Manatt Practices Achieve Top-Tier National Rankings from U.S. News/Best Lawyers

“Best Law Firms Rankings”
U.S. News & World Report

September 15, 2010 - U.S. News Media Group and Best Lawyers have released the 2010 Best Law Firms rankings, marking the inaugural publication of what is to be an annual analysis, with Manatt scoring four Tier 1 national rankings and 31 metropolitan designations.

The rankings, including 30,322 rankings of 8,782 law firms in 81 practice areas, are posted online at www.usnews.com/bestlawfirms; the national first-tier rankings will be featured in the October print issue of U.S. News & World Report, which will go on sale September 27.

The rankings are presented in tiers both nationally and by metropolitan area.  To compile the rankings, major clients and leading lawyers were asked to rate the law firms they consider best in their practice area.  In the end, 9,514 clients – including every Fortune 100 company and 587 of the Fortune 1000 companies – provided 194,370 firm practice-area evaluations; 6,190 clients provided 11,181 comments about law firm practice areas and individual lawyers; and 8,842 lawyers provided 594,012 firm practice-area evaluations.

The reputational survey responses were combined with more than 3.1 million evaluations of individual lawyers in the most recent Best Lawyers survey of leading lawyers.

Manatt’s 2010 U.S. News/Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” rankings include:

National Rankings

Tier 1

   Advertising Law
   Banking and Finance Law
   Corporate Law
   Entertainment Law

Metropolitan Rankings

Tier 1

Los Angeles
   Banking and Finance Law
   Corporate Law
   Eminent Domain and Condemnation Law
   Entertainment Law
   Government Relations Practice
   Health Care Law

New York
   Advertising Law
   Health Care Law

Orange County
   Banking and Finance Law
   Health Care Law
   Intellectual Property Law

San Francisco
   Health Care Law
   Non-Profit/Charities Law

Washington
   Advertising Law
   Entertainment Law

Tier 2

Los Angeles
   General Commercial Litigation
   Non-Profit/Charities Law
   Private Funds / Hedge Funds Law

New York
   Entertainment Law

Orange County
   General Commercial Litigation
   Real Estate Law

Washington
   Corporate Law
   Intellectual Property Law

Tier 3

Los Angeles
   Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law
   Insurance Law
   Real Estate Law
   Securities / Capital Markets Law

New York
   Corporate Law
   Insurance Law

Washington
   Government Relations Practice

Tier 4

New York
   General Commercial Litigation