Alston & Bird

Backed by its acclaimed contentious and transactional bench, this ATL all-star is in full flight.

About the Firm

Finding a firm that does sophisticated, high-stakes work without making you pay for it with your quality of life is harder than it sounds in BigLaw, yet Alston & Bird has done a great job of making it look easy. “It offers sophisticated work but also, as a firm in the South, it has a lot more recognition for a work/life balance – it’s a happy medium.”

This, coupled with investment in associate development, were clear pull factors for our sources: “Everyone kept saying great things about the people being nice and supportive; there’s a large number of homegrown partners, so there’s that longevity,” which certainly left associates feeling peachy about their partnership prospects.

It's a firm that clearly cares about its roots: “This is a national firm, but it’s got a localized focus in the city.” And, like any true local, it knows its neighbors well, regularly working with other ATL heavyweight mainstay names including The Coca Cola Company, Home Depot, and Delta Airlines among many others.

The firm’s certainly got the expertise to warrant its star-studded client list; just take it from our sister guide Chambers USA, where Alston & Bird boasts the highest recognition in Georgia across key areas including antitrust, banking & finance, corporate/M&A, healthcare, litigation, white-collar crime and investigations, as well as employee benefits & executive compensation – to name just a few (head over to chambers.com for the full list). The firm also picks up top tier nationwide accolades for its work across capital markets securitization, government contracts, and international arbitration.

“It offers sophisticated work but also, as a firm in the South, it has a lot more recognition for a work/life balance – it’s a happy medium.”

Atlanta hosts most of the firm’s associates but having long-ago spread its wings, the firm now boasts an additional ten offices stateside – with the most recent additions including Chicago and Century City. It also maintains its bird’s eye view with international hubs in London and Brussels too.

Alston & Bird is recognized as an Excellent Performer for Junior Satisfaction and an Excellent Performer for Mid to Senior Satisfaction in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey. Alston & Bird is also recognized as The Elite for Junior Satisfaction in Northern California and Southern California specifically.

Strategy & Future

“The hope is our people will flourish and develop,” says managing partner Richard Hays, outlining a future focused on deliberate growth, innovation, and cross-office collaboration. “Last year, we had an extraordinary year,” he notes, “we were very busy across the board, and that gave associates opportunities for development.”

Hays points out the firm’s diversification as key strength for success: “One of the good things is, we are fairly diversified in our practices and that’s deliberate,” ready to withstand cyclical challenges. He adds: “We manage practice groups and offices one firm; we don't manage by office location, so we want our partners, when they have challenging matters, to be able to pull together the best talent from wherever they’re located.”

Looking ahead, Hay’s highlights the firm’s focus on innovation, particularly in how it engages with emerging technologies: “[AI is] the type of thing we need to stay very close to… We’ve formed multiple task forces to keep their fingers on the pulse and to advise us on how we can responsibly engage AI in our training and our practices.” Hays emphasizes the need to stay ahead of technological changes, saying the firm has “rolled out a number of AI tools both generally and also in specific practice groups. I believe the best way to approach it is to continue to educate ourselves about how it’s being used and how it can be used for our clients.”

Read more from managing partner, Richard Hays under the ‘Get Hired’ tab.

Alston & Bird is recognized as an Excellent Performer for AI Integration in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Summer Program

At Alston & Bird, summers are able to have a breadth of experience across different practice areas. Partners take the lead and assign summers to projects based on their practice group interests. Interviewees recalled getting involved with drafting opportunities, gathering closing checklists and sitting in on calls during the program.

“Get a broad array of experience… what really shapes your experience is who you’re surrounded with,” an associate recommended. In turn, another advised, “talk to as many people as you can, don’t stress about the work – it’s an opportunity to get to know people.”

The Work

Work allocation at Alston & Bird takes a hybrid approach. Associates are able to fill out a weekly workload survey to help seniors and partners stay aligned on their availability and to assess whether anyone is overloaded or underutilized before assigning work. Over time, sources explained that work starts to come more organically once you’ve built those relationships.

Alston & Bird is recognized as an Excellent Performer for Work Allocation & Autonomy in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Career Development

“It’s those small impromptu training sessions that made the learning curve a lot easier.”

From day one, fresh-faced associates at Alston & Bird are met with an environment of support and investment. There is formal training and programming at the firm, but as one associate explained, “Everyone’s excited to teach and willing to get you up to speed.”

Indeed, this hands-on approach was a constant theme throughout our interviews, with associates highlighting how senior associates and partners take the time to guide them through unfamiliar territory and provide feedback whenever needed. “It’s those small impromptu training sessions that made the learning curve a lot easier,” a junior pointed out.

While support is readily available, associates emphasized the importance of taking initiative: “If you’re not willing to put yourself out there, you’ll fall under the radar.” In addition to informal guidance, associates are paired with a senior associate and partner mentor as part of the firm’s associate and patent agent mentoring program. A program which aims to enhance the informal relationships developed by offering different perspectives as associates navigate their early years at the firm.

Juniors are encouraged to share everything and anything with their mentors, whether it be client work or queries surrounding practice expectations. An annual budget is also provided for mentors and mentees to help them build their relationship over a coffee or lunch.

Sources agreed that the firm takes a long-term view of associate development, with a clear and transparent approach to career progression. At the fourth-year mark, associates are able to join the Alston & Bird Career Development Initiative. This initiative is centered on group coaching (called Coaching Circles) with members meeting periodically to discuss career goals and steps needed to be taken to succeed at developing the relevant skills to achieve them.

Interviewees praised how effective and transparent their annual reviews are each year. As one detailed, “They have been honest about where they see me going and my path to partnership.” To further clarify the path, the firm hosts a mid-level associates meeting outlining the steps to partnership.

Alston & Bird is recognized as The Elite for Career Development in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Hours & Compensation

Alston & Bird sets a 2,000-hour billable target for bonuses. Associates have a bucket of 150 non-billable hours allowed for pro bono and up to 50 for approved inclusion activities. Further, compensation at the firm is market-rate, matching BigLaw standards.

Associates typically work eight to ten-hour days, with longer weeks during periods of heavy workloads or trials. They are also expected in the office most days – typically four or more per week. We heard that it wasn’t uncommon for associates to have to log back on to clock in a few more hours after leaving the office, but it’s rare to have consistent weekend work.

One associate shared: “I had a late night and was getting ready for work the next morning when the partner called and said, ‘Don’t come in – you’ve done enough!’ You always get a break after to reset.” On that note, we heard the firm looks out for associates, particularly if they are hitting extreme highs in hours “and re-shifts their work as it’s not a sustainable pace long-term.”

Alston & Bird is recognized as an Excellent Performer for Benefits & Quality of Life in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Culture

According to our interviewees, Alston’s culture encourages openness at every level. “Everyone’s got an open door-policy,” one source beamed, going onto highlight, “I don’t have an issue going to a senior associate, counsel, or partner – everyone at every level is willing to speak with me.” Others agreed: “People are big and social with each other outside of the very strict ‘let’s get our work done’ mindset.” In fact, one divulged, “there’s significantly less hierarchy than I ever could have imagined.”

Laterals praised the firm’s welcoming environment, with one noting “the integration was about as seamless as it could be,” adding that “you can do top quality work with market compensation, but the expectations are not giving your entire life to the firm.”

Alston & Bird is recognized as an Excellent Performer for Culture in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Pro Bono

“You can always find something you enjoy; they have a whole team dedicated to pushing pro bono.”

Pro bono is actively encouraged at Alston & Bird with up to 150 hours counting towards associates’ billables targets. Associates can take on a wide range of matters, from immigration and domestic violence cases to upgrading veteran’s discharge statuses, trusts and wills, and record expungement as well as child abduction cases under the under the international Hague Convention. Frequent email blasts are circulated advertising opportunities associates can take on. “You can always find something you enjoy; they have a whole team dedicated to pushing pro bono,” an associate highlighted, adding that “It’s a matter of raising your hand when an opportunity comes up!”

Alston & Bird is recognized as an Excellent Performer for Pro Bono in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Inclusion

Alston & Bird’s approach to inclusion was described as an intentional and on-going effort. Associates noted that there is strong, diverse representation across the firm. As Hays tells us, “We believe our workforce needs to reflect the communities and the world around us, and include excellent lawyers foremost. We’re proud of that and having diverse teams.” Recognizing the firm’s commitment, one associate reflected, “While it’s not where I believe it could or should be, it’s something we’re trying to work on.”

The firm is home to a range of affinity groups which host socials as well as informative events. These include, the African American, Asian American, Hispanic, LGBT, and Women’s Initiative. “They try to make sure they have a diverse workplace, and that’s how they recruit the best lawyers,” said one associate. The firm was also recognized for providing good support for those with childcare and caregiver responsibilities. For example, in Atlanta employees have access to a daycare facility across the street for parents who need somewhere for their little ones during the workday, though it’s not a complimentary service.