Slaughter and May |

Slaughter and May is a leading international law firm, recognised for our exceptional legal service and our commitment to clients. The firm is a trusted adviser to some of the largest companies in the world, advising on high-profile, complex and often ground-breaking transactions. Our forward thinking, innovative approach to legal services complements the best-in-class advice on which our reputation is built. Excellence is deeply ingrained in our culture and absolutely central to everything we do at Slaughter and May. 

We thrive on original thinking and novel approaches. Our inclusive culture gives rise to a unique diversity of thinking, which is critical to our success and helps maintain our position as a true market leader.  

We are a full-service law firm and have leading practitioners across a wide range of areas including Mergers and Acquisitions, Corporate and Commercial, Financing, Tax, Competition, Disputes and Investigations, Real Estate, Pensions and Employment, Financial Regulation, and Technology, Digital, Data and Intellectual Property. 

There are clear differences between Slaughter and May and other global law firms:

• We train each of our lawyers to be a multi-specialist, equipped to advise on a broad range of legal matters which at other firms would be handled by a number of different lawyers. This is hard work, but our lawyers say it makes for a far more fulfilling career. It provides challenge and interest, while allowing lawyers to develop deeper relationships with clients, because they get to know their businesses better.
• Much of our work has an international element and we work with the very best law firms across the globe, hand-picked to meet the needs of each matter, to support our clients. On average we work with more than 200 law firms across 100 countries annually.  We never compromise on the quality and consistency for which we are widely recognised. 
• Our inclusive culture is built on intentional collaboration and support. With no set billing targets, our lawyers are free to share expertise and knowledge, allowing them to focus on what truly matters – delivering exceptional work and outstanding client service.

Diversity and Inclusion is an integral part of how we do things as a firm. We believe that a supportive and inclusive workplace drives collaboration and enhances business performance. We are looking to employ the brightest minds regardless of what or where they studied. Traditional approaches to D&I are often skewed towards initiatives helping diverse individuals to “fit in” and succeed; we focus on examining and adjusting the system for greater acceptance of different leadership styles and ways of working.  

Our two-year training contract is designed to offer you the breadth of experience and training needed to become a multi-specialist, equipped to advise on a broad range of legal matters.

During your time at the firm, you will spend time in different practice areas, known as ‘seats’. In each seat you will share an office with a partner or associate (your ‘supervisor’) who will guide you and ensure that you are actively involved in their work and the work of the group. You will be given responsibility from an early stage and the opportunity to work alongside partners, who, together with other team members in the firm, provide mentoring and individual support.

All of our trainees complete at least two six-month seats in our Corporate and M&A and Financing groups. Subject to gaining some contentious experience, your remaining time can be divided into two or three specialist areas or focused on one.

Our overseas offices and close working relationships with market-leading law firms in other jurisdictions mean there are also opportunities for trainees to apply for a secondment in their second year; this can either be an international secondment (to destinations such as Paris,  Amsterdam, New York and Hong Kong), or a client secondment located in and around London.

You can find out more on our website here.

We offer work experience schemes, open days and virtual insight afternoons to enable you to gain an insight into life as a commercial lawyer.

Full details of these opportunities can be found on our website.

Our six-year Solicitor Apprenticeship Programme is designed for bright and motivated school leavers interested in a career in commercial law, and will offer you the breadth of experience and training needed to become a multi-specialist lawyer, equipped to advise on a broad range of legal matters.

For our training contracts, we are looking for law and non-law candidates with a good 2:1 at undergraduate level.  Our trainees come from a range of universities – it is the quality of the candidate, not the university that is important to us.

Across all of our opportunities, we are looking for candidates with:

• a sharp intellect
• drive and an interest in commercial law
• commercial awareness
• communication and interpersonal skills
• resilience and resolve
• independent thought and curiosity
• a range of interests outside of the law
• a good sense of humour
• a willingness to take on responsibility

We use the Rare Contextual Recruitment System for all of our opportunities. The system helps us to identify high potential candidates by putting applicants’ grades and achievements in the context of their social and educational background.

For further details about the eligibility requirements for each of our opportunities, please visit our website.

We have approximately 85 vacancies for trainee solicitors each year, six Solicitor Apprenticeships and 300+ opportunities across our different work experience schemes and open days.

For all of our opportunities, you will be asked to submit an online application form and attach your CV and cover letter (or your responses to questions if applying for the Spring Forward Programme or Solicitor Apprenticeship Programme).

For further details on our application process and hints and tips on preparing your application, please visit our website.

To provide an insight into the firm and the opportunity to meet our lawyers and trainee solicitors, we host in-person events at a number of UK universities from September - December, and run a series of virtual presentations and Application Q&As throughout the year.  To find out more and to register your place at these, please visit our website here: https://www.slaughterandmay.com/careers/trainee-solicitors/meet-us/.