The Legal 500

Ewan Parker, editor for the Northern region of the Legal 500, said that while firms such as Watson Burton and Ward Hadaway could catch up, Dickinson Dees was in a strong position.

He told Business Echo: "Dickinson Dees is dominating the list at the moment.

"Firms like Watson Burton and Ward Hadaway aren't too far behind, but they don't quite have the strength and depth of Dickinson Dees.

"However, the way we put the Legal 500 together means that much of a firm's standing is based on past reputation, because we speak to clients directly.

"Dickinson Dees has an established reputation in the region, and it will take a while for the other firms to catch up with that.

"However, I can see Dickinson Dees' rivals gaining ground on the firm in the future."

Mr Parker said the success of the region's law firms were a reflection of the vibrancy of the economy.

"It seemed to be a vibrant and competitive legal market in the North.

"A lot of the firms are competing for instructions from clients that are nationwide as well.

"Certainly, firms like Dickinson Dees have a strength that is the equal of any London firm.

"But generally, North-East firms are working on a lot of corporate activity in the region and there is a lot of development being carried out, which is good news for law firms."

The Legal 500 team is now working on a European edition - but will be returning to the North-East in January to start compiling next year's UK list.

In this year's list, Dickinson Dees, Ward Hadaway, Eversheds and Watson Burton dominated a number of sectors.

Nigel Williams, who leads Dickinson Dees' Tees Valley office, was described as "excellent" in the list for his corporate and commercial work, including the sale of Bells Stores to J Sainsbury last year.

Firms across the region, including Jacksons in Teesside, Blackett Hart and Pratt in Darlington, and Tilly Bailey and Irvine were also singled out for praise.

Several Newcastle firms have been branching out across the region in recent years, with Dickinson Dees and Crutes opening offices in Stockton, and Watson Burton opening in Leeds to cover the whole of the North-East and Yorkshire.

Robin Bloom, senior partner at Dickinson Dees, said: "It is very good news for us, but it isn't something we should be complacent about that we are rated so highly, but should be something that gives us the confidence to keep improving - otherwise, our position would not remain as it is."

THE 2005 edition of what has come to be regarded as the legal industry's bible was published on Thursday.

The Legal 500 is an independent analysis of the leading law firms in the region.

It was the first clients' guide to law firms and, over 18 years, has developed into the largest survey of the UK legal market.

Researchers analyse the practices of more than 800 law firms nationwide.

Understanding the firms is one aspect of the research process, but editors also rely on their own database of clients, gathering their views on the firms.

More than 20,000 copies of the book are distributed free every year, and many clients using the website, www.legal500.com.

The book is mainly a reference tool for buyers of legal services, but law firms find it of interest as an insight into the competition.

Editors and researchers at Legal 500 look at the size and strength of each firm - strength being gauged by clients' views.

The researchers interview their database of more than 3,000 clients, including investment banks, companies and others.

Firms are judged according to who their clients are, individual lawyers who have credibility with top clients; a strong technical ability for complex work; capacity for large transactions and cases; market share; track record; progress with gaining new clients; reputation; IT use and perception in the market.