Future of Law 2026: William O’Rorke selected by Institut Choiseul
Institut Choiseul has named William O’Rorke, the partner in charge of ORWL Avocats’ Regulatory practice, among the forty laureates of the 2026 edition of its list “Les 40 qui font le futur du droit” (the 40 shaping the future of law), in the category “Conseil et contentieux” (advisory and litigation). Drawn up in early 2026 with Doctrine and BDO, the list features legal professionals aged 40 or under who work in emerging fields of law linked to the economy.
Reference
Les 40 qui font le futur du droit (in French), Institut Choiseul, 2026 edition (legal deposit April 2026), category “Conseil et contentieux”: William O’Rorke, “Associé et avocat, ORWL Avocats”, laureate. Free access.
A selection based on published criteria
Institut Choiseul bases its selection on research, on recommendations from experts in its network and on a questionnaire assessing each candidate’s impact, commitment and achievements. Its criteria include heading a dedicated practice, publishing analyses and opinion pieces, awards, contributions to case law or legal innovation, and professional or non-profit work.
The Institute states that the list is a selection, not a ranking: the forty laureates receive no rank. This second edition includes none of the 2025 laureates. It covers seven groups of legal roles, from the judiciary to notaries, including in-house legal teams, academia and LegalTech.
ORWL Avocats’ Regulatory practice
At ORWL Avocats, William O’Rorke heads the Regulatory practice: authorisation of crypto-asset service providers (CASPs) by the AMF (the French financial markets regulator) under MiCA, payment and e-money institution authorisation by the ACPR (the French banking supervisor), AML/CFT, DORA, token classification, NFTs and DeFi. In 2026 he published two studies in the Revue de droit bancaire et financier, one on classifying prediction markets, the other on the dual licensing required for EMT services.
He is secretary of ADAN (Association pour le développement des actifs numériques, a French digital assets industry association), teaches on Master’s programmes and gives the course on the regulation of crypto-assets at the EFB, the Paris bar school.
Page 1, cover
2026 laureate visual
Page 16, William O’Rorke’s entry, other laureates blurred
Reproduced with the permission of Institut Choiseul.
View the list on the Institut Choiseul website
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