London rakes in record fees from overseas demand for legal services
London is leading the charge of the British legal sector’s overseas exports which surged by 60 per cent over the past five years, hitting a record of almost £11bn, new data has revealed.
According to data from the Law Society, the professional body for 178,000 practising solicitors in England and Wales, London “remains an international heavyweight” in the exports of legal services.
The UK legal sector‘s exports have skyrocketed by more than 60 per cent in the last five years from £6.81bn in 2021 to £10.97bn in 2025, the study showed, with the EU and the US accounting for nearly two-thirds of that export revenue.
The London Commercial Court delivered 212 written judgments in 2025, almost twice as many as its closest competitor in Dubai. The civil and commercial division of the Dubai International Financial Centre delivered 117, while New York Commercial Division ranked in third position.
The majority of the caseload [96 per cent] handled by the London Court of International Arbitration involved at least one non-UK party, “pointing to London’s international appeal”, the Law Society said.
According to the data, last year saw English law govern £250tn in outstanding global derivatives, as well as 40 per cent of all international business and financial transactions across a range of industries and half of the world’s seaborne trade worth £13tn.
Leading position ‘cannot be taken for granted’
“The UK’s legal services are a major global success story. Exports are nearing £11bn and English law is used in trillions of pounds of international commerce. London remains a leading legal destination,” said Mark Evans, president of the Law Society.
Evans added that “with the right steps from the UK government”, the country’s legal industry “can unleash its full horsepower.”
“It is an export powerhouse contributing billions to the UK economy and employing more than half a million people,” Evans said.
However, he warned that the UK’s leading position “cannot be taken for granted. Other jurisdictions are investing fast and furiously in their court and legal infrastructure”.