Are you preparing to interview with a law firm? Don't go in cold. Learn the ins and outs of hundreds of firms using the resources below.
With the variety of resources to use, it can be difficult to know which one to explore.
Law Firm Rankings and Surveys
Law Firm Information
Attorney Records and Rankings
Student-Focused Guidance
News and Public Image
ALM Intelligence Legal Compass
ALM's Surveys, Lists & Rankings include the AmLaw100, the AmLaw Summer Associates Survey, the NLJ 250, and the A-List, which tracks factors such as pro bono, associate satisfaction, and diversity. ALM's Law Firm Reports provide historical financial and demographic data for individual law firms, reaching back 10 years. Access to ALM is provided to members of the MLaw community.
Vault
Vault is a subscription-based website that includes full-text access to guides covering national and regional law firms, non-legal careers, and the job search process, information on over 500 law firms and their hiring practices, information on the work environment at 3000 companies, and access to a nation-wide message board where information about law firms and employers can be shared.
Accessing Vault
The first time you visit the Vault site you will need to create an account. Registration will be free for University of Michigan Law students. Use your umich.edu email address to register.
Note: The guides are designed for viewing within your browser, but they can be downloaded as ePUB files. For help using these files, please see this how-to article.
NALP Directory
NALP Directory includes many filters to help users zero in on available law firm options. This database provides specific information on law firms, government agencies, public interest organizations, and corporations, including lawyer demographics, practice areas, compensation and benefits, diversity and inclusion practices, and other valuable information about legal employers.
Chambers Associate
Chambers Associate bills itself as "The Student's Guide to Law Firms in America." This site is designed to help law students effectively research new employers. In addition to law firm rankings by geography, practice area, associate satisfaction, diversity, and other facets, this site has guides for how students can evaluate law firms based on their personal preferences and interests.
Learn what it is really like to practice with guides to 57 different practice areas. Read up on how to differentiate among Wall Street, global, and other types of firms. Use the comparison tool to visualize the differences among various actual firms.
Chambers and Partners
Chambers USA ranks the top lawyers and law firms across the country. Use this database to evaluate over 18,000 different lawyers and 2,300 different firms.
Lexis+
Lexis+ is home to a number of useful databases. Use the "product switcher" in the top left of any page to select a different database.
Litigation Profile Suite
Dig deep into individual attorneys using the Litigation Profile Suite in Lexis+. Find briefs, opinions, and news involving an attorney, as well as visualized data assessing their practice history.
Law360
Law360, a trusted source of legal news and analysis, also provides law firm rankings, data, and analysis. Members of the MLaw community can access Law360 through their Lexis+ accounts or through the link below.
Leadership Connect
Need to know who to contact within an organization? Leadership Connect is perfect for creating a list of contacts. This tool allows searching and browsing within individual directories or across 14 different federal directories using single or multiple criteria, such as name, job title, industry, and geographical location.
This searchable database includes biographical information about federal government employees, companies, and organizations by type, industry, job function, geographic location, size, or keyword. Leadership Connect is ideal for searching NGOs, government agencies, board memberships, and not-for-profit organizations. Access to this database is provided to current members of the MLaw community.
The Legal 500
This website uses client feedback to assess the strengths of law firms in over 150 jurisdictions. They claim "highlight the practice area teams who are providing the most cutting edge and innovative advice to corporate counsel."
In each practice area, top firms and power players are ranked by tier. Firm profiles include lists of key attorneys and clients within each practice area.
Martindale.com
If you are looking beyond Big Law, Martindale.com is a directory of lawyers and law firms of all sizes.
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Email us at askalawlibrarian@umich.edu. Emails are answered by Librarians during standard business hours, Monday-Friday. Patrons may expect a response within 1-2 business days for most emails.
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