What is Chambers Associate?
In a profile you'll find:
1) What Chambers says about each firm's past, present and future, covering: recent developments, practice strengths, representative work and clients, founding history, strategy, future outlook, and each firm’s standing according to the detailed practice area rankings of Chambers USA.
2) What each firm's Associates say about their lives, covering: culture, assignment, pro bono, diversity, hours, compensation, work-life policies and more.
3) What each Firm says about itself and what recruiters want.
Firms don't pay us to take part or subsidize the costs of our research, so all our content is independent and unbiased.
We do rely on firms agreeing to take part in order to conduct the interviews that form the basis of our 'Associates Say' sections. Every firm has a 'Chambers says' section, but if the 'Associates say' link is not available, it is because the firm in question did not give us permission to interview its associates off-the-record and anonymously.
You can judge for yourself why that might be by reading our profile of the firm. If the firm you are interested in is not covered in full, it is worth checking back regularly, as we will be adding new information on an ongoing basis. Research for the 2nd Edition of Chambers Associate began in September, 2009, and we are looking forward to its launch in mid-2010.
Our web-publication aims to do two things.
1) Provide a flexible search tool:
We've aimed to present our information in a way that allows you to search for firms based on the criteria that are important to you.
So, you can search by firm name: useful if you know the firm for which you are looking.
You can search by state or region, or simply see a full list arranged by size, revenue or name: useful if you want a broad initial search.
You can search by practice area: find the best firms in a particular practice area and judge how they perform compared to their peers.
Or you can combine those criteria to tailor a highly specific search. Which are the best firms for IP in Texas; which firms do best for corporate/M&A in New York?
Our compare function lets you compare up to three firms side-by-side on the basis of their rankings in Chambers USA. It is a powerful tool for refining your search or assessing the strength of the firms that interest you in different practices and locations.
2) Produce exhaustive profiles of firms:
Combining the research of Chambers USA with the insights from our interviews with junior associates, we get under the skin of each firm.
We cover: strategy, culture, hours, compensation, getting hired, diversity, exit strategy, pro bono, work-life policies and more.
What we don't do:
We believe there is no such thing as 'the best' firm to work at. There is the best firm for you to work at.
So, we don't rank on prestige, but we do give you the tools and the insight to work out which is the firm for you – before, during and after the interview process.
Chambers USA ranks firms in every state and nationally based on practice area expertise, so you can explore the specialties and strengths of every firm we cover in Chambers Associate based on the thousands of interviews conducted with clients and lawyers for that guide.
In Chambers USA firms are ranked in Bands 1-6. Band 1 is the highest, but any ranking is a significant mark of achievement.
Many of the firms you may be applying to will widely advertise their rankings in Chambers USA.
Do remember: if a firm doesn't turn up in a practice area search result, it doesn't necessarily mean that it doesn't work in that area, only that it hasn't yet been ranked by Chambers.
Our Chambers USA research is an organic, annual process, which evolves to reflect the changing strengths of firms and the changing nature of the legal market.
You can check out a firms 'The 'Firm says...' page, to see what it says are its full range of practices.
Chambers USA Awards for Excellence
We also host an annual awards ceremony in New York: the Chambers USA Awards for Excellence. who have had a stellar 12 months and don't by any means just go to Band 1 firms. These awards honor the teams and individual lawyers
If you see the W symbol next to a firm's name in search results or on its homepage, then that means it was a winner at our 2009 awards and you can read about the category it won in its 'Chambers says...' editorial.
1. Chambers Associate
We covered 100 firms in our first edition. Roughly speaking, that was the top 100 by revenue, with a few other notable national and international firms thrown in - the likes of Linklaters, Irell & Manella and Crowell & Moring.
This is only the first edition: The 2nd Edition will cover 200 of the nation's top law firms. Research for the 2nd Edition of Chambers Associate began in September, 2009, and we are looking forward to its launch in mid-2010.
Interviews for the 1st Edition were conducted and all editorial content written in the period between November 2008 and March 2009. Our editorial was subsequently refreshed with any relevant news/updates in late April and fact-checked with firms in early May.
Firms don't pay us to take part or subsidize the costs of our research, so all our content is independent and unbiased. However, we do rely on firms agreeing to take part in order to conduct the interviews that form the basis of our 'Associates Say 'sections. Every firm has a 'Chambers says' section, but if the' Associates say' links are not available, it is because the firm in question was not happy for us to interview associates off-the-record and anonymously.
For each firm we cover in full, we received a full list of 06 / 07 class associates from the firm.
We then telephone interviewed a random, representative sample of between 10 and 20%, ensuring we got a good balance of genders, practice groups and office locations. Interviews lasted around half an hour and every associate spoke to us knowing that they did so in confidence.
We don't identify sources in our editorial and a firm never knows who has spoken to us. Over the course of interviews, our researchers make sure that we cover in detail every topic that needs to be discussed. Lone wolf comments don't make it in; we only go with consensus view.
We also try to make each interview an enjoyable conversation, so the material we get is fresh, direct and allows the personalities of associates to shine through.
Our wider research takes us to sources online and in print, and we also have access to the detailed practice area submissions that firms make to Chambers USA.
Combining the views of associates with the rankings from Chambers USA and our broader research, we are able to give readers an unmatched insight into life and work at each firm.
2. Chambers USA
The Research
Our methodology for the research into the strengths and reputations of law firms and individuals has been approved by the British Market Research Bureau.
We speak to a vast range of lawyers and their clients (ie commercial users of legal services). Greater weighting is given to the views of the clients, and any biased viewpoints tend to cancel each other out. All interviews are conducted purely for research purposes and are entirely confidential and un-attributed.
We select our sources on the basis of:
- submissions put forward by legal practices
- interviews during the course of research
- our own database resources.
In-depth interviews with clients and with lawyers are done over the telephone, each one lasting about half an hour. Thousands of interviews are conducted by a team of 50+ full-time researchers. Unlike our competitors, Chambers researches, compiles and launches completely new editions of our directories each year.
The Rankings
Law firms and individual lawyers are ranked in Bands from 1-6, with 1 being the best.
The qualities on which rankings are assessed include technical legal ability, professional conduct, client service, commercial astuteness, diligence, commitment, and other qualities most valued by the client.
Chambers has contacted me to ask for an interview, what can I expect?
For each firm we cover in full we receive a full list of its 1st and 2nd year associates. We do not begin communicating with associates until the firm has fully expressed its commitment to participating in our research and given us permission to interview its lawyers.
Our researchers then contact the firm’s associates, requesting to conduct off-the-record interviews. We strive to interview a representative sample of between 10 and 20%, ensuring we get a good balance of genders, practice groups and office locations. Interviews last around half an hour.
You can speak to us knowing you will do so in confidence. We don't identify sources in our editorial and a firm never knows who has spoken to us. Over the course of the interviews, our researchers will ask questions about an individual’s experience working at a firm – these are solely used to aid our research and no quotes or identifiable anecdotes are included in final editorial.
We also try to make each interview an enjoyable conversation, so the material we get is fresh, direct and allows the personalities of associates to shine through. If you have any questions, concerns or comments throughout the process, please notify the researcher during the interview so that we’re able to ensure it’s an interesting, useful and pleasant experience.
Interviews are the most substantial part of our research, but they’re only one element. Our wider research takes us to sources online and in print, and we also have access to the detailed practice area submissions that firms make to Chambers USA. Thus, lone wolf comments do not make the final edition; we strive to identify patterns and trends.
Combining the views of associates with the rankings from Chambers USA and our broader research, we are able to give readers an unmatched insight into life and work at each firm.