Super Lawyer Rankings

[wyatth]

New methodology, pretty cool. Aside from class size variance, seems interesting.

http://www.superlawyers.com/toplists/lawschools/united-states/2010/

[CJScalia]

Considering their lawyer rankings only depend on how much money you pay to advertise in their magazine, I wouldn't put too much credit into their law school rankings either.

But that's just me.

[bigs5068]

Do you think U.S. News is not subject to the same bribery?

[Morten Lund]

Interesting indeed.  Assuming the class size adjustment is fairly legitimate, this would appear to be a ranking of "schools that generate lawyers who end up BigLaw partners or hotshots at locally prominent small firms."

That would explain Yale's relatively low ranking and the relatively high ranking of schools like Texas and UVA, but I am puzzled by why Stanford ends up so low.

Curious exercise.

[Thane Messinger]

Interesting indeed.  Assuming the class size adjustment is fairly legitimate, this would appear to be a ranking of "schools that generate lawyers who end up BigLaw partners or hotshots at locally prominent small firms."

That would explain Yale's relatively low ranking and the relatively high ranking of schools like Texas and UVA, but I am puzzled by why Stanford ends up so low.

Curious exercise.

Morten -

Glad to see you here!  (To all, if you've not had a chance to read Morten's books, they are exceptional.  Well worth reading before starting a clerkship or new job, or, for those already in a summer clerkship or new job, very much worth reading to avoid the many missteps in a firm or other law office.)

As to Stanford, I've been thinking of this with regard to the Harvard-Yale-Stanford (or, for those so inclined, Yale-Harvard-Stanford) grouping.  This has become a common assumption, but it might not be entirely correct.  I'm wondering--at the risk of annoying any Stanford grads--whether it's really a pair, Harvard and Yale, with Stanford being more a law school viewed as Chicago is:  exceptional but fairly small and a bit in its own world.

Any thoughts?

Thane.

[bigs5068]

Stanford is pretty well respected in California and particularly the Bay Area. I don't think it has as much notoriety on the East Coast though, but on the West Coast people respect Stanford.

[nealric]

That would explain Yale's relatively low ranking and the relatively high ranking of schools like Texas and UVA, but I am puzzled by why Stanford ends up so low.

A lot of it has to do with the big state/ small state distinction. Super lawyers are pretty fixed by state. My understanding is that Nebraska has as many "super lawyers" as New York. So a schools like Yale, and Stanford, which tend to attract graduates from high-population states have less of a chance.

[bigs5068]

So each state gets the same number of super lawyers? That seems really unfair because the 98th best  lawyer of the 100 lawyers working in North Dakota would be a superlawyer and the 101st out of 100,000 in California would not be? 

[nealric]

So each state gets the same number of super lawyers? That seems really unfair because the 98th best  lawyer of the 100 lawyers working in North Dakota would be a superlawyer and the 101st out of 100,000 in California would not be? 

I'm not sure that's exactly how it works, but I do know it's much easier to get from a smaller state.  Also, being a "super lawyer" does not mean you are one of the "Best" lawyers. It's based on recommendations/cronyism.

[bigs5068]

I am sure the people that Super Lawyers are at least decent attorneys, the whole system sounds very similar to U.S. News Rankings. I am sure it helps to be named  a super lawyer just like it helps to go to a school ranked in the top 50, but U.S. News & Superlawyer rankings can't be taken to seriously because of how easily they can be manipulated.

If it is really that easy to be named a superlawyer I am going to move North Dakota so I can be named a super lawyer by helping someone win a banana peel slip & fall case.