Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton

The Cleary approach clearly (hah!) pays off. The firm boasts tech giant Alphabet (parent company of Google) as a long-standing client, along with the top names in finance, from Goldman Sachs to Morgan Stanley. The firm even advised Fifa at the bidding stage for the 2026 World Cup, ensuring the historic three-host tournament went ahead without legal snags. Aspiring lawyers disappointed by the Three Lions’ performance this year might find consolation in training at a firm for whom the tournament was certainly a win.

Deal-makers of the future may be drawn to Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton for its particular prowess in the world of M&A and capital markets. Recent highlights include representing the United Pickleball Association in the major merger which created the world’s first unified pickleball ecosystem, as well as advising EG on the Move on its acquisition of hundreds of petrol station forecourts across the UK. Competition is another of Cleary’s key strengths. Most recently, the firm made headlines representing RyanAir before EU courts in a successful challenge to the German government’s €6bn bailout of an airline competitor.

With high-flying clients come high expectations; this global firm is not for the faint-hearted. Trainees can expect to be thrown in at the deep end and to work long hours (and long hours at firms like Cleary mean very long hours). One spy explains: “Long hours are expected and are often not praised enough. Trainees are ranked based on their billable hours to supervisors every week.” Another reveals “during normal working weeks, work/life balance is almost non-existent.” However, one merrier newbie reports that hours “are practice group specific (forget it if you are in cap markets) but in my current seat I can leave at 6pm and, if necessary, log back in at home. I have also been travelling on weekends much to my surprise.” Another details that they “have very little time during the week to do much beyond work, but weekends have been respected for the most part.” For those putting in the late nights, a £30 Deliveroo allowance and taxis post-8pm might offer some consolation. How much can a new rookie really expect when they’re bringing home one of the biggest pay packets the City has to offer?

Training at Cleary is very much “on-the-job” and “learn-as-you-go,” with “very few” formal training sessions. We heard from insiders that during busy times, which are a-plenty at this US outfit, client work takes precedence and training is put on the back-burner: “in some ways this is great as you’re given a lot of responsibility early, but on the other hand it would sometimes be better to be given a bit more support or explanation before you begin a task,” explained one respondent.

This on-the-job approach leaves many Cleary trainees buzzing. “I’ve been on real matters and client calls since the first couple of weeks, the exposure is amazing” tells one. Another recounts: “I was able to immediately jump into ongoing matters and feel like my days are very full and interesting.” The competition team stands out as a particularly strong contender of high-quality work, with the firm engaged “in the most important competition matters worldwide” and trainees given the opportunity to take ownership over their work.

Even Cleary, however, cannot escape the ever-present grumbles of trainee grunt work. One rookie confesses they “are given the work of a paralegal as well as of a 2PQE lawyer. This leads to many administrative and highly time-consuming tasks at the same time as more intricate or higher responsibility ones.” LC hopes that the firm’s recent roll-out of collaborative AI tool Legora will help to alleviate this burden. The firm appears to have its finger firmly on the tech pulse, having also acquired Gen AI-focused start-up Springbok AI and launched alternative legal service provider Cleary X a couple of years back.

There does seem to be a little more help on offer for fresh newbies: “the support given is tailored and associates and partners are generally aware of the difference in abilities between a first and third seater” were the reassuring words of one recruit. Another emphasised the benefits of a tough training contract: “once you train at Cleary you can thrive anywhere.”

For the driven and determined, the rewards are many. Trainees have flexibility in their areas of work, earn a top-notch salary (trainees start on £62.5k, go up to £67.5k, and on qualification, take home £164.5k), and are offered the opportunity to work overseas. The firm’s most recent financials show that it neared the $1.7 billion (£1.2 billion) mark in revenue, with profit per equity partner sitting at the dizzying height of $5.2 million (£3.7 million), at least a million pounds over what most Magic Circle partners pull in. The firm also began 2026 under new leadership, with Jeff Karpf taking over as managing partner as part of a planned succession at the top of the firm.

As you might expect, trainees also have a decent chance of securing an international secondment, with around 20% of our survey respondents jetting across the world this year. Recent trips have included stints in Hong Kong, Cologne, Abu Dhabi, and New York. One rookie reported that their six months spent in the Paris office was “[my] best seat by far.” For those who miss out, there are reports of a trainee conference in sunny Porto and an acculturation event in Brussels. Client secondments are even more common, with trainees typically spending time with the firm’s top banking clients.

Back in blighty, Cleary occupies the top five floors of a 16-storey tower at London Wall Place. The office, which we’re told has “some serious Succession vibes,” features “glass-front double-height ceilings with views across the City,” as well as roof terraces, pocket gardens and parks, restored remains of the Roman city wall, and the medieval St Alphage church tower. This swanky abode also hosts a top-notch canteen, subsidised by the firm’s partners, making it “both high quality and affordable” in the words of one. In fact, lack of break rooms aside, Cleary trainees were overwhelmingly positive about their digs: “very sleek, beautiful views and very modern” was the feedback in a nutshell. However, there are whispers that the current digs are getting a bit tight. One trainee told us that “we’re running out of space and there are very few communal areas to relax with people.” This is hardly surprising, as the firm has been investing heavily in its London office of late, having added several lateral partners to its funds team over the past year alone, beefing up its funds practice, and even launching a brand-new London real estate practice.

The London team is reportedly a happy ship, particularly among the “cohesive and friendly” junior ranks. Cleary scores particularly well for peer support in the Legal Cheek Trainee and Junior Lawyer Survey 2026-27, as it has done in previous years. One happy camper revealed that “the people you work with are very much the firm’s strength. Everyone is lovely and there’s really not a sense of competition between the trainees at all.” Another echoes this sentiment, adding that “the trainee cohort is very close,” thanks in part to the firm’s relatively small intake of only around 16 each year. Our sources tell us trainee cohorts “often go out together and are always willing to help each other out at work,” while another confirms that their peers have been “very supportive, collegiate and collaborative.”

Scores are more variable at partner level, though most still rate their superiors as “generally all nice and approachable.” One particular insider reports finding it “hard to approach superiors in certain teams, making it difficult to ask questions.” Generally, we’re told any frostiness is the result of higher-ups being busy and unavailable, rather than any genuinely bad eggs. Otherwise, insiders say that “associates and even partners are very approachable and very happy to chat with you about work or otherwise.”

The firm’s social life is said to be fairly flexible, with “a good number of socials,” although without the pressure to attend too many such events if socialising with your co-workers isn’t quite your thing. While last-minute drop-outs due to work pressures do inevitably occur, the socials are usually “moderately well-attended.”

When they’re not putting in long hours working with top clients, lawyers at Cleary (somehow!) find time to give back. The firm supports nonprofits and social enterprises, and has recently partnered with the National Literacy Trust to sponsor a show garden at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

Those who are big fans of flexible working should expect to be disappointed; we are told Cleary makes all its recruits come into the office for the first three months of their training contract. Once you’ve served your time, however, the firm allows up to two WFH days per week, and trainees can then relish the “good tech equipment” provided by the firm, which includes a monitor, webcam, keyboard, and mouse.