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Careers with Watson Farley & Williams

Watson Farley & Williams hire aspiring solicitors for vacation schemes and training contracts. These are unique, international experiences and if the firm is recruiting for any positions, they will be listed below. 

Training Contracts

Watson Farley & Williams recruit 18 trainees every year. Unlike other law firms where you do four seats, the firm requires you to do six seats, each lasting four months. This allows trainees to receive a wider breadth of understanding and learn even more about the firm. 

Not all trainees follow the same path, and each one designs their seat progression themselves. As a guide, trainees can expect to spend time in the firm’s finance and dispute resolution practice, as well as corporate, energy or projects. There are also opportunities to do a seat in employment, tax, regulatory, public and competition.

Aside from this, there will be guaranteed international secondment. Current locations include: Athens, Paris Hamburg, Singapore, Dubai and Bangkok. This allows trainees to understand how disputes are conducted in a different cultural context, and forces them to adapt to different working styles. Such a skill will further strengthen their legal skills.

No matter what seat you’re in or where in the world you are, some things will be the same throughout. Trainees join teams led by partners and see complex transactions first-hand, meaning they receive plenty of responsibility from the first day. While this may feel intimidating, trainees receive practice-specific training at the beginning of every seat, as well as regular feedback and support. All lawyers in the firm have the opportunity to have a mentor. 

Vacation Schemes

Vacation schemes at Watson Farley & Williams are two week placements taking place during the Spring and Summer. It is a chance for you to experience life as a lawyer and work out if a legal career is right for you. It is also a chance for the firm to get to know you as well. 

During the two weeks, trainees work with associates and partners in one of the firm’s core practice groups. Examples include capital markets and dispute resolution. This will be supplemented by a variety of different training programmes and informal presentations about the firm’s culture and all the different practice groups. There will also be the chance to network with senior lawyers as well as your fellow interns. 

At the end of the scheme, you will automatically be considered for a training contract.

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