Asia Pacific Submissions – The Legal 500

Dates and deadlines

The research schedule and guidelines for Legal 500 Asia Pacific 2026 edition are now below.

Client referees deadline for law firms: Monday 9 June 2025

Editorial submission deadline for law firms : Monday 9 June 2025

Client referee and editorial submission deadline for the Bar. Friday 27June 2025

Follow-up research will start on Monday 30 June 2025

Publication for China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan: Mid-November 2025

Publication for the Asia Pacific guide: Mid-January 2026

The template documents you will need to send submissions are here:

Submissions Template NB: This template is in .docx format. Do not resave it in any other format as it may not be compatible with our system.
Submissions Template – India City Focus NB: This template is in .docx format. Do not resave it in any other format as it may not be compatible with our system.
Client Referee form – Law Firms NB: This template is in .xslx format. Do not resave it in any other format as it may not be compatible with our system.
Submissions Template – The Bar NB: This template is in .docx format. Do not resave it in any other format as it may not be compatible with our system.
Referee form – the Bar : This template is in .xslx format. Do not resave it in any other format as it may not be compatible with our system

To send your submissions to us, please visit submissions.legal500.com and follow the onscreen prompts to send us new documents.

Login details have been sent to all firms – if you have not received your login or have problems accessing submissions.legal500.com, please get in touch via our FAQ page.

Guidelines and supporting information

Law firm guidelines
Bar guidelines
亚太指南申报资料大纲
 Frequently asked questions
Referees explained
Law firms practice area definitions
Individual rankings glossary

Researchers

To learn more about the team behind our research, please visit Meet The Legal 500 Team.

Practice areas

Regions and practice areas we are researching for Asia Pacific 2026 include:

LAW FIRMS:

AUSTRALIA

Banking and finance
Capital markets: debt
Capital markets: equity
Capital markets: securitisation
Competition and trade
Corporate and M&A
Data protection and cyber security
Dispute resolution: litigation
Dispute resolution: arbitration
Dispute resolution: class actions
Energy (transactions and regulatory)
Environment and planning
Fintech and financial services regulatory
Infrastructure projects and construction
Insurance
Intellectual property
IT and telecoms
Labour and employment
Labour and employment: workplace health and safety (WHS)
Media and entertainment
Native title
Natural resources (transactions and regulatory)
Project finance
Real estate
Restructuring and insolvency
Tax
Transport: aviation
Transport: shipping
White-collar crime

BANGLADESH

Banking and finance
Corporate and M&A
Dispute resolution
Intellectual property
Tax

BRUNEI

Leading firms

CAMBODIA

Leading firms

CHINA

Antitrust and competition: PRC firms
Antitrust and competition: Foreign firms
Banking and finance: PRC firms
Banking and finance: Foreign firms
Capital markets: PRC firms
Corporate and M&A: PRC firms
Corporate and M&A: Foreign firms
Data protection: PRC firms
Data protection: Foreign firms
Dispute resolution: Arbitration – PRC firms
Dispute resolution: Litigation – PRC firms
Dispute resolution: Arbitration – Foreign firms
Dispute resolution: Litigation – Foreign firms
Fintech: PRC firms
Fintech: Foreign firms
Insurance: PRC firms
Insurance: Foreign firms
Intellectual property: Contentious – PRC firms
Intellectual property: Non-contentious – PRC firms
Intellectual property: Foreign firms
Investment funds: PRC firms
Investment funds: Foreign firms
Labour and employment: PRC firms
Labour and employment: Foreign firms
Life sciences and healthcare: PRC firms
Life sciences and healthcare: Foreign firms
Private equity: PRC firms
Private equity: Foreign firms
Private wealth: PRC firms
Projects and energy: PRC firms
Projects and energy: Foreign firms
Real estate and construction : PRC firms
Real estate and construction: foreign firms
Regulatory/compliance: PRC firms
Regulatory/compliance: Foreign firms
Restructuring and insolvency: PRC firms
Restructuring and insolvency: Foreign firms
Shipping: PRC firms
Shipping: Foreign firms
Tax: PRC firms
Tax: Foreign firms
TMT: PRC firms
TMT: Foreign firms
WTO/international trade: PRC firms

Regional coverage

Other notable firms in Beijing
Other notable firms in Shanghai
Guangdong Province: Guangzhou and Shenzhen
Zhejiang Province: Hangzhou
Jiangsu province: Nanjing
Shaanxi Province: Xi’An
Sichuan province: Chengdu including Chongqing

HONG KONG

Antitrust and competition
Asset finance (including aviation and shipping finance)
Banking and finance
Capital markets: Debt
Capital markets: Equity
Construction
Corporate (including M&A)
Data Protection and cyber security
Dispute resolution: : Litigation
Dispute resolution: International arbitration
Domestic and international corporate tax
Fintech and financial services regulatory
Insurance
Intellectual property
Investment funds
Labour and employment
Leading independent Hong Kong law firms
Offshore law firms
PRC firms in Hong Kong
Private equity
Private client and family
Projects and energy
Real estate
Regulatory: white-collar, compliance and investigations
Restructuring and insolvency
Shipping
Structured finance and securitisation
TMT

INDIA

Antitrust and competition
Aviation (including aerospace and defence)
Banking and finance
Capital markets
Corporate and M&A
Data protection
Dispute resolution: litigation
Dispute resolution: arbitration
Fintech and financial services regulatory
Foreign firms
Insurance
Intellectual property
- PATMA: Patent and trade mark attorneys
Labour and employment
Life sciences and healthcare
Private client
Private equity funds (including venture capital)
Projects and energy
Real estate and construction
Restructuring and insolvency
Shipping
Tax
TMT
WTO/international trade
White-collar crime

City focus – Bengaluru: Leading firms

City focus – Chennai: Leading firms

City focus – Hyderabad: Leading firms

City focus – Kolkata: Leading firms

City focus – Mumbai

Banking and finance
Commercial, corporate and M&A
Dispute resolution
Intellectual property
TMT
Real estate and construction

City focus – NCR (Delhi, Gurugram and Noida)

Banking and finance
Commercial, corporate and M&A
Dispute resolution
Intellectual property
Real estate and construction
TMT

INDONESIA

Aviation
Antitrust and competition
Banking and finance
Capital markets
Corporate and M&A
Dispute resolution
Foreign firms
Intellectual property
Labour and employment
Projects and energy
Real estate and construction
Restructuring and insolvency
Shipping
Tax
TMT including Fintech

JAPAN

Antitrust and competition: International firms and joint ventures
Antitrust and competition: Independent local firms
Banking and finance : International firms and joint ventures
Banking and finance: Independent local firms
Capital markets: International firms and joint ventures
Capital markets: Independent local firms
Corporate and M&A: International firms and joint ventures
Corporate and M&A: Independent local firms
Dispute resolution: International firms and joint ventures
Dispute resolution: Independent local firms
Fintech: International Firms and joint ventures
Fintech: Independent Local firms
Intellectual property: International firms and joint ventures
Intellectual property: Independent local firms
Investment funds: Foreign firms
Investment funds: Independent local firms
Labour and employment: International firms and joint ventures
Labour and employment: Independent local firms
Private wealth: Independent local firms
Projects and energy – International firms and joint ventures
Projects and energy – Independent local firms
Real estate and construction: International firms and joint ventures
Real estate and construction: Independent local firms
Restructuring and insolvency: International firms and joint ventures
Restructuring and insolvency: Independent local firms
Risk management and investigations: Independent local firms
Shipping: Independent local firms
Sport: Independent local firms NEW
Tax: International firms and joint ventures
Tax: Independent local firms
TMT: international firms and joint ventures
TMT: independent local firms

LAOS

Leading firms

MACAU

Leading firms

MALAYSIA

Antitrust and competition
Banking and finance including Islamic Finance
Capital markets
Corporate and M&A
Dispute resolution
Fintech and financial services regulatory
Foreign firms
Intellectual property
Labour and employment
Law firms in Sabah and Sarawak
Projects and energy
Real estate and construction
Shipping
Tax
TMT

MALDIVES – NEW

Leading firms

MONGOLIA

Leading firms

MYANMAR

Corporate and M&A
Foreign desks
Projects and energy

NEW ZEALAND

Banking and finance
Competition law
Construction
Corporate and M&A
Data protection and cyber security
Dispute resolution
Insurance
Intellectual property
Investment funds
Labour and employment
Projects and resource management (including environment)
Real estate
Restructuring and insolvency
Tax
TMT
Transport (rail, road, air and sea)

NEPAL

Leading firms

PAKISTAN

Banking and finance (including Islamic finance)
Capital markets
Corporate and M&A
Dispute resolution
Insurance
Intellectual property
Labour and employment
Projects and energy
Real estate and construction
Tax
TMT

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Leading firms

PHILIPPINES

Antitrust and competition
Banking and finance
Capital markets
Corporate and M&A
Dispute resolution
Foreign firms
Intellectual property
Labour and employment (including immigration)
Projects and energy
Real estate and construction
Tax
TMT
Transport

SINGAPORE

Asset finance – Renamed
Antitrust and competition: Local firms
Banking and finance: Foreign firms
Banking and finance: Local firms
Capital markets: Equity and debt – Foreign firms
Capital markets: Equity and debt – Local firms
Capital markets: Structured finance, derivatives and securitisation – Foreign firms
Capital markets: Structured finance, derivatives and securitisation – Local firms
Construction: Local firms
Construction: foreign firms
Corporate and M&A: Foreign firms
Corporate and M&A: Local firms
Data protection and cyber security: Foreign firm
Data protection and cyber security: Local firms
Dispute resolution
Energy: Foreign firms
Fintech and financial services regulatory: Foreign firms
Fintech and financial services regulatory: Local firms
Insurance: Foreign firms
Insurance: Local firms
Intellectual property: Local firms
International arbitration
Investment funds: foreign firms
Investment funds: local firms
Labour and employment: Foreign firms
Labour and employment: Local firms
Offshore law firms
Private wealth and family law: Foreign firms
Private wealth and family law: Local firms
Projects: Foreign firms
Projects and energy: Local firms
Real estate: Local firms
Restructuring and insolvency: Foreign firms
Restructuring and insolvency: Local firms
Shipping: Foreign firms
Shipping: Local firms
Start-up and venture capital: Foreign firms
Start-up and venture capital: Local firms
Tax: Local firms
TMT: Foreign firms
TMT: Local firms
White-collar crime: Foreign firms
White-collar crime: Local firms

SOUTH KOREA

Antitrust and competition : Local firms
Banking and finance : Local firms
Capital markets: Local firms
Capital markets: Foreign firms
Corporate and M&A: Local firms
Corporate and M&A: Foreign firms
Dispute resolution: Local firms
Fintech and financial services regulatory
Insurance: Local firms
International arbitration
Intellectual property: Local firms
Intellectual property: Foreign firms
Labour and employment: Local firms
Projects and energy: Local firms
Projects and energy: Foreign firms
Real estate: Local firms
Regulatory: White-collar, compliance and investigations: local firms
Shipping: Local firms
Shipping: Foreign firms
Tax: Local firms
TMT: Local firms

SRI LANKA

Banking, finance and capital markets
Corporate and M&A
Dispute resolution
Intellectual property
Labour and employment
Projects and energy
Real estate and construction
Shipping
Tax

TAIWAN

Antitrust and competition
Banking and finance
Capital markets
Corporate and M&A
Data protection
Dispute resolution
Insurance
Intellectual property
Intellectual property: Prosecution
Labour and employment
Real estate and construction, projects and energy – RENAMED
Shipping
Tax
TMT

THAILAND

Banking and finance
Capital markets
Corporate and M&A
Customs and international trade
Dispute resolution
Dispute resolution: International arbitration
Insurance
Intellectual property
Labour and employment
Projects and energy
Real estate and construction
Restructuring and insolvency
Transport
Tax
TMT

VIETNAM

Banking and finance
Capital markets
Corporate and M&A
Data protection
Dispute resolution: Litigation
Dispute resolution: Arbitration
Foreign desks
Insurance
IP: International firms
IP: Local firms
Labour and employment
Projects and energy
Real estate and construction
Shipping and aviation
Tax
TMT

THE BAR

AUSTRALIAN BAR

Commercial disputes
Competition
Construction, infrastructure and property
Crime and regulatory (including white-collar crime)
TMT and IP

HONG KONG BAR

Administrative and public law
Commercial disputes
Competition
Construction and property
Family and private client
Intellectual property
Labour and employment
Regulatory, investigations and crime

The Regional International Arbitration – the Bar sections for barristers have been sunsetted to avoid duplication with the jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction coverage, including in the UK guide.

International arbitration work is still relevant to sections such as commercial disputes in Hong Kong and Australia. If you wish to make consequential amendments to your written submissions for the International Arbitration sections in the UK guide, please contact Will Tolcher. Coverage of the New Zealand Bar and India: Senior Advocates will not be included in the 2026 edition.