With a hung parliament expected following the UK general election this week, most partners would prefer another coalition over a minority government, with more than two-thirds of respondents to a new Legal Week survey arguing a minority government would be bad for the economy.

Legal Week's latest Big Question survey, which canvassed the opinion of nearly 100 partners at leading UK and US law firms, found that 80% would prefer another coalition in the absence of a single party winning an outright majority.

Seventy-two percent believe a minority government would be either 'bad' or 'very bad' for the economy.

Twenty-five percent think a minority government would not affect the economic recovery either way, while 3% have faith in it being good for the economy.

Tim Frazer, London office head at Arnold & Porter, says: "Minority governments are totally unworkable and could cause a collapse and then provoke a new election such as the first Wilson government in the 1970s. We've had a coalition government for a whole term and we're still alive."

The research found that 70% of the respondents believe the incumbent coalition government has been 'largely successful', with a further 4% declaring it a 'total success'. In contrast 5% say it has been a 'total failure', with 11% denouncing it as 'largely unsuccessful'.

Some 43% of respondents believe policies brought in by the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats through the first full coalition in Britain since Winston Churchill's wartime coalition in 1945 have significantly boosted the business environment in the UK, with a similar percentage (37%) saying it has 'marginally' helped UK businesses.

One senior partner at a magic circle firm says: "I think George Osborne has done a broadly good job in managing the economy. The involvement of the Lib Dems brought a number of socially liberal policies to the fore that otherwise we might not have."

However, some add that the government cannot take full credit for the UK's recent economic upturn.

"When you compare the European economy now to when the coalition took over we are in a much better state," argues David Hughes, a litigation partner at Dechert.

Frazer adds: "It is difficult to correlate. Business has flowed back into the City but I think it is more a result of global conditions."

The survey found that 64% of respondents plan to vote Conservative, 8% plan to vote Liberal Democrat, 21% will vote Labour, 3% plan to vote Green and 1% will plump for UKIP.

Given the strong Conservative leaning of the respondents it is perhaps not surprising that 74% say that if a Labour-led government had been elected in 2010 economic growth would have been 'weaker' or 'stagnated'.

With the SNP drawing up plans to support a Labour-led government, 54% of respondents believe such a combination would have a 'very negative impact' on UK business activity.

"The incentives culture would be really quite different," says a senior partner at a magic circle firm. "The mansion tax and top rate of tax would be a disincentive to talented people."

However, partners have other concerns about the current government, particularly the prospect of an EU referendum, as favoured by the Conservatives and not ruled out by the Liberal Democrats.

"Clients, particularly in the financial services sector, are very concerned about a potential EU referendum," notes Clifford Chance M&A and competition partner Jenine Hulsmann.

"Regulations decided at the European level often apply to countries that are not EU members. Businesses worry that, on an 'out' vote, the UK would lose influence but still have to comply with new rules to participate in European markets."

Meanwhile, Hogan Lovells chair and real estate partner Nicholas Cheffings says the government needs to deal with airport expansion.

"The UK is in danger of suffering materially without airport expansion. Dubai is now bigger than Heathrow.

"Paris, Frankfurt and Amsterdam all have greater growth capacity. Businesses in other parts of the world, particularly China, will locate elsewhere because of better connectivity."

With polls predicting that the Conservatives are set to be the biggest parliamentary party, come Friday morning it looks like partners could get their wish for a Tory-led coalition, subject to the numbers stacking up.

However, whether this will address the sector's policy concerns will depend on the detail of any deal that is struck to form a government.