London Training Contract

Develop an incredible career with us

There’s a lot to look forward to as a trainee at Stephenson Harwood.

At Stephenson Harwood you'll be exposed to top quality international work across a range of sectors, an environment that balances cutting-edge work with a respectful, friendly culture, the chance to prove yourself on a secondment and the opportunity to make a name for yourself from day one. We work in small teams, so every person is critical – that's why we'll expect you to give it your all every day.

What you'll be doing

Whatever practice you join, you can expect extensive exposure to our clients and stimulating, cutting-edge projects.

You could find yourself working on anything from a high-profile, £multi-million financial litigation case to a ground-breaking M&A deal. You could even spend time on secondment at a client's office, absorbing a totally different business culture first-hand.

Although every seat is a different journey, each is designed to give you a broad balance of commercial awareness and practical legal experience, plus the adaptability to move between projects and pick up new skills. There will be plenty of challenges along the way, but also lots of support. At every stage you'll be coached and mentored by a partner or senior solicitor who'll give you regular feedback, advice and guidance on everything from your day-to-day responsibilities to your long-term career decisions.

Ours is not a one-size-fits-all approach. We'll recognise your individual needs and help you to tailor-make an ongoing training programme that's right for you. Regular development reviews, both formal and informal, will identify your strengths, pinpoint areas for improvement and give you the chance to discuss your post-qualification career objectives. At every stage, a dedicated partner will manage and guide your development. Ultimately, our people are our firm, so investing in your professional development is a priority. The better you perform, the better we will too.

Who can apply?

Training contracts are open to anyone in their penultimate or final year of a law degree, or final year of study of a non-law degree. We also welcome applications from postgraduates and individuals who have pursued other careers before committing to the legal profession.

Application process

If we're impressed by your application form, we'll ask you to complete our online future potential assessment. This includes some situational judgement questions, giving you an insight into the role of a trainee, followed by some video interview questions. Do well and we'll ask you to take part in an assessment day.

We have implemented the RARE contextual recruitment system into our graduate selection process. By contextualising the performance of applicants, the tool aims to enable us to identify 'stand-out' candidates, regardless of background.

Who we're looking for

We expect the 25 trainees we take on each year to be dedicated, driven and ambitious.

If we choose you, it’s because we see qualities that make you a potential high-performing associate – possibly even a future partner. We look for four key characteristics in our future trainees:

• The ability to quickly assimilate a wealth of information and identify the main issues is critical. You’ll have an excellent academic record (ideally at least a 2:1), be able to make well-reasoned decisions and have meticulous attention to detail.
• Great, productive relationships with colleagues as well as clients are vital to every area of our work and therefore interpersonal skills are paramount too. You need to be good at expressing yourself clearly and succinctly – both face-to-face and in writing – and you’ll know how to tailor your message to your audience, build rapport and be persuasive.
• Ambitious, driven and inquisitive, you’ll love a challenge and have the resilience needed to respond well to feedback and adapt to working in a changing environment. As someone who always keeps the end result firmly in mind and is enthusiastic even under pressure, you’ll be able to show us you know how to get a job not just done but done brilliantly – to the very best of your ability.
• Lastly, you won’t be afraid to question and challenge, or to put forward practical solutions and ideas that are well thought through. We’re known for sound commercial judgement and our international outlook so you’ll need the potential to develop the same skills.

Rewards and Benefits

In return for your hard work and dedication, you'll enjoy a wide range of rewards.

Expect a competitive salary from day one, an adaptable package of benefits that you can tailor to your specific needs, and much more.

We'll offer you a salary of £50,000 in year one and £55,000 in year two. Our current NQ salary is £100,000.

As part of your SQE studies, you will have the opportunity to complete an 'essentials for practice module', designed specifically for Stephenson Harwood providing you with specialist legal knowledge areas and professional skills beyond the basic SQE curriculum. Topics will include private acquisitions; debt finance; equity finance; commercial contracts; data protection; shipping; international trade; aviation; commercial dispute resolution & arbitration; and employment. At the end of your studies, you will be awarded an LLM Legal Practice (solicitor).

One you start your training contract, here's a snapshot of the adaptable benefits you can choose from:

• Cycle to work scheme
• Dental insurance
• Electric car scheme
• Eye care vouchers
• Give as you earn
• GP appointments
• Group critical illness cover
• Group income protection
• Group life assurance
• Group personal pension
• Gym membership subsidy
• Health screening
• HelloSelf
• Holiday trading
• Mobile phones discount
• My Family Care
• Private medical insurance
• Retail vouchers
• Season ticket loan
• Subsidised staff café
• Tastecard
• Technology scheme
• WeCare
• Wellbeing programme