Orrick

In the UK, rookies completing the six-seat TC can expect training which combines “observation and also lots of actual participation”. Insiders say they enjoy the autonomy in shaping their own training because it “allows us to choose topics which we think will be most useful”. It also helps that there’s some top-notch work for newbies to cut their teeth on: “you can be working on projects that regularly feature in the Financial Times. Otherwise, you can regularly be working with pioneers and leaders in the tech sphere.”

Another source summarises their experience so far like this: “Formal training is provided throughout the TC on specific areas of practice of process (and there are plenty of opportunities for trainees to specifically request training on something) and office-wide know-how sessions. However, the emphasis is definitely on practical, on-the-job training: “My supervisors have been incredibly supportive and most often, the approach is to give you a task and then leave you to take a stab at it, which you can then sit down and discuss afterward. In my experience, this autonomy has been really beneficial for developing technical skills, attention to detail and building confidence.”

What’s more, with an annual rookie intake of around five, “you aren’t left to fight over who gets to do the scanning as can be the case with some larger intakes”. However, we are told “the style of training differs across departments” (apparently “in corporate you may feel like a paralegal”, whereas in other seats “you are pushed as if you were an NQ”) but “each supervisor is keen for you to learn and help you develop throughout the seat”. One trainee reported that the firm reduced its paralegal support last year, leading to an increase in administrative tasks for some trainees. However, they can call on the firm’s document processing function in the US, which can assist with these tasks overnight and on weekends.

Fortunately, the firm’s legal tech is said to be “handy” and “advanced”, with newcomers praising the global innovation team responsible for developing and managing these platforms. A recent rollout includes ‘Orrick AI’, a ChatGPT-style tool to assist with various tasks. The firm also uses a platform called DraftWise, which ‘quickly compares documents against precedents and spots errors”.

Plus, you are not left completely on your own. This mole reports: “There is a comprehensive on-boarding process at the beginning of the training contract. This is then supplemented throughout the training process with seminars and training lectures. Additionally, more senior trainees offer training sessions to complement the more official routes.”

As is to be expected at a US firm, trainees “work hard and long”, but it can vary through the “peaks and troughs of deals” – spies report that late nights and weekend work are more common in the corporate teams, with the disputes and advisory teams having better balance. Busy spells can be “overwhelming”, according to one source, however “supervisors encourage a work/life balance”. Another tells us “people will make an effort to protect important personal plans and are respectful and appreciative when you are required to work late”. And on the subject of hours, Orrick has in place a policy that allows lawyers to put up to 40 billable hours towards a holiday to ensure they can really “unplug” from corporate life.

Insiders we spoke to confirm that “the firm is making efforts to root out bad working practices”. We are told that “people appreciate that you have a life outside work” and “departments tend to be understanding and like their teams to take a break if they have the opportunity to do so”. Work from home also “really helps with family life even if working late”. Orrick also provides its lawyers with “everything we need to emulate the office space, as well as supplying anything surplus as requested” along with a “generous budget” too. In short, the firm’s done a “really good job” on the agile working front.

Orrick’s small intake helps foster a “tight-knit” community among trainees. “We are pretty close and are able to informally discuss all the aspects of being at Orrick that we wouldn’t want to share through more formal channels”, notes one rookie. “Peers, both from my intake and that of the year above, are great – down to earth and good fun to socialise with. The trainees further along the process have been really helpful in giving us a low-down as to all the systems and helping us navigate the day-to-day,” says another.

There’s also “good camaraderie across the firm” that has avoided any stuffiness that sometimes goes with the territory of being in the City. More senior lawyers at Orrick are “very approachable — even up to the head of the London office, they emphasise that there is an open-door policy and always there for a chat. We are given a trainee buddy, seat supervisor as well as a trainee mentor who collectively help to guide us through our training contract, from both a work and pastoral perspective.”

This camaraderie is especially seen where trainee and junior associates go out for lunch and drinks together. Although reports do suggest that more effort could go into planning ad-hoc events and that busy schedules sometimes get in the way of making plans for extended periods of time.

This approachability is particularly impressive considering that Orrick doesn’t have an open-plan office — a fact that is much cherished by insiders who appreciate “the privacy and comfort of your own office (shared with one or two people)”. Plus we hear the view from the ninth floor of the firm’s “modern” and “very smart” London office is unparalleled, which rookies can enjoy from the terrace fitted with benches, “perfect for having lunch or reading some printouts in the sun”. Downsides are the lack of an in-house canteen and the caffeine provisions, with one rookie joking — “come for the people, not the coffee!” An upside is the “great location”, meaning employees can benefit from the plentiful restaurants close to St Paul’s Cathedral.

And junior lawyers have plenty of money to spend in said restaurants; Orrick’s NQ pay is £140,000. The perks are decent too, with lawyers getting access to an app that includes offers and discount codes, subsidised gym membership and private healthcare. Those more environmentally-minded can join the London office’s Green Committee, which runs events and charity drives aimed at promoting green initiatives within the firm.

With 27 offices across ten countries worldwide it’s surprisingly rare for trainees to be seconded abroad. One insider tells us that graduate recruitment has shown interest in building exchanges between offices, but client secondments are fairly rare, with the exception of one structured as a swap of junior team members between the firm and the client.