Training Contract

It is not just law at Travers Smith. We treat our clients’ business as our business, their dispute as our dispute, their challenge as ours.

We act for publicly listed and private companies, private equity and financial sponsors, and other business enterprises involved in large and complex UK and cross-border matters, transactions and disputes.

Our clients know that, wherever in the world their ambitions lie, we will work as part of their team to get things done. And they know that we will do so in a straight-talking and open way.

Diversity and independence of thought are key to our success. We know each other well and we know that we get the best results when we act as a team – not just within our individual departments, but right across our firm where we welcome views from everyone.

What we do

Our business spans four key areas across advisory, contentious, regulatory and transactional focuses, comprising of the following main practice areas: Competition, Corporate M&A and ECM, Dispute Resolution, Derivatives & Structures Products, Employment, Finance, Financial Services & Markets, Funds, Incentives & Remuneration, Operational Risk & Environment, Pensions, Private Equity & Financial Sponsors, Real Estate, Regulatory Investigations and Tax, and Technology & Commercial Transactions.

What we look for

We’ll give you responsibility from day one – you will quickly find yourself on the phone to clients, in meetings and handling your own work with all the guidance you need. As such, the firm looks for people who can combine academic excellence with plain common

sense; who are determined, articulate and able to think on their feet; who are self-motivated and have a healthy sense of humour.

A law degree is not a necessity – over 40% of our trainees have non-law backgrounds.

Training Programme

The firm’s comprehensive training programme ensures that trainees experience a broad range of work. All trainees sit with partners and associates, which ensures a refreshing lack of hierarchy and unparalleled opportunities to learn by osmosis from some of the most senior people at the firm. It also means that trainees receive individual and extensive training from experienced lawyers and can look forward to client contact, and the responsibility that goes with it, from day one.

During the two-year training contract, you will rotate through four different legal departments. Trainees spend six months in one of our corporate departments, with the rest of their training contract spread across the other departments. A large proportion of our trainees also spend one of these rotations in our Dispute Resolution or Employment teams. For the other two rotations trainees are asked to indicate a department of interest, which includes the opportunity to spend six months in the firm’s Paris office.

Travers Smith is a collaborative firm – we treat each other with respect and encourage our people to be themselves. We are very proud of the close-knit, supportive and non-hierarchical culture this creates.

Diversity & Inclusion

Our approach to diversity and creating an inclusive workplace goes beyond just ticking a box. We value everything that makes us unique, and we recognise that celebrating our differences helps make the firm a special place to work. With a focus on allyship and role modelling, we are committed to creating a fully inclusive workplace where everyone can be their authentic selves.