The 2007 A-List:

This is the fifth year of the A-List, The American Lawyer’s annual ranking of “the nation’s elite,” as they put it, “the law firms that are best at balancing a thriving business with their obligations to the profession.”

Balance is a good way of thinking about what it takes to make the A-List. The scoring methodology is based on four other surveys conducted by The American Lawyer – Revenue Per Lawyer rankings, which are part of The Am Law 200; Pro Bono rankings; Diversity Scorecard rankings, which are published in the Spring issue of Minority Law Journal, and the Midlevel Associate Survey rankings.

The formula for calculating the A-List scores is somewhat complex. Points are awarded based on a firm’s ranking in one of the four surveys, with (for instance) 200 points awarded for a Number One ranking, 1 point awarded for a 200th place ranking, and so on in between. In addition, scores for two of the surveys—RPL and Pro Bono—are doubled and then added to the scores for Diversity and Midlevel Satisfaction to arrive at the total score. Only the top 20 firms make the actual A-List.

A-List in E-Format
The 2007 A-List is available in searchable spreadsheet format from ALM Research Online by clicking on the title here, or by going to the ALM Research Store. The spreadsheet is available to all subscribers as part of their subscription. For a fee of $250, non-subscribers can download it to their computers. A sample is available for viewing before purchase.

Data points in the spreadsheet, besides firm name and rank, include the scoring points overall, the score for each of the four surveys that count towards the overall score, and the rank for each of the surveys that count towards the overall score.