Glancing at our latest Big Question survey, it’s clear that while the magic circle concept still excites controversy, no-one doubts the power of the brand. Views are understandably more mixed over whether the name reflects genuine superiority. Some respondents go as far as to accuse lazy journalists of forcing the tag on an unwilling profession (my favorite was the guy ranting about reptiles). Others put forward that most seductive of arguments for magic circle-bashers: clients don’t instruct on the basis of it.
How can I put this delicately? I can’t - both of those ideas are nonsense. Now, Legal Week makes no claim to have invented or originated the term, and has no vested interest in promoting it. We use it because there’s obviously a group of advisers operating on a different level in corporate and securities work. Does that make them ‘better’ in a wider sense as business advisers? Probably not, and their retreat from full service practice gives top 50 rivals many areas in which to lead the field. But for high-stakes corporate matters, yes, they are the best. And in my experience, it is the rivals that have the least illusions about that fact that are the most effective competitors to the group.
