Katten

Stuck Playing a Katten Mouse game with prospective employers? Perhaps it's time to focus your attention on a financial services specialist sporting “a lot of unique and specialized practice areas.”

About the Firm

If you’re going to do something, do it well. It’s important advice, and Katten has taken it to heart. When it comes to financial and commercial law, Katten is undoubtedly high–flying, but they have resisted the temptation to put all of their eggs in one basket: “One of the things that Katten market about themselves is that they are a financial services firm, but they have a lot of unique and specialized practice areas” one junior explained. And that translates to a diverse range of practice areas servicing clients in all sorts of industries. The firm boasts a number of top-tier Chambers USA-ranked departments, including healthcare and bankruptcy/restructuring nationwide, as well as copyright & trade secrets, government investigations and real estate in the firm’s home state of Illinois.

“I feel like I work with people more closely, more often, and the level of interaction I get here is more substantial.”

Right off the bat, associate interviewees were keen to stress that Katten is not a firm where you find yourself feeling like a “little fish in a big pond.” Reflecting on a move from another firm, one interviewee told us that “now, I feel like I work with people more closely, more often, and the level of interaction I get here is more substantial.” The firm’s HQ is in Chicago, where most junior associates are based, with the remainder split between a further six offices in the US.

Katten is recognized as a Strong Performer for Junior Satisfaction and a Strong Performer for Mid to Senior Satisfaction in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Summer Program

Summer associates enrol into Katten’s summer program without a practice group directly assigned to them. The firm then tries to allocate juniors to the practice group they enjoyed most during the period, although it ultimately depends on the needs of the firm. Associates are encouraged to reach out and develop relationships with a range of different practice groups, and this relationship building can be key: “I’ve maintained the friends I made during the summer program over the years. I still catch up with people in the corridors,” one junior told us. Whilst on the program, associates also undertake pro bono work, engage in moots, and enjoy fun events coordinated by practice groups:“We mooted a pro bono argument and the partners acted as fake circuit judges," recalled one associate.

Strategy & Future

Though Katten has recently underlined that it is not on the prowl for a larger merger partner, the firm has gone on record to say that it aims to increase its headcount from approximately 650 attorneys to around 800 over the next 5 years (which will sound like music to any aspiring associate’s ears). And rest assured, Katten intends to stay true to what makes the firm who they are: “It’s a relatively flat organization structure. Here, relative to other firms, the teams are lean and you can take lots of opportunities.”

Katten is recognized as a Strong Performer for AI Integration in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

The Work

All of the firm’s offices currently have their own associate population, but most associates are concentrated either in the firm’s office in Chicago, or in New York. How work is distributed ultimately depends on the size of the practice group. For example, smaller practice groups will have their work assigned to them directly by a partner. Associates in these groups praised this way of working, highlighting that “you can work more intensively with one person, and that gives you more opportunity to shine. If you’re constantly working with different partners, your room to grow is exponential.” Some of the larger practice groups have associate development officers that help to dish out work: “These officers exist is to ensure workloads are balanced,” one associate explained.

Katten is recognized as a Strong Performer for Work Allocation & Autonomy in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Career Development

Associates praised the opportunities for growth and education at Katten. Litigation associates in particular noted that as size of the litigation department has increased, so too has the firm’s efforts to grow the group’s talent. We heard that “people are very interested in your development, even if they don’t have a stake in it.” The firm holds formal sessions for associates, which are usually delivered via person training sessions or zoom calls. These sessions might be on administrative tasks, substantive matters or focused on business development. Subject matter experts also frequently give talks to practice groups, and these can also be attended virtually or in person. Juniors in a finance-related practice group, for example, may have an industry leader scheduled in to discuss derivative markets or stock options.

“…people are very interested in your development, even if they don’t have a stake in it.”

As well as highlighting the more formal aspects of training, associates outlined how the informal side has also helped them to develop. Partners and senior associates were said to be generous with feedback, creating a culture of really clear communication.As one summarized: “When work is good, people are free with compliments, but if something is off, they’ll let you know too!” The path to partnership was almost unanimously regarded as attainable by associates. To prep associates for this, the firm’s business development training encompasses how to cultivate leads and teaches you how to deal with clients.

Katten is recognized as a Strong Performer for Career Development in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Hours & Compensation

At Katten, associate salaries increase on a lockstep basis. Once associates reach a set hours target of 2,000 hours, they are eligible for a bonus (which can also be further supplemented with a separate discretionary bonus for top performers). This 2,000-hour figure includes 1,850 billable hours, 100 pro-bono hours, and 50 firm citizenship hours. Firm citizenship hours can be spent undertaking a variety of activities including training, receiving mentorship, attending internal events, working on published material, or shadowing more senior attorneys. Associates felt that they were compensated fairly, and that the firm was very clear in what they expected associates to do to receive their bonus.

“I’ve never seen a situation where they go: ‘well you need to just figure it out’.”

Juniors will almost certainly have to navigate intense work periods - these come part and parcel of BigLaw work. That being said, in comparison to some other outfits, Katten’s workload was painted as reasonably sustainable. One associate assured us that even the busy times are “pretty manageable,” stating that “you are able to gauge how much you need to work over time rather than doing a fire drill.” Another associatehighlighted that things had “never been so bad that I thought I couldn’t handle it. I don’t find myself doing things like taking calls at 1am.” The consensus was that the firm does a good job of offering support through these times too: “I’ve never seen a situation where they go: ‘well you need to just figure it out’.”

Katten is recognized as a Strong Performer for Benefits & Quality of Life in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Culture

Stepping into a shiny office and getting that feeling that all your previous hard work paid off is at least part of what attracts many people to the profession in the first place. So, does Katten really scratch that itch? Associates definitely thought so. Reflecting ontheir first day, one recalled that “I came to the office for the first time and I felt like this is what I’d studied for and what I worked hard for.”Associates were keen to stress that “it’s really easy to make friends and there’s lots of opportunity for face-to-face interaction. It’s common for associates grab lunch together and hang out after work.” There are also frequently happy hours, and “you’ll often find that people often say, let’s go to one more place!”

“I came to the office for the first time and I felt like this is what I’d studied for and what I worked hard for.”

Katten associates painted partners as readily accessible people who are receptive to queries. We were told that “there’s a good amount of cross pollination between associates and partners. They are approachable.” Another associate reported that “the partners here are very personable, they don’t take themselves too seriously and that’s what I like about working with them.”

Associates are expected to be in office eight days a month (although this varies from office to office)and the firm does plenty to tempt juniors in. There’s a subsidized cafeteria for lunch with free breakfast and lunch on Wednesday. The eight-day target is also used as a prerequisite to maintain a personal office, which was described as quiet, peaceful, and somewhere that you can really concentrate. Associates also fed back that being present in the office is something that really helps you get work.

Katten is recognized as a Strong Performer for Culture in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Pro Bono

Katten are a firm that takes pro bono work extremely seriously. One associate remarked that the pro bono is “incredibly strong here” and another explained that they had undertaken a “ton of pro bono.” We spoke to a number of associates who significantly exceeded their pro-bono target of 100 hours, and in these cases, they were able to get an increased amount of pro bono to contribute to their billable hours. The firm is partnered with non- profit organisation across the country, and two of the firm’s senior partners are dedicated to directing pro-bono matters (one for transactional pro-bono, and one for litigious pro bono). Associates recounted working with incarcerated people, parole grants, school students, and asylum cases.

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

Inclusion

There are a wide range of affinity groups available for all Katten associates to involve themselves in, these include: Partner Collective on Racial and Ethnic Diversity; Committee for Racial and Ethnic Diversity; Black Professionals Network; Women’s Inclusion Network; LGBTQ+ Coalition; Parents Affinity Group; Latinos@Katten; AAPI Affinity Group; Jewish Cultural Affinity Group. This is on top of “not slowing down” on related pro bono work too.