Insights

A new report by the Law Society highlights the success of the UK’s legal sector

November 2, 2023

A new report by the Law Society highlights the success of the UK’s legal sector

When it comes to the performance of the UK economy, there seems to be an endless stream of bad news. For example, just this week, the BBC reported that the number of companies going bust in the UK this year is on track to be the highest since the depths of the financial crisis in 2009.

So it was heartening to read a new report on one aspect of the UK economy that is performing very well indeed – the legal sector.

According to the Law Society’s new evidence-based International Data Insights Report 2023, the value of the UK’s legal services exports keeps on rising. In 2021, the sector created a trade surplus of some £5.3bn, compared to £4.6bn in 2020.

Where are we exporting our legal services to? The United States is the UK’s most important trading partner for legal services, accounting for almost £2bn in exports from the UK in 2021. Meanwhile the EU as a trading bloc is an extremely significant market for UK legal services, accounting for £2.15bn in exports from the UK in 2021.

When it comes to resolving disputes, London is the place to be. The London Commercial Court is the leading centre for commercial litigation, outperforming New York and other competitors. It delivered 172 written judgments in 2021/22, compared to 101 delivered by the New York Commercial Division and 26 by the Singapore International Commercial Court. Meanwhile almost half (37 out of 77) of contested trials across all four divisions of London Commercial Court were completed within one court week (four days) between October 2021 and September 2022.

The evidence also suggests that London leads the pack for global arbitration, with the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA) being the leading centre. While both Singapore and Hong Kong received more claims than London in 2022, they made fewer appointments of arbitrators. The LCIA appointed 423 arbitrators, compared with 340 at the Singapore International Arbitration Centre and 159 at the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre. Meanwhile in the maritime sector, the UK really does rule the waves, with the London Maritime Arbitrators Association handling the vast majority of global maritime disputes, which are almost always governed by English law.

As the governing law of choice for international transactions across many different sectors, it is clear that English law facilitates a huge amount of economic activity. That is not just good news for lawyers, but for the wider economy as well.


November 2, 2023

Insights