WWL and Global Arbitration Review are delighted to present WWL: Arbitration 2021.
WWL: Arbitration 2021 is our most extensive look at the international arbitration market yet, with over 1,000 standout lawyers gaining a place in these prestigious listings this year.
In addition, nearly 300 expert witnesses are highlighted for their wide-ranging expertise.
For the fifth year, we also identify Future Leaders among both lawyers and experts, with more than 700 of the top practitioners worldwide aged 45 and under highlighted in total.
Our Legal Marketplace Analyses cover the top practitioners in the world in each jurisdiction according to the research this year. We also highlight those firms whose individuals stood out.
Click the links below for in-depth analysis including the leading individuals and quotes from the market.
Our main list for both arbitrators and counsel who excel in the arbitration space
Highlighting the best non-lawyer experts in the field
The very best practitioners (lawyers and expert witnesses) aged 45 and under
Please note that due to the large number of practitioners that we list, only a proportion are covered in the Legal Marketplace Analyses. You can view the full listings using the Market Insight Tool links above.
Alternatively, you can search the complete listings (for all categories) by region or country using the Market Insight Tool.
WWL does not rank law firms or sets, only individual practitioners. The charts below show the firms and sets home to the most listed practitioners in this year’s guide.
To see the firms with the most listed practitioners in each category, see the Legal Marketplace Analyses (links above).
White & Case once again come top in terms of numbers of practitioners listed, while other top-tier international firms Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Herbert Smith Freehills, King & Spalding and Clifford Chance all have 25 or more listings. All appear well set for the future as well, with a near-equal number of Future Leaders recommended as more senior names.
You can see how the top lawyers fared in our Legal Marketplace Analysis.
Among expert firms, FTI Consulting and Compass Lexecon once again stand at the head of the pack, but strong performances from practitioners at Secretariat, HKA, and Berkeley Research Group see them closing the gap.
Browse the coverage of the top experts in the Legal Marketplace Analysis.
WWL considered 3922 practitioners for inclusion in our main Arbitration and Arbitration Expert Witnesses listings (not including Future Leaders). Of these, 1225 practitioners were listed as recommended practitioners, while only 97 (2.4 per cent) were accorded our highest ranking of Global Elite Thought Leader.
The 64 lawyers and 33 expert witnesses selected were regarded as the very best by peers and clients, achieving the highest number of recommendations in the research.
You can view the full list of Global Elite Thought Leaders here:
The 2021 research process was our most extensive ever. Thousands of practitioners and referees responded to our requests for feedback on the market, resulting in a record number of individual votes, and an increase of 67 per cent on our 2020 research.
The listings see lawyers and expert witnesses from 95 countries listed, while more than 800 law firms, barristers’ chambers and consulting firms are represented.
This year alone, respondents also provided more than 10,000 individual comments on the practitioners under consideration. This extraordinary response has meant that for the first time, we have been able to publish a selection of the feedback received for each practitioner with a professional biography. This incredible selection of feedback can be viewed on our Market Insight Tool.
Full details on our research process can be found on our FAQ page. If you have any feedback on our research, please email us at editorial@whoswholegal.com.