Eversheds Sutherland

Like in Legal Cheek surveys gone by, Eversheds Sutherland still comes across as a solid firm, with particularly nice partners, a decent work/life balance and a ‘sector-focused’ approach that leads to some great client secondments.

The training is “generally very good”, although one rookie grumbles “there could be more formal training for each seat, particularly the more technical ones”. Training is said to be “very often informal”, meaning the quality of it depends on “how well you are able to push into projects,” according to LC spies. As one details: “It’s very much a ‘you get what you put in’ which would be improved with some proper structure. It’s very difficult to get exposure to actual, more complicated work – you basically have to hope someone likes you and walks you through it at some point.” Others saw it differently: “Overall the training is great, I’m in my 4th seat and 3 of those have been fantastic. I don’t think you are really spoon fed, you do have to go out and seek work and work hard at it by yourself, but there are always people available to give information and assistance,” said one recruit.

We’re also told that the quality of the training can depend heavily on the team and supervisor. One insider had this to say: “Some team members have really gone out of their way to make sure that we receive the training we need — there are some stand out partners and associates who time and again will ensure that we are getting a great variety of work, client exposure and quality feedback. Equally, there are associates who use trainees for the sole purpose of running redlines, finding documents they have misplaced, or carrying things.”

Newbies can expect decent levels of responsibility — if they’re up for it. “Once you prove yourself, there is scope to take on associate level work,” one former trainee explains. “In FS (funds), I was able to draft key fund documents for the establishment of a new fund. I also took on some substantive pieces of client advice in competition.” On the flip side of this, insiders warn that you’d better “be prepared for a lot of admin and printing jobs which are anything but stimulating” if you end up in real estate. This is one of Eversheds main specialisms, particularly in the regions, but you’ll also find a decent amount of public sector, and corporate and M&A work to be had here too. The differing quality of work between departments was a familiar tune to most, with one telling LC that “some matters you are able to run with supervision” whilst “in other teams running your own DocuSign is the most responsibility given.” Another rookie explains, “Sometimes the work is great. Sometimes you get great legal research and other times you spend 10 hours setting up a DocuSign.” The bain of DocuSign aside, our sources were still keen to point out that “trainees start work straight away on the biggest clients and will get very involved if they prove themselves”, with another adding that “on the whole people are receptive if you want to be involved with certain types of work.”

Indeed, ES partners are at the more down-to-earth and approachable end of the corporate law firm spectrum. “Regardless of their seniority or experience, people are so generous with their time and their knowledge and are always approachable,” one spy tells us, “the only thing that can make this difficult is how busy everyone is”. There’s even a legendary story of one of Eversheds’ senior partners hiring an ice-cream van several summers ago to give everyone in the office free frozen treats. We are told that the best partners are “like a big brother/sister with some professionalism thrown in” and that “if it wasn’t for email signatures (and the obvious age giveaway) it would be quite hard to identify who the partners/juniors are”. The open plan office spaces are also said to be conducive to working fairly close with partners and “no is opposed to having a coffee together.”

Eversheds trainees are a fairly busy bunch. “Peaks and troughs but if you’re in a trough you’ll get called out for your utilisation” is how one describes the work-life balance on offer here. Another shares their experience: “it is generally good as a trainee due to not having chargeable hours targets. People are often respectful of working hours, but when the going gets tough you’re expected to pull your weight and put the hours in. Weekend working is not expected and where necessary it is rewarded and not thankless.” Trainees appreciate that “Eversheds is a global commercial firm, and your workload will reflect this”, but people will check in on you if you’re burning the midnight oil and trainees are generally “encouraged to log off and not stay late unless ABSOLUTELY essential,” according to one LC source.

Another recruit shares their experience so far: “If you’re in a busy, transactional team with a deal on then obviously this is going to take a hit but the firm is very good at sending you home at a decent hour to log back in after dinner and from the comfort of your home. The firm will also provide a taxi and dinner budget if you are working late and need to be in the office. Some trainees have, however, been able to leave pretty consistently at 5.30-6.30 each night, especially in the smaller advisory seats.”

It helps that you’ll be working alongside “constantly cheerful and upbeat” peers who “all genuinely care about each other”. One rookie gushes, “I feel that my peers all value my contributions and work, and are supportive of wanting me to succeed as a trainee and part of the firm. There really is an atmosphere of being one team, regardless of role type, location or seniority. The people and atmosphere in the firm were the other of the two most significant reasons why I wanted to join.”

The social life is decent with frequent events held by the social committee which usually get a decent turn out and “monthly office socials with free food and drinks” making up for a lack of more organised fun. There is the annual Christmas party and a few team socials mentioned here and there but the lack of a trainee social budget was a bugbear for many and this has led to the social scene being fairly office dependent.

Another major bugbear was the lack of international secondments. The firm does offer two-week long “business trips” for its trainees, with destinations including Munich, Amsterdam and Dusseldorf, but recruits note that these short stints don’t exactly “carry the same appeal as a six month secondment — especially as you’re not even allowed to work while you’re there.” As for client secondments, trainees report stints with the likes of HSBC, Amazon, Aviva and the Department of Transport. Though there are a few grumbles that these weren’t offered to trainees up north.

Perks don’t appear to be the perkiest, according to insiders. “It’s ok, market standard, nothing to shout about”, one respondent summarises. Gymflex, private health insurance, free parking at UK offices (“great for weekend city visits”, says one rookie), free breakfast and food are all appreciated, as well as surprise drops to trainees’ desks, like advent calendars at Christmas and Easter eggs at Easter. Hungry trainees be warned, however, as on the food front one trainee tells us that “there was once snacks available in the office, but this has been reduced to a measly few pieces of fruit for 50 people to fight over”.

Birmingham, Manchester and London benefit from a fully subsidised canteen which serves some “excellent hot meals”. However rookies do note that the prices seem to be on the rise, with one stating “the food is a lot more expensive than it used to be, it is now pretty comparable to going somewhere local for food, when it used to be heavily subsidised.” Another deterioration comes in the form of the coffee machines ––once treated to the creme-de-la-creme of Starbucks’ self-serve, rookies now complain of second-tier coffee from “bad machines”. There were no complaints about the free breakfast though!

On the firm’s tech abilities, one source tells us: “Some really good solutions, however the basic technology systems sometimes let that down.” Echoing this, another says: “I think our external client facing technology is brilliant, but our internal legal tech is often very behind.” That being said, the firm has recently rolled out Microsoft Copilot and a new global AI leadership team has been established to help ES’ with its AI capabilities — so watch this space.

With a little regional competition between trainees, office bragging rights are a big deal. But consensus is that the Real Madrid and Barcelona of Eversheds’ UK offices are the London and Manchester digs. “Win the office lottery and a spectacular view of St Paul’s is your reward. Lose and you’ll soon forget what daylight looks like,” vaunts one London aficionado. It can’t be too bad as the skyline rooftop at the London HQ was once used to unveil West Ham United’s football kit. Manchester trainees, meanwhile, are thrilled with their digs at Two New Bailey Square. “The Manchester office is beautiful — especially the roof terrace with views out over the city,” says an insider. Many of the other offices are also in the process of being refurbished and have now added eco-friendly features in the form of garden rooftops with beehives. As one insider exclaimed: “We grow vegetables on the roof!”. There appears to be just one grumble on the office front: “A recent renovation hasn’t really improved the feeling of the Birmingham office — it still feels dated and a little dark.”

Luckily, the firm’s hybrid working policy means resident Brummies can work from home two days a week until another refurb. In terms of set-up, Eversheds provides a screen, webcam, mouse, keyboard and chair making the transition from office to home “seamless”, according to Legal Cheek sources.