This is why we publish the methodology

 Why Elie links to this drivel, I’m not sure. (Although I might guess.) Someone called “Lexpert” takes a conspicuously ill-informed swipe at this year’s Top 100 rankings:

Vault seems to view the roller-coaster economy as an unimportant, if entertaining, side-show. How else do we explain the fact that the top five firms remain largely unchanged despite apparent changes in their hiring and professional practices?

Sigh.  Let me try to explain this insoluble paradox: the top five firms remain “largely unchanged” (i.e., are the same) because they are still, overwhelmingly, considered the top 5 firms by a majority of the thousands of law firm associates who take the Vault survey.  Yes, of course, these firms were affected by the economic crisis.  Do you know who else was affected?  Every other firm in the world.  And nearly all of them to a greater degree than the top 5.  Did I just blow your mind, or what?

As ever, the rankings are a pure function of the associate survey; Vault is only the messenger. To write, as Lexpert does, "according to Vault" or "Vault seems to view" is one way of letting everyone know he couldn't be bothered to read the methodology.

                            -posted by brian