We have, today, launched the research process for the 2026 edition of the IP STARS rankings and the Managing IP Awards programme. The research comprises an analysis of submissions, market feedback from interviews and surveys, and independent research.
Our submission portal is now open for law firms to submit their completed research forms. The submission deadline for firms is October 31 2025.
A separate research process for in-house practitioners and teams will be announced in October.
Firm submissions
The most important way for law firms to participate in our research is to submit their firm questionnaire and client referee documents. Our research analysts use the submissions to determine the firm and practitioner rankings and the Managing IP Awards programme.
Updated research documents
Firms will notice some changes this year. For example, we reformatted our firm questionnaire and added a section to allow firms that handle IP filing and portfolio management work to showcase their IP administration department.
For ease of reference, we have highlighted (in green) all the changes in the firm questionnaire.
Click here to download the firm questionnaire
Click here to download the referee spreadsheet
Also, this year, we decided to create a separate, special form for tax firms interested in our research on IP tax advice.
The submission deadline is October 31 2025.
The submission portal
Our proprietary portal allows users to create accounts, upload their research documents, and have access to them in the future. You can access the portal here and read the user guide here.
Market interviews
We also conduct market interviews as part of our research process. From this month, we will start inviting firms to participate in our market interviews. The interviews are mainly done between October and December. They are scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis. Unfortunately, some firms will not be able to get an interview slot, but they should not worry because this will not affect or influence our research decisions.
Register to listen to our webinar
We will host two webinars, on September 16 and 18, to provide information and answer questions about our research process and publications. Registrants will receive an automatic notification to listen to the recording if they are unable to join live.
A recap of the 2025 edition
More than 1,900 firms participated in our research for the 2025 edition of the IP STARS rankings and Managing IP Awards programme.
Managing IP hosted ceremonies for the EMEA Awards and Americas Awards. The Asia-Pacific Awards ceremony will be hosted in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on November 6.
We published all the firm rankings and the IP Stars list for 2025 on ipstars.com. Our editorial colleagues analysed the key highlights from the rankings: trademark, patent, the IP Stars list, copyright and transactions. The 2025 Rising Stars list and Corporate Stars list will be published on September 30.
Please follow our research and results publication updates here. If you have questions or concerns, please contact our research team.
About IP STARS
IP STARS is an exclusive rankings publication that recognises the leading firms and practitioners for intellectual property work. The research is impartial and covers several IP practice areas and more than 70 jurisdictions. Firms and practitioners do not pay to be ranked. This makes IP STARS the most comprehensive and widely respected guide in the IP profession.
Managing IP published its first legal directory in 1994 and rebranded it in 2013 as IP STARS. Read more about the rankings here.
About the Managing IP Awards
Launched in 2006, the Managing IP Awards programme is the leading IP law firm awards programme in the legal industry. It covers several IP practice areas and more than 50 jurisdictions. The research is robust and impartial. Firms, companies, and practitioners do not pay to be shortlisted or to win. Learn more about the awards here.
