advice, rankings, news and analysis to serve people making complex decisions throughout all stages of life. More than 37 million people visit USNews.com each month for research and guidance. Founded in 1933, U.S. News is headquartered in Washington, D.C.
Best Lawyers is the oldest and most respected attorney ranking service in the world. For more than 30 years, Best Lawyers has assisted those in need of legal services to identify the attorneys best qualified to represent them in distant jurisdictions or unfamiliar specialties. Best Lawyers lists are published in leading local, regional and national publications across the globe. The Best Lawyers in America list recognizes the very best lawyers in each practice area and metropolitan region in the country.