Since 2006, this unique analysis has sought to recognise market leaders in the legal industry by measuring and rewarding uniqueness and value delivered to clients – rather than more conventional metrics such as size, revenue and profit.

Indeed, in many legal solutions and management initiatives, how lawyers innovate is often the only way they can differentiate themselves from their peers.

For the past three years, the rankings have focused on a particular theme: change, collaboration and most recently, bold thinking. This year, however, the challenges facing the legal profession are such that innovation itself is the theme that binds.

We are inviting submissions in the following categories:

• Legal expertise: corporate
• Legal expertise: finance
• Legal expertise: dispute resolution
• Legal expertise: private clients and wealth
• Client service
• Corporate strategy
• Value resourcing
• Legal industry pioneers

We are also inviting you to make nominations for peers, clients and colleagues into the following categories:

• Legal Innovator of the year
• Legal Industry Pioneers (for legal service providers from any part of the industry)
• European in-house legal teams
• Special Achievement Award

This year, we are changing the way in which submissions should be made to the FT report. All submissions must be made via the online entry forms by the deadline of 18 April 2012.

You can download copy of the full submission guidelines here.

FT Innovative Lawyers is supported by Integreon, the global provider of integrated legal, research and business support solutions.

Please click here if you cannot see the film above.

You can see photos from the event here.

Gillian Tett, US Managing Editor of the Financial Times and Reena SenGupta, RSG Consulting’s CEO will be speaking at the event. Integreon, the overall sponsor for the Innovative Lawyers project in Europe and the US will be presenting a special recognition award to the most innovative US law firm in this year’s inaugural FT Law 25 ranking.

White & Case, the sponsor for the US in-house section will also be presenting an award for the most innovative in-house legal team.

If you miss the print version, you will be able to access the full report online at the FT microsite: www.ft.com/usil

But it’s interesting: because what is happening in the legal profession does not in any way resemble the brave new world of the novel. If anything, Huxley’s image of a status driven, rigid society where everyone knows their place, (a world full of alphas, betas and gammas – sound familiar?), a world that hates un-orthodoxy is more reflective of what the profession used to be.

The year, our research reveals lawyers being, not just innovative, but un-orthodox. And this un-orthodoxy, rather than threatening society, is what businesses needs. The best ideas, in the research are those that have been turned on their heads.

We have been publishing the FT Innovative Lawyers report for six years in Europe. And that period takes in three years of boom and three years of bust. It’s a good “before and after” lens in which to look at the profession.

In the first three reports, the references we took from clients were complimentary and the lawyers’ work was excellent. But the interviews we did with both the lawyers and the clients pre the crisis lack the emotion, empathy and commitment of the last three years.

More than ever, when we interview partners, they say to us that this has been a career defining moment, the most challenging, the most complex work. The work they do is worthwhile. This is why, they say, we became lawyers in the first place. They are becoming ideas generators. And they tell us (without a hint of pleasure) the ideas are theirs and definitely not the bankers.

The client referees are also more heartfelt than pre-2008. Their references are more emotional. Take the client referee at Uniq plc for Slaughter and May (and I am just using this as an example). Uniq were faced with a £400million pensions deficit. As a company with only a £10 million turnover, the problem was catastrophic.

One of the questions we always ask clients is ‘Where did your lawyers add the real value?’  Uniq’s answer was simple. “They saved the company. We all think here that we would have gone bust without them.”

All the short-listed entries in the FT Awards have similar client or third party reviews. Lawyers who have been behind these innovations have every reason to feel proud.

The FT Innovative Lawyers reports in the Europe and the US and the FT Innovative Lawyer Awards are produced in partnership Integreon, who are supporting the project for the next three years.

The overall winner of the Most Innovative European Law firm was Allen & Overy; the most innovative non-UK European law firm was Garrigues. Other winners included: Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer for innovation in finance, Simmons & Simmons for innovation in dispute resolution, Slaughter and May and Garrigues were joint winners in corporate.

The most innovative in-house legal team award went to Nokia. They were tremendously pleased with their recognition and in a show of the close ties that make them such an effective team all came to the stage to accept the award.

The Legal Innovator of the Year went to Richard Tett, a partner at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, who was chosen for his inventive restructuring solutions in various deals over the past three years and credited with transforming restructuring work across Europe.

The Special Achievement Award was presented to Peter Solmssen, General Counsel of Siemens AG for his work implementing a new compliance culture and for promoting corporate integrity and what have been described as ‘cartels of the good’ with other businesses. Mr Solmssen gave the key note address at the event.

Other award winners included:

Anti-Bribery and corruption: Simmons & Simmons and Berwin Leighton Paisner

Efficiency: CMS Cameron McKenna

Client Service: Cuatrecasas Goncalves Pereira

Corporate Strategy: Irwin Mitchell

Legal Industry Pioneers: The Co-operative Legal Services

International expansion: Norton Rose

Emerging Markets: Akin Gump

Lionel Barber, Editor of the FT, Philip Wood, Allen & Overy and Robert Gogel, CEO of Integreon

Philip Wood, Allen & Overy, Accepting for Most Innovative Law Firm 2011

Richard Tett, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Legal Innovator of the Year

Special Achievement Award winner Peter Solmssen, General Counsel, Siemens AG

Joe Simpson, Irwin Mitchell, Innovation in Corporate Strategy

Norton Rose for innovation in International Expansion

Ignacio Corbera, Garrigues, accepting the award for Most Innovative Law Firm in Europe (Outside the UK)

Reena SenGupta, RSG Consulting and Dan Walsh, Akin Gump, winner for Legal Innovation in Emerging Markets

One of the best compliments we have had about what we do was one that described us as “anthropologists of lawyers”. Our immersion in the sector continues to fascinate us. The passion is still there 10 years on. With so many new projects on the go – working on the second edition of the US Innovative Lawyers report with the FT is one of them – we may not have time to celebrate. The anniversary was actually on the 1 March. But we hope our work celebrates our clients – law firms and general counsel – in the best way we know how, by showing the best of them through the FT Innovation Awards.

For a journalist and researcher, it is a gift to be able to interview so many senior law firm leaders in such a short space of time. It gives a snapshot as to the current state of the US legal market.

In the main, law firms were far more upbeat than this time last year, with a handful of transactional NY firms saying that fee levels had returned to normal. The majority were more cautious and felt that there was a new paradigm of pressures: the need to be more efficient and to show value. One of the hot topics was the idea of project management with the discussion centring around whether it’s worth teaching lawyers to be project managers or whether it is simply easier – and more effective – to hire in the expertise.

Nearly all the firms put their recoveries down to a slew of work emerging from the energy and tech industries, with a few enjoying the boom in healthcare issues. Emerging markets also are also providing a seemingly endless supply of work.

The 2011 US report will have two new important sections for law firms: one on the business of law and an index of the most innovative law firms in the US. In terms of the legal expertise categories, we can confirm that the corporate section will be broken down into three sub sections which will include general corporate, energy and technology.

Following the success of last year’s inaugural report, we will be expanding our investigation in 2011. This year we will also look at innovation in the business of law and will hold a launch event will recognise outstanding performers. The report will be distributed to the Financial Times global readership and available on FT.com. You can read last year’s report at www.ft.com/usil

The deadline for submissions is July 15, 2011. Download the revised 2011 US submission guidelines here.