Emerging empires – Bakers, CMS and DLA Piper rise up the ranks as global giants march on

Ella Marshall and Jonathan Armstrong assess the latest EMEA rankings from The Legal 500

The market continues to evolve in Europe’s key heartlands, as a band of expansive globalised firms spread out their tentacles, while another grouping of more transactionally-driven players strip down their businesses with an eye on profitability. Following the recent publication of The Legal 500 Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) 2017 edition, we look at the winners and losers among major international law firms this year.

Our core analysis is based on the numbers of practice rankings in tiers one to three and excludes UK ranking data (the UK is researched to a different timeframe and would skew the results).

Baker McKenzie is the dominant contender across EMEA, having stretched its lead over its closest rivals to achieve 237 rankings of tiers one to three, up from 208 last year. CMS enhanced its showing, with the Olswang and Nabarro merger giving it 212 rankings compared with 199 last year. However, the firm still dipped to third place as DLA Piper moved into second place, up from 172 rankings last year to 213 in 2017 on the back of developments in the Nordics – most notably its absorption of LETT in Denmark – as well as strong performances in the Middle East and its arrival in South Africa.

Magic Circle players performed solidly in fourth to seventh places, with Clifford Chance (CC) (180 rankings), Allen & Overy (A&O) (173), Linklaters (147) and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (131) all continuing on an upward trajectory; each draws on prominent practices in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UAE.

Despite its global positioning, Dentons is a long way down the field in eighth place in EMEA with 128 rankings, but continues to be upwardly mobile, having climbed from tenth place with 111 rankings last year, making notable advances in Italy (where it has opened two offices since 2015), South Africa and also in Georgia, where it has taken over DLA’s entire Tblisi practice. White & Case improved its position, achieving 126 rankings to finish just behind ninth-placed Hogan Lovells (127).

Eversheds Sutherland was the only firm in the top 20 to have fewer rankings this year than in 2016. Herbert Smith Freehills, Simmons & Simmons and Gide Loyrette Nouel sit alongside a number of high-quality CEE and Benelux regional firms in terms of rankings across EMEA.

Looking at some key markets in CEE/CIS, Dentons retained its leading position with 15 rankings of tiers one to three in Russia, ahead of Bakers, which pulled ahead of DLA Piper; CC and White & Case also leapfrogged ahead of DLA. Poland – one of the busiest markets in the CEE region – has been relatively stable, with Dentons occupying the top spot among the global firms with CC following close behind. In the Czech Republic, Bakers has edged ahead of its international competitors in the form of A&O, CC, Dentons and White & Case.

In the settled Benelux markets, rankings have seen little change, with the top five international firms again consisting of A&O, CC and Linklaters, followed by Bakers, which overtook DLA to take fourth place.

Despite intense competition, particularly from US advisers, the Magic Circle continues to outperform other international firms when it comes to rankings in France, where Linklaters in particular came out as a winner in the 2017 research. It increased its number of tier one to three rankings by close to 50%, joining CC and A&O as the most highly recommended international firms based in the country.

Local firms dominate the Nordic legal markets, but DLA has invested heavily in the region and its absorption of LETT made it the only law firm with a presence across Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden.

In the Middle East, relatively settled rankings reflected leading performances from three firms with a truly global outlook – namely, DLA, Bakers, and Dentons.

Very few US or UK-bred law firms have an extensive presence on the ground in Africa but the situation is changing and South Africa – the continent’s largest economy – is a bustling exception. Norton Rose Fulbright continued to lead its international peers in rankings this year, ahead of Hogan Lovells and Bakers. DLA and Pinsent Masons are recent entrants to the market, sparking a series of partner moves with a likely impact on next year’s research. Elsewhere in Africa, White & Case opened a branch in Egypt, a country in which Bakers and Dentons have improved their rankings since 2016.

Jonathan Armstrong and Ella Marshall are editors on The Legal 500, the sister brand to Legal Business.