US law firm Crowell & Moring to recruit first London trainee

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By Legal Cheek on

Inaugural rookie will complete ‘non-rotational’ TC

US law firm Crowell & Moring is to take on its first trainee solicitor in London.

The Washington-headquartered firm confirmed it will recruit one rookie to start in January 2021, with plans to hire more in the future as part of a wider strategy to strengthen its presence in the City.

Crowell first revealed its City TC ambitions early last year, however details regarding the number of trainees the firm hoped to take on, and what they could expect in the way of remuneration, remained unknown until now.

The successful candidate will undertake a ‘non-rotational’ training contract similar to that on offer at fellow US player Jones Day. Instead of spending a set amount of time in a specific department (more commonly known as the ‘seat system’), Crowell’s rookie will be exposed to a broad range of specialisms including arbitration, corporate, finance and international trade, through a more flexible approach.

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“Starting a solicitor training programme is another exciting step on our journey toward building the London office,” Robert Weekes, London managing partner told Legal Cheek. “It has always been part of our strategic plans and we have now reached the right point in our development to bring this to life.”

The UK trainee will start on a salary of £45,000, the same five-figure sum on offer at the likes of Freshfields, Dechert and Herbert Smith Freehills, according to our Firms Most List. Newly-qualified (NQ) solicitor pay will sit at £84,000.

Weekes continued: “The new initiative gives us the opportunity to bring on-board new talent and, just as importantly, allows the successful individual to play their part in our plans and ambitions for the future. This is not a one-off opportunity: we see this graduate scheme as playing a key role in growing our team in the years to come.”

The firm says it will now host two webinars next month for potential applicants to learn more about they can expect from the training contract.

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