The Legal Cheek View
This is the Bates Wells profile for those considering solicitor apprenticeships. Students looking to apply for training contracts should check out Legal Cheek’s main Bates Wells profile.
Known for its particular strengths in the charity and social enterprise sectors, Bates Wells is one of only a handful of law firms to boast ‘B Corp’ status, solidifying its reputation for championing positive social and environmental impact. Alongside its strong charity practice, the firm’s commercial offering covers areas including corporate law, employment, real estate, immigration, litigation, and public & regulatory law.
Since launching its solicitor apprenticeship programme in 2024, Bates Wells has now welcomed multiple cohorts of apprentices to its headquarters on Queen’s Street Place in central London, further expanding the firm’s commitment to alternative routes into the legal profession.
The six-year programme sees apprentices rotate across the firm’s various legal practice areas and non-legal business teams. Starting their journey in the engine room of the firm, the first year provides a grounding in professional life through the finance, risk & compliance, business development & marketing, and practice management teams. After gaining a holistic view of how the law firm operates on the ground, apprentices go on to spend the next three years in a paralegal-level role within the firm’s practice groups, applying what they are learning on real matters and cases, and rotating at least annually.
The final two years of their six-year stint will see seasoned apprentices join the firm’s graduate trainee cohort. The training contract involves a total of four six-month seats, including a compulsory seat in the firm’s busy charity and social enterprise team.
In terms of legal studies, apprentices will also complete a law degree on a part-time basis over the first four years, spending four days working at the office and one day studying with The University of Law. They will the go on to complete the Solicitors Qualifying Exams (SQE), emerging as fully qualified solicitors by the end of the programme.
But, what is hard work without a little play? A netball club, a football club and Thursday drinks after work are just a few socials that apprentices can look forward to at this altruistic outfit. Boasting various diversity networks, they’ll also get their hands dirty planning events and initiatives at the firm throughout the year to get those social juices flowing. Uni FOMO who? And for those who feel like the charitable work at the firm just isn’t enough, recruits can expect the classic two days a year on top of their annual leave for volunteering outside of the office.
This is Bates Wells’ Solicitor Apprenticeship profile. Read Bates Wells’ full Legal Cheek profile here.