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Travers Smith

Travers Smith

Next deadline

Training Contract – September 2027 · 16 Oct 2026

(5 days)

Apply now
In their own words

Working with clients operating in complex, high-stakes environments.

Snapshot

Firm type

City

UK offices

London

International offices

Travers Smith also works with more than 150 independent law firms worldwide. This gives trainees opportunities to work on international matters and build relationships with clients and lawyers internationally.

Training contract places

35

Vacation scheme places

60

First-year salary

£55,000

Second-year salary

£60,000

Newly qualified salary

£130,000

Trainee retention

Not disclosed

SQE support

Full SQE 1, SQE2 and PGDL funding

Visa sponsorship

Yes

International secondment

Not disclosed

Client secondment

Yes

Guaranteed secondment

No

Recruitment route

Vacation scheme or direct training contract

Rolling recruitment?

No

Seat structure

4 six-month seats

Non-law applicants

Actively welcomed

Career changers

Actively welcomed

Remote working

Formal flexible policy - 60% in office

Holiday allowance

27 days

Minimum academic requirements

AAB at A-Level and on track for a 2:1, with mitigating circumstances taken into account

Wellbeing support

Includes Private medical insurance, health screening, GP service, counselling, income protection, critical illness insurance, life assurance, Wellness Suite, physiotherapy, wellbeing consultations, fitness classes and mindfulness support

SQE1 and SQE2 maintenance grant

£20,000

PGDL maintenance grant

£13,500

PGDL funding

Full funding

Diversity networks and partnerships

Includes REACH (Race, Ethnicity and Cultural Heritage), LGBTQ+, Faith Resources, Gender Balance, Enable and Social Mobility Group

% female partners

32%

% BAME partners

4.7%

% LGBTQ+ partners

3.5%

% female fee earners

40%

% BAME associates

12.5%

% state school selective partners

11.9%

% state school non-selective partners

28.5%
Before you apply

Before you apply, ask yourself:

Would you enjoy working in close-knit teams where you share a room with Partners and Associates and learn through regular day-to-day contact with senior lawyers?

Would you enjoy taking on real responsibility early, including speaking to clients, joining meetings and managing your own work with support nearby?

Does a Training Contract with a strong transactional foundation appeal to you, including a compulsory Corporate seat and at least one other transactional seat?

Would you value international work through a network of independent overseas firms, where Travers Smith lawyers remain directly involved in cross-border matters rather than routinely referring work to overseas offices?

Would you enjoy high-quality City work within a firm that emphasises sustainable workloads and does not impose individual chargeable-hours targets?

Next deadline

Training Contract – September 2027

16 Oct 2026

(5 days)

View job

Deep dive

Explore this firm in detail

What makes it different

Room-sharing with Partners and Associates

What this could mean for you
Trainees share rooms directly with Associates and Partners, giving them regular access to senior lawyers and opportunities to learn through day-to-day observation, discussion and involvement in live matters. You could learn directly from experienced lawyers throughout the working day, developing commercial judgement and softer skills alongside your technical knowledge.

Real responsibility from day one

What this could mean for you
Travers Smith says trainees can speak to clients, join meetings and manage their own work from the outset. Lean teams are designed to give trainees substantive involvement while keeping support close by. You could build confidence and practical skills quickly by contributing directly to client matters and taking increasing ownership of your development.

No chargeable hours targets

What this could mean for you
Travers Smith deliberately does not set chargeable-hours targets. This supports sustainable workloads and allows teams to focus on delivering high-quality work rather than reaching an individual billing target. You will collaborate with clients, building strong relationships without an individual chargeable-hours target shaping your workload, while continuing to gain experience on complex, high-quality City matters.

Practice area strengths

Corporate M&A

Travers Smith advises public and private companies, financial institutions and sponsors on significant UK and cross-border corporate transactions. Its work includes public and private M&A, strategic transactions and equity capital markets work, with particular experience across sectors including financial services, infrastructure, retail and technology. Corporate is particularly central to Travers Smith's market position and training model. Chambers ranks the firm Band 1 for Corporate/M&A: £100m-£800m, and every trainee is required to complete at least six months in Corporate.

Private equity and financial sponsors

Travers Smith advises private equity houses, financial sponsors, portfolio companies and management teams on mid-market transactions. Its work includes buyouts, acquisitions and disposals, portfolio company transactions and management-side mandates, often with an international element. Private Equity forms part of Travers Smith's wider transactional strength. Legal 500 ranks the firm Tier 2 for mid-market Private Equity transactions up to £500m, while Chambers ranks it Band 3 for buyouts up to £500m.

Dispute resolution

Travers Smith acts on complex commercial and corporate disputes, with wider contentious expertise spanning banking litigation, competition litigation, civil fraud and investigations. Its disputes work can involve significant domestic and cross-border matters for corporate and financial-services clients. Dispute Resolution has broad recognition across both directories. Chambers ranks Commercial & Corporate Litigation Band 2, while Legal 500 ranks Premium Commercial Litigation, Competition Litigation and Civil Fraud Tier 2.

All practice areas

CompetitionCorporate / M&APrivate equityCapital marketsDerivativesStructured financeDispute resolutionEmploymentFinanceFinancial services and regulationFundsIncentives and remunerationOperational risk and environmentPensionsReal estateTaxTechnologyCommercial
Who it may suit

Before you apply, ask yourself:

  • Would you enjoy working in close-knit teams where you share a room with Partners and Associates and learn through regular day-to-day contact with senior lawyers?
  • Would you enjoy taking on real responsibility early, including speaking to clients, joining meetings and managing your own work with support nearby?
  • Does a Training Contract with a strong transactional foundation appeal to you, including a compulsory Corporate seat and at least one other transactional seat?
  • Would you value international work through a network of independent overseas firms, where Travers Smith lawyers remain directly involved in cross-border matters rather than routinely referring work to overseas offices?
  • Would you enjoy high-quality City work within a firm that emphasises sustainable workloads and does not impose individual chargeable-hours targets?

This firm may suit candidates who…

  • Want close day-to-day access to senior lawyers and like the idea of learning directly alongside Partners and Associates.
  • Want meaningful responsibility early and enjoy developing through hands-on involvement in live matters.
  • Are attracted to corporate and transactional work but still want exposure to several departments before qualification.
  • Want cross-border work but are attracted to an independent-firm model rather than a large global office network.
  • Value a collaborative culture and the absence of individual chargeable-hours targets.

Things to consider

  • Travers Smith's room-sharing model means working in close proximity to senior colleagues, so it may particularly suit candidates who enjoy learning through regular interaction, observation and feedback rather than a more physically separated working structure.
  • Trainees are encouraged to develop through meaningful responsibility, with support from senior lawyers as they take on increasingly challenging work.
  • Every trainee must complete a six-month Corporate seat and another transactional seat, so half of the Training Contract has a defined transactional component.
  • Travers Smith works internationally through relationships with more than 150 independent firms, giving trainees cross-border exposure while allowing the firm to remain independent.
  • The absence of individual chargeable-hours targets sits alongside exposure to complex City work, with the firm emphasising sustainable workloads while maintaining high expectations.
What trainees do

Corporate M&A and equity capital markets

What it involves:

Corporate is a core part of the Travers Smith Training Contract, with every trainee spending at least six months in the department. The wider practice covers M&A and Equity Capital Markets work, including complex and cross-border transactions.

Example trainee tasks:

Speaking to clients, joining meetings, managing allocated work and contributing to live client matters.

Who trainees work with:

Partners, Associates, clients and lawyers at overseas firms where matters have an international element.

Early responsibility:

Travers Smith says trainees receive real responsibility from day one and can speak to clients, attend meetings and manage their own work with support and guidance.

Support and supervision:

Trainees share rooms with Partners and Associates and receive Partner-led training at the start of the seat, alongside ongoing seminars based on live matters.

A first month might involve:

Attending Partner-led training, working directly alongside Partners and Associates, joining client meetings and beginning to take responsibility for allocated work on live matters.

Transactional seat

What it involves:

Every trainee completes at least one additional transactional seat alongside Corporate. Relevant options include Finance, Funds, Private Equity & Financial Sponsors, Derivatives & Structured Products and other transactional practices.

Example trainee tasks:

Working on live client matters, participating in meetings and taking responsibility for allocated work. International matters can also involve working alongside lawyers at Travers Smith's independent partner firms overseas.

Who trainees work with:

Partners, Associates, clients and, on cross-border matters, lawyers at independent overseas firms.

Early responsibility:

The firm's lean team structure gives trainees opportunities to become meaningfully involved in matters and work directly alongside more experienced lawyers.

Support and supervision:

Room-sharing provides day-to-day access to senior lawyers, alongside formal departmental training and seminars.

A first month might involve:

Learning the department through Partner-led training, joining live matter discussions and meetings and beginning to manage allocated work with senior lawyers nearby for guidance.

Dispute resolution

What it involves:

Working on complex contentious matters, including commercial and corporate disputes and matters with cross-border elements.

Example trainee tasks:

Joining meetings, managing allocated work and contributing to live matters.

Who trainees work with:

Partners, Associates, clients and potentially overseas lawyers on international disputes.

Early responsibility:

The firm's general trainee proposition of responsibility from day one applies across departments, with trainees expected to contribute to live client work rather than simply observe.

Support and supervision:

Trainees learn directly alongside Partners and Associates through room-sharing, supplemented by department-specific formal training.

A first month might involve:

Completing department-specific training, joining matter and client discussions, working alongside senior lawyers and taking responsibility for defined pieces of work.

Work-life reality

Work-life balance varies by team, seat and transaction cycle. This section is designed to help you understand the pattern, not reduce the experience to a score.

Busy periods

Trainees work on complex, high-quality matters, with workloads varying according to the demands and timing of live matters.

Seat variation

Trainees complete four six-month rotations, including at least six months in Corporate and another six months in a transactional seat.

Support

Travers Smith’s teams are lean and close-knit, with trainees working directly alongside senior lawyers through the room-sharing model. This provides regular access to Associates and Partners as trainees take on increasing responsibility.

Flexibility

Travers Smith allows employees in most cases to work remotely for part of the working week (two days) and supports flexible arrangements including remote working and staggered hours. Flexibility is balanced against client, team and business needs.

Holiday allowance

27 days
Culture & support

Supervision style

Travers Smith's room-sharing model places trainees directly alongside Associates and Partners, combining day-to-day informal learning with formal training. Teams are lean and close-knit, with support adapting as trainees develop confidence and take on greater responsibility.

Relationship with partners

Close contact with Partners is built into the training model. Trainees share rooms with senior lawyers and receive Partner-led training at the start of each seat, giving them regular opportunities to learn directly from experienced lawyers.

Office plan

Traditional room-sharing structure. Trainees share rooms directly with Associates and Partners rather than working in a fully open-plan layout.
Application process

Online application form

Virtual interview

(1 hour)

What happens

Competency and commercial awareness discussion with an Early Careers Recruitment Partner or Senior Counsel.

Summer Vacation Scheme

(2 weeks)

What happens

Includes talks, workshops, department insights, a case study and negotiation exercise. Candidates must complete three assessments during the scheme.

Direct TC: In-person Recruitment Day

What happens

Includes written exercise and group exercise

Direct TC: Final in-person interview

What happens

Interview with the Co-Heads of Early Careers Recruitment, covering similar areas to the first interview in greater depth
Opportunities
Training Contract – September 2027

Travers Smith

Travers Smith

5 days leftCloses 11:59pm, 16 Oct 2026

View job
Insights
Welcome to Travers Smith
Graduate Recruitment Q&A
Diversity & Inclusion at Travers Smith