Global legal awards, decided on the evidence
Recognition for law firms in every jurisdiction, judged on what clients and peers confirm.
Photo: Jr Korpa / Unsplash
Recognition earned on merit, not purchased
Most legal awards are run on nominations, shortlists and ticketed dinners. The Global Law Awards 2026 are run differently. A firm puts forward a short account of its work in one practice area and one jurisdiction, names clients and peers who can speak to it, and our editors do the rest. There is no fee to enter, no fee to be ranked and no ceremony to buy a seat at.
Firms of any size can take part, from a single-partner practice to an international firm with offices on several continents. Each submission is read against six weighted criteria, led by client feedback (30 percent) and peer standing (20 percent). Confidential references are gathered by our team, not by the firm, and research software prepares a draft assessment that an editor checks and confirms before anything is published.
The outcome is a placement in one of five bands within a jurisdiction and practice area, and in some cases one of eight named designations, such as National Leader or Rising Star. Results for the 2026 edition are published on 15 December 2026, by country and by region, and every placement links to a public record that anyone can check.
Four steps from submission to ranking
Put your firm's work forward. Our research team gathers the evidence, and editors make the final decision.
Submit your work
Start with your name, firm and work email, and we email you a link that opens your entry. There, tell us where your firm practises, describe representative matters in one practice area and name at least two client or peer referees.
We gather references
Our team contacts referees in confidence and checks what the firm says against public sources. A firm never sees what a referee said.
Your evidence is assessed
Research software drafts an assessment against six weighted criteria. An editor reviews the evidence and confirms every placement.
Results are published
Results are published on 15 December 2026. Every firm that entered is told its outcome directly.
Asked and answered
01Are these global legal awards open to firms outside major markets?
Yes. The awards cover every jurisdiction in which a firm has a verifiable presence, whatever its size. A firm in a smaller market is compared with the other firms doing the same work in the same place, not with firms in larger economies.
02Is there an entry fee or a gala dinner?
No. Entering, being assessed and being ranked are free. There is no ceremony, table or sponsorship package attached to a result.
03How is a legal award checked?
Every published placement has its own verification page on globallawlists.org showing the firm, the band, the jurisdiction, the practice area and the edition. A badge that does not resolve to that page should be treated as unverified.
More on the Global Law Awards
- Global Law Awards 2026Dates, criteria and how to enter
- Rankings and resultsBy jurisdiction and practice area
- The methodologyCriteria, evidence, conflicts and appeals
- International law firm awards
- International lawyer awards
- International legal awards 2026
- Law firm rankings 2026
- Global law firm rankings
- Lawyer of the Year awards
- Top law firms in the world
Put your firm's work forward
Open to firms of every size, in every jurisdiction. No fee to enter.