Let's say I am a law firm in Germany. I want to join a network of
well-regarded national and international law firms that serve
multinational corporations. That is, my firm is willing to pay an
annual fee to belong to an international network of law firms such
that when a law firm or a multinational company in (say) the U.S.
needs a law firm in Germany for help on a particular corporate matter,
this network would refer that law firm or company to my firm in
Germany. MY QUESTION: How should I go about identifying such networks?
BONUS: How can I know which networks are any good? DO NOT get hung up
in the bonus if it will prevent you from answering the main question,
which is more straightforward.

Hello executivehotline,

Thank you for your question. 

I was able to locate quite a few referral and member groups for
international lawyers and law firms. Some of the best links follow
below:


http://www.lawinternational.com/services.htm
International Lawyers Network 

"International Lawyers Networkmember firms offer expertise in a broad
range of practice areas, including:

corporate and commercial law 
securities law 
taxation 
commercial litigation 
employment and expatriate law 
government contracting 
intellectual property law 
estate planning and administration 
alternative dispute resolution 
Responsive Representation Around the World

The principal strength of the ILN - in addition to the considerable
ability and reputation of its member firms - is its professional
cohesion. Many ILN members have worked with other member firms for
years. As a result, many have built long-standing relationships.
Moreover, members meet regularly, on a world-wide and regional basis,
to exchange information, ideas and experience.

To promote greater insight into different legal systems and cultures,
the ILN maintains a lawyer exchange program.

Moreover, all ILN member firms have immediate access to lawyers who
are fluent in the languages necessary for business transactions
throughout the world.

All these factors provide expeditious, attentive and immediate
service."



http://www.intlegalgroup.com/
INTERNATIONAL LEGAL GROUP (R)  
"One-Stop" Worldwide Services  
COUNTER-TERRORISM & GLOBAL LEGAL SOLUTIONS  


FREE Search for Specialized Law Firms in U.S. & Worldwide

A listing here may be beneficial to you.


 

http://www.icentre.com/ibrg/
International Business Referral Network  
  
The International Business Referral Network was founded by leading
international service providers as a forum for referrals, information
and education for the purpose of better servicing their clients.
 


Findlaw offers a directory of International Law Resources:
http://www.findlaw.com/12international/

I followed their link to individual countries and chose Germany. Here
you can search for appropriate law firms. A listing here may be a
benefit to you.



http://www.worldservicesgroup.com/help-faq.asp
World Services Group 

"WSG is a multidisciplinary organization in which many independent
professionals and firms of professionals participate. See Chapter 9 of
Multidisciplinary Partnerships and Practice.

A MDO is much broader in scope since within the MDO there are networks
and companies. The MDO is a more evolved business model that provides
greater opportunities than a network of professionals in one service
area. The MDO is able to build on the strength and reputation of each
of its parts to become more than the sum of the parts.

Single profession networks are great for networking among
professionals. They can generate referrals and provide contacts, which
will be the case in the various sections of WSG. On the other hand,
because professional in each area are competitors, networking, despite
collegiality, may be somewhat restricted. Building coalitions is
difficult because others at the firm may practice in the same area or
have different relationships with lawyers at other firms.

The MDO brings together a group of firms and companies, but most
importantly, a significant number of non-competitor professionals. The
different groups of professionals can develop complementary
relationships with each other. These professionals become a source of
referrals and resources because there is no hesitation to make a
referral to a non-competitor. Sharing experiences among the groups
assists in building the practices of each. Most importantly, in
jurisdictions where multidisciplinary services have become important,
members of the group are able to compete with other professional
service firms."



Chan Robles
http://www.chanrobles.com/directories.htm

DIRECTORIES OF LAWYERS AND LAW FIRMS WORLDWIDE

You might consider a listing here, as well.




http://www.legalreferrals.net/
The Attorney Referral Network 

"The Attorney Referral Network is the Ultimate Internet Index of
Attorneys, Law Firms, Expert Witnesses, Private Investigators, and
Process Servers.  Please explore our site to find a legal professional
in your local area."


They do have international referrals.



http://www.venables.co.uk/firmgrou.htm
Law Firm Groups, mainly International 

Here you will find a listing of international law firm groups with
several very good leads for you. For example:

http://www.acl-int.com/
The Association of Commercial Lawyers 

"The Association of Commercial Lawyers was founded in 1990 to enable
Member firms to provide clients with a global legal service. Our
common aim is to combine positive technical advice with sound
commercial judgement. ACL Member firms seek to provide their clients
with a swift and effective response to international business
requirements.

Each Member firm offers its own scope of qualified services. These
include Corporate, Commercial, Property, Banking, Intellectual
Property, Litigation, Taxation and Information Technology (including
Internet Services).

Local representation in a foreign jurisdiction offers incalculable
advantages. If a client is expanding into a foreign market, an ACL
Member firm can assist with commercial negotiations, help locate
suitable premises, examine the most tax effective structures, source
grants and incentives available and arrange meetings with local
authorities and other professionals. Partners and lawyers are
multi-lingual with a wealth of local knowledge in cross-border
transactions..."

This appears to be an excellent site for you to visit!


And...

http://www.europeanlawyers.org/introduction.html
The Association of European Lawyers 

"The Association of European Lawyers was created in 1989 with the
object of providing readily available expert legal services across
Europe. Originally established by the combining of resources of five
leading law firms in the UK, a non-exclusive network of correspondent
firms throughout Europe has been developed, offering a broad range of
legal services for business, with high standards of care and
efficiency..."


There are dozens such links on the venables pages.

It is difficult to answer the second part of your question. I would
suggest investigating the links above, and should one catch your
attention, call or email a listed member or two to see how they would
rate the service and describe how their business has benefited, if at
all, from becoming a member or having their firm listed.


Search Strategy:
global OR international +law OR legal +association OR network
global OR international +law OR legal +association OR network
+referral

I hope my research will help you locate sites and organizations that
will be a benefit in increasing the business of your firm. If a link
above should fail to work or anything require further explanation,
please do post a Request for Clarification and I will be pleased to
assist further.

Regards,

-=clouseau=-