Benchmark Litigation is the only publication on the market to focus exclusively on dispute resolution. Since its inception in 2008, the Benchmark brand has grown dramatically and garnered industry-wide accolades as the definitive hub for in-depth analysis of the players shaping the dynamic practice of litigation. In keeping with Benchmark’s sharp rise in popularity, its publishing staff increasingly aims to respond to the demands of its audience.

The Asia-Pacific guide officially launched in 2018, with a dedicated team located in Hong Kong and actively researching the market on the ground. We exclusively cover the litigation and disputes markets and aim to provide law firm and lawyer rankings on the market’s most important cases and firm developments across the region.

Research is conducted through extensive interviews with litigators, dispute resolution specialists and their clients to identify the leading litigators and firms. During these interviews, we examine recent casework handled by law firms and ask individual litigators to provide their professional opinions on peers and practitioners within their jurisdiction or practice area.

The annual research cycle begins in August every year and the results are published in May the next year. The 2026 edition of Benchmark Litigation Asia-Pacific research has been concluded and it's been published online.

The Benchmark Litigation awards are held every year based on the submissions and research for the guide.

(Please note the form, webinar registration and Lawyer survey links will not be available until the official launch on 26 August)

We will be presenting a webinar on 9 September 2026 at 15:00 HKT covering the submission process, details and guidelines. There will be a live Q&A session following the presentation.

Please register your attendance HERE.

A PDF version of the presentation and recording of the session will be available for download the following day for those unable to attend.

DOWNLOAD SUBMISSION AND CLIENT REFEREE FORMS 2027

To take part in our research simply:

1. Download our Research form and Client referee form HERE
2. Complete the form(s)
3. Upload them to our ONLINE SUBMISSION TOOL (ACCREDITATION PORTAL)

_{** Note: You will need to sign up for and register for an account on the accreditation portal before you can upload the submissions **
** Due to GDPR compliance, we cannot accept submissions outside of the portal **}

DO NOT USE THE FORM AND LINKS FROM THE PREVIOUS YEARS. THE FORM AND LINKS ARE MADE FOR EACH RESEARCH CYCLE AND ARE UPDATED EACH YEAR.

* For Benchmark Litigation Asia-Pacific, please note that firms should submit one form per practice area. If anything is unclear, please reach out to your relevant research analyst.*

Practice area submission: Due to our submission portal requirements, you must submit SEPARATE research forms for each dispute resolution practice area (e.g. commercial and transactions, competition, international arbitration, white-collar crime etc).

Client referee submission: Each firm should submit only ONE referee excel form with all client details as we do not require practice area specifications. As you upload the excel form, when prompted to select a practice area, simply select any one of the relevant practice areas to your firm and submit. This will link the excel to your submission account irrespective of practice area selection (thus, each submission account should have only one excel form uploaded).

We publish law firm and lawyer rankings and accompanying editorial online.
We research the following dispute resolution practice areas (but not limited to):

_{*Kindly note that 'Commercial and transactions' refers to general commercial, corporate, transactions-related disputes only. We do not cover non-contentious, transactional work.} 

In each jurisdiction that we cover we have different practice area ranking tables depending on the nature and sophistication of the market.

Below we have listed the ranking categories that we cover in each country.

New categories may be introduced if, during the course of the research period, the level of market feedback indicates enough evidence for an addition. 

Australia – Class action, Commercial and transactions, Government and regulatory, Insurance, Intellectual property

China – Commercial and transactions, Construction, Financial services regulatory, Government and regulatory, Insolvency, Intellectual property, International arbitration, Labour and employment

China and Hong Kong SAR (International firms) – Commercial and transactions, Construction, Family and matrimonial, Financial services regulatory, Insolvency, Intellectual property, International arbitration, Private client, Shipping, White-collar crime

Hong Kong SAR (Domestic firms) – Commercial and transactions, Family and matrimonial, Financial services regulatory, Labour and employment, Insolvency, Intellectual property, Private client, White-collar crime

India – Commercial and transactions, Competition/antitrust, Construction, Government and regulatory, Insolvency, Insurance*, Intellectual property, International arbitration, Labour and employment, Tax, Technology, data and privacy, White-collar crime, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai, New Delhi (please include the city/cities your submission is reflecting in the form at the top)

Indonesia – Commercial and transactions, Construction*, Insolvency, Intellectual property, Labour and employment, White-collar crime

Japan – Commercial and transactions, Intellectual property, International arbitration, White-collar crime

Malaysia – Commercial and transactions, Competition/antitrust, Construction, Insolvency*, Insurance*, Intellectual property, Labour and employment, Shipping, Tax, Technology, data and privacy*, White-collar crime

Nepal - Commercial and transactions*

New Zealand – Commercial and transactions

Philippines – Commercial and transactions, Competition/antitrust*, Construction*, Government and regulatory, Intellectual property, International arbitration, Labour and employment, Private client*, Tax, White-collar crime

Singapore – Commercial and transactions, Commodities and trade, Construction, Family and matrimonial, Insolvency, Insurance*, Intellectual property, International arbitration, Labour and employment, Private client, Shipping, Technology, data and privacy, White-collar crime

South Korea – Commercial and transactions, Competition/antitrust, Construction, Government and regulatory, Insolvency, Intellectual property, International arbitration, Labour and employment, Product liability and recall, Tax, White-collar crime

Taiwan – Commercial and transactions, Intellectual property, Labour and employment, White-collar crime

Thailand – Commercial and transactions, Government and regulatory, Intellectual property, Labour and employment, Trade and customs, White-collar crime*

Vietnam – Commercial and transactions, Construction, Energy, Intellectual property, International arbitration, Labour and employment, White-collar crime

* New areas for 2027

Research Timeline

• RESEARCH BEGINS (Submission portals open) – 26 August 2026
• SUBMISSION DEADLINE (firms and client referees) – 23 October 2026 
• RESEARCH INTERVIEWS (firms and client referees) – Late September to December
• RANKINGS AND EDITORIALS PUBLISHED ONLINE –5 May 2027

Please contact the relevant researcher for your country if you have any specific questions:

Candice Mak at candice.mak@legalbenchmarkinggroup.com (India, Indonesia, Nepal, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam)

Kelsey Li at kelsey.li@legalbenchmarkinggroup.com (Australia, China, China and Hong Kong SAR, Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand and Philippines)

Miao Sha at miao.sha@legalbenchmarkinggroup.com (Benchmark China regions, Taiwan)

Do NOT use a research form from the previous years as there are adjustments in the research form each year. Download the latest available research form every year.

Please indicate if a matter is confidential or partially confidential by writing in 'Yes' or 'No' into the relevant box. If there is any confidential element to a matter, it will not be published.

The first section on the form is for the awards nominations. You may nominate up to three cases per practice area and fill out the form accordingly. We will only consider the cases filled out in this section.

Provide up to 20 case highlights per practice area, listing in order of importance or significance. Although not advised, if you wish to submit more than 20 cases, please provide them in a shortened, list format (contact your relevant researcher to discuss further).

Case highlights must be ongoing or completed within the last 12 months. This time period should roughly cover August 2025 - October 2026.

Clearly indicate correct practice area(s) for each case highlight.

Try to fully complete the form by filling in all required information.

Do NOT delete any question or section in our research form. Leave it blank, if you do not wish to provide any specific information.

Do NOT capitalise or highlight the text. Do NOT adjust or alter the format of the research form.

Keep the contents concise and to the point. You may bold some sentences indicating importance.

Remember to include reasons why the case is important or significant.

Please include your firm’s name and jurisdiction (and practice area) when saving your research form. The suggested format is FirmName_Jurisdiction_BMAP2027. If you are submitting by practice areas, save as follows: FirmName_Jurisdiction_PracticeArea_BMAP2027.

Upload it to our online submission portal once completed. We do not accept submissions via email.

Please make sure all your research forms are fully completed and are correct versions. We cannot guarantee any corrections or amendments to what you first submitted will be implemented.

2027 New sections

In the current iteration of the research form, there are three new sections: Firm profile & statistics, Strategy, Innovation and Service Delivery, and Thought Leadership & Trends

Why we are asking for this information

We are asking firms to provide financial, headcount, diversity, strategy and market-trends information so that the business can better reflect how practices are structured, resourced, investing, growing and responding to market change. This information helps us understand not only the casework a firm has handled, but also the broader context behind its market position, practice strength, client focus and long-term competitiveness.

The data also allows us to identify patterns across jurisdictions, practice areas and firm types, including how teams are evolving in response to client demand, regulatory change, technology, AI, ESG considerations, talent development, diversity and changing service delivery models. Where appropriate, this insight may contribute to aggregated market analysis, editorial commentary, thought leadership content and trend reports.

How this information may be used

The information you provide may help brands:

• Assess the scale, depth and composition of a practice group;
• Understand investment priorities, growth strategies and future market positioning;
• Evaluate how firms are adapting to changes in client demand, regulation, technology and service delivery;
• Identify regional, sectoral and practice-area trends across the market;
• Support editorial analysis and benchmarking of market developments;
• Produce aggregated thought leadership reports on issues such as practice growth, talent pipelines, diversity, innovation, client services and market outlook.

There is NO LIMIT on the number of client referees you can submit.

Please follow the client referee excel format exactly and do not make any changes. We do not need to know the recommending lawyers and/or practice areas.

Only submit ONE excel sheet per firm. Please include all firm clients on the single excel form.

All client referees that are submitted will be contacted.

All client information provided will be treated as confidential.

We do not accept late submissions for client referees.

Our Lawyer survey is a quick and easy way for lawyers to tell us about their practice and promote their credentials, colleagues and peers. Lawyers can also provide feedback on our existing lists of ranked firms and individuals. The survey is open to all disputes lawyers and a notification will be sent to registered firms once it is launched.

Take the Lawyer survey HERE.

The survey will close on 31 December 2026.

• Comprehensive evaluation of your firm's submissions, market activity, and client feedback to support an informed and accurate assessment of its standing in the market
• Exposure to our global readership at the world’s most significant corporations and financial institutions
• No cost involved

Our law firm rankings are based on three key criteria:

Case evidence
In each research cycle, we ask firms to provide recent case highlights and this is used to determine their position in the market.

Firms should provide their most complex and interesting cases in the research form and explain clearly to our research team why they are important and what they tell us about the firm’s abilities.

Peer feedback
In addition to conducting virtual or in-person interviews with practitioners, we will offer an online lawyer survey for all dispute resolution practitioners to complete. The lawyer survey collects feedback on the practitioners, and on our current law firm rankings and leading lawyers.

Client feedback
We speak to a wide range of corporate and in-house contacts as part of our client feedback survey to get their opinions on the firms and lawyers they use. Please note that law firms and referring practitioners are not given direct access to the survey. We also do not guarantee that client feedback will be published.

Alongside our firm rankings, we also recognise the work of outstanding individuals. Our recommendations are based on the same three factors as our law firm rankings and consist of the following categories:

Lawyers who are highly regarded by their peers and possess a strong case record and positive client feedback.

'Ones to watch' these are lawyers who are building their reputations in the market.

We will present the Benchmark Litigation Asia-Pacific and China 2027 Awards at a live awards ceremony next spring. We are still finalising details of the date, location and venue, so please stay tuned for updates.

Please note that only submitted cases via the Benchmark Litigation research form will be accepted for awards consideration. Please fill in the required information for up to three cases per practice area in the top awards nomination section. Even if your submission is in another template or format, we must receive the awards nomination cases in our specific form.

For the industry sectors to note down for the awards case highlights, please use one of these:
Aviation and shipping - Banking and financial services - Consumer goods and services - Energy - Industrials and manufacturing - Infrastructure - Insurance - Materials - Media and entertainment - Mining - Oil and gas - Pharmaceuticals and life sciences - Real estate - Transportation - Technology and telecommunications

The awards assessment is highly case-based. The editorial team reviews specific work matters and focuses on those that are landmark, novel, precedent -setting or unusually complex. The criteria is different from what we evaluate for the rankings.

It is possible for a lower-ranked firm to be shortlisted or for a top tier firm not to be shortlisted. To ensure the nominated matters you put forth reflect their merits, please remember to include relevant information in the significance portion of the submission form.

Additional published awards for 2027: 

1. Top 100 Women in Litigation in Asia (extra submission materials not required)
2. Top 40 Litigators under 40 in Asia (nominations accepted via the research form)