Munger, Tolles & Olson

Away in a Munger: why joining this bastion of principled litigation could leave you feeling like the holidays have come early.

About the Firm

Picturing California’s golden beaches and summery styles may not automatically fill you with the holiday spirit, but there’s one firm in the heart of LA where ‘tis the season all year round.

How so? Well, first of all, the holidays are a time for giving, and Munger, Tolles & Olson is nothing if not open-handed. It’s a pro bono powerhouse, ranking as the number one firm in our guide this year in terms of time attorneys spend on this work. This ethos of generosity also extends to the firm’s treatment of its associates, and those we spoke to highlighted MTO’s “great mentoring opportunities with senior partners,” its encouragement of employee vacations, and its charitable approach to bonuses (“that’s not prorated, you’re just being nice!” was one source’s reaction to their latest award) as major perks of joining up.

"Great mentoring opportunities with senior partners."

Second, the holiday season is also a time for family, and MTO’s parent-friendly approach particularly stands out amongst its peers. Given the firm’s generous parental leave allowance, and the specialist mentoring available for both those about to take it and those returning to active practice afterwards, it’s no surprise that associates we surveyed scored it well above the market average in terms of how feasible becoming a partner is for those with children.

Third, the flipside to seeing your relatives for the holidays is the high chance of a good old-fashioned family row, and, as a firm of elite litigation specialists, boy does MTO know how to have an argument and win. That’s reflected in the firm’s top-tier Chambers USA ranking for appellate law nationwide, as well as a slew of similar accolades in its home state, where its litigation teams are market leaders in the fields of energy, media & entertainment, and general commercial disputes. Being nice clearly doesn’t mean that the firm can’t pack a punch when it counts.

And finally, we’re not saying that MTO is literally Santa’s workshop, but they do have a Mr. Klaus among their Band-1-ranked partners, so make of that what you will…

Munger, Tolles & Olson is recognized as a Strong Performer for Junior Satisfaction and an Excellent Performer for Mid to Senior Satisfaction in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Strategy & Future

Right now, the shiny new toy beneath the tree which most law firms are keenest to unwrap is AI, and according to Co-Managing Partner Dan Levin, MTO is no exception. “We are thinking really hard and doing some really creative things with AI,” he says, adding that “AI will allow us to offer our clients solutions and opportunities that we haven't been able to in the past.” Indeed, he’s confident that the firm’s lean, efficient approach to staffing will prove to be a major advantage when adapting to this new technological reality. “For junior lawyers evaluating where to begin their careers,” he advises, “firms that are less dependent on the traditional high-leverage model are likely to become increasingly attractive as AI places pressure on that structure.”

"Right from the minute people walk in the door, we want them to act as if they were owners of the business."

Nonetheless, just as every holiday movie reminds us that the true meaning of Christmas is about more than the thrill of new stuff, Levin warns against forgetting the firm’s traditions and moral principles. “We will continue to practice law based on the core values of our profession,” he says, “and on the basis that we are officers of the court, practicing ethically and putting forward the best arguments we can based on the facts of the law for our clients.” Rather than making radical changes, MTO’s strategy is to “double down on our firm's culture.” This is based on “democratic decision-making and consensus building” and the idea that “Right from the minute people walk in the door, we want them to act as if they were owners of the business.”

That’s the plan at least, but the proof of the (figgy?) pudding is in the eating, so does MTO live up to its rhetoric about giving its most junior members a real stake its governance? The answer we heard from associates was a resounding yes. “The firm makes a lot of decisions based on committees of both partners and associates, so associates have a lot of awareness of decisions made within the firm and I don’t feel like I’m out of the loop,” one told us. Another enthused that “In almost all big decisions that have been made, the firm has either taken a firmwide vote or held townhalls where people can come in and raise a grievance, questions, or concerns.”

Read more from Dan Levin under the ‘Get Hired’ tab.

Munger, Tolles & Olson is recognized as a Strong Performer for AI Integration in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Summer Program

We started by noting that MTO keeps the festive spirit going all year long, and that’s still true in the heat of the summer. In Los Angeles, past social events for summer associates have included a hike up the Hollywood hills, a Dodgers game, in-home partner dinners, and plenty of other meals. Despite this packed calendar, the vibe remains relaxed. “It never felt overwhelming,” said one junior, adding that there was “never pressure to go to all the social events — you could go to the ones that seemed interesting to you.”

Of course, it’s not all fun and games, as there’s also work to be done. However, it’s the kind that feels rewarding right away; as one associate put it, “the firm values giving their summer associates substantive work early and often throughout the summer.” In practice, this means incorporating summers into case teams and taking them to meetings. Summers might draft sections of briefs, draft memos that go to clients, and even work one-on-one with senior partners.

It’s also worth noting that the program is still evolving and improving. The firm is moving to a second-half split summer model, allowing attendees the flexibility to pursue additional opportunities during the first half of their vacation period, and in 2027 there will also be a cohort based in San Francisco for the first time.

The Work

Newbies receive their initial projects through a first-year work advisor who assigns work based on individuals’ interests and the firm’s needs. After this first year, they then transfer to the firm’s free market system, although regular reviews are still conducted to check that no-one is falling behind. Dan Levin explains it as follows: “there are a lot of guardrails around the free market, but we don't have command and control. It's not like someone calls you up and says, ‘you're now working on this case, show up in so-and-so's office in 30 minutes and get the materials.’”

Munger, Tolles & Olson is recognized as a Strong Performer for Work Allocation & Autonomy in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Culture

If anyone’s out there dividing law firms into a ‘naughty’ and ‘nice’ list, associates made it pretty clear that they think MTO belongs on the latter. “There is a sense of if you’ve made it to the firm, you belong here,” reckoned one interviewee, who loved how “Your thoughts and opinions are valued.” Another concurred that “It’s not a cutthroat firm at all,” but rather somewhere people work “because they really enjoy the law and they really care about getting into the nitty gritty and solving hard problems and talking to their friends and coworkers about these issues.”

"If I were to say who my good friends are at the firm, half of them probably would be partners!”

We’ve already spoken about the relative lack of hierarchy at MTO, and it’s worth noting that this extends beyond working hours. “If I were to say who my good friends are at the firm, half of them probably would be partners!” one associate told us. “Not even partners I work with but just partners I’ve happened to get to know. There isn’t this divide.” There are certainly plenty of opportunities to build up those friendships, as we heard the LA office has in-person social activities on a weekly basis, such as lunches with speakers or panels, and that the turnout is typically strong. There are also simultaneous lunches across the firm’s three offices, connecting them virtually.

According to associates, the firm’s non-stratified culture also means that they are treated with the appropriate level of responsibility and independence when it comes to managing their schedule. “There isn’t much micromanagement of what are you doing at every hour of the day,” one insider told us. “If you want to go home at 2pm because you have a doctor’s appointment or something, there isn’t any scrutiny of that. That makes you feel more trusted and valued as an individual.”

Munger, Tolles & Olson is recognized as a Strong Performer for Culture in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Hours & Compensation

Thoughtful, hand-picked gifts are the gold standard, but if we’re honest, don’t we all occasionally wish for cash instead of another year of Aunt Jean’s home-made ‘fashion items’? If you can’t escape her knitwear this holiday season, then at least you can rely on MTO to be generous with the dollar bills, as base salaries match the Cravath scale and there is also a sign-on bonus available to those who have done clerkships. The firm has a relatively flexible approach to bonuses generally, which some associates particularly appreciated. “I like that I don’t have to meet this random arbitrary number to get my bonus,” one source told us, adding that “as long as I work hard and do good work, I’m going to get a bonus, and if I’m doing extraordinary work then I’m going to be recognized for that and compensated even more highly.”

As for the hours, “That’s something they’ve improved on in the last couple of years,” one associate reported, as “around the time I started, they made an improvement on being more clear about what the hours expectations were.” The firm is definitely interested in more than just maximizing billables: we even heard that “if you bill too many hours over the span of a few months someone from the development and retention committee will reach out to you” to check in on how things are going and ensure that you can still find time for your own wellbeing.

Munger, Tolles & Olson is recognized as a Strong Performer for Benefits & Quality of Life in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Pro Bono

By now, it will come as no surprise to learn that associates rated MTO comfortably above the market average for its commitment to pro bono work, and described this commitment as a major factor drawing them to the firm. “That is an area where MTO stands out for me,” one told us, “because I think a lot of firms have a commitment to pro bono just for the purpose of developing their associates professionally, whereas here almost everyone I know, ranging from juniors to the most senior partners, is involved in pro bono work in some capacity.” Indeed, that culture runs right up to the top of the firm, and Co-Managing Partner Dan Levin is particularly keen to stress how MTO is “proud of a lot of the pro bono work we've done here in Los Angeles with respect to the ICE immigration raids, and in Washington on a whole range of matters.”

Of course, all this doesn’t mean that experience gained through this work isn’t handy for MTO juniors’ CVs, even if that’s not the primary motive. Our sources highlighted the valuable skills they learned from pro bono activity, particularly via one-day immigration trials; “A lot of associates get really good trial experience that way early on,” we heard, as they benefit from being “fully in charge of the trial and doing the direct examination of the client and the cross‑examination of the government’s witness.” As well as these smaller cases, the firm also has a few large, long-running, pro bono projects (including major litigation on issues of police transparency) that a lot of lawyers can sign up to be involved in, providing a good balance between manageable single-plaintiff matters which involve a “really fulfilling” level of individual responsibility, and collaborative work on headline-setting cases.

Munger, Tolles & Olson is recognized as an Excellent Performer for Pro Bono in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Career Development

One thing that really sets MTO apart is how many of its attorneys have clerked. Those who join straight out of law school are encouraged to take some time to clerk and many of the firm’s lateral hires come from clerkships. New joiners who came in via this route were full of praise for the firm’s ability to onboard them smoothly: “I was nervous about jumping back into private practice,” one reported, “but when talking to people at the firm, I felt reassured that they knew how to handle people with my resume and integrate them back into private practice through corporate work.” Meanwhile, among those attorneys interested in leaving MTO to explore opportunities outside the private sector, there was a lot of confidence in the “pipeline that goes between the firm and government and back.”

Regardless of when you join the firm and how long you stay, there’s certainly plenty of training on offer. Examples include National Institute for Trial Advocacy-led courses on how to conduct depositions, regular lunchtime talks and trial academy sessions, and multi-day retreats. The firm is also open to letting its attorneys go beyond its internal programs in order to hone their skills. For example, associates can spend several months externing at the city attorney’s office in LA, where they get hands-on experience of trying misdemeanor cases, and one interviewee was impressed by how there are “buckets of money that the firm sets aside for you to go to conferences or do training that’s a little more niche.”

Throughout all this, a junior and senior mentor help each new associate integrate into the firm. There’s a budget available for meals and coffees with mentors – whether those are the formal mentors or the informal ones associates find on their own. Associates praised their mentors in terms such as “phenomenal,”“incredible” and “extraordinary,” and several reported forming close friendships with the people assigned to them. Nonetheless, there’s no pressure to be best buds for life: we also heard that “the mentoring relationship can be very flexible, and you can make it what you want it to be.”

Munger, Tolles & Olson is recognized as a Strong Performer for Career Development in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Inclusion

If the holidays are the season of goodwill to all men, MTO is determined to ensure that this extends to women and everyone else too. The firm’s active commitment to inclusion manifests through a range of affinity groups which are open to everyone, and associates can create new groups if they wish. “I feel lucky to be here and appreciate the support group and all the one‑on‑one support people have offered to me,” said one associate of their participation. Furthermore, the firm puts on dinners and speaker events to celebrate heritage months and days of recognition.

As mentioned previously, the firm is also particularly adept at addressing concerns about feasibility of balancing becoming a parent with a career in law. Our interviewees reassured us that lawyers at MTO “care about each other’s families,” and we heard that, as well as there being generous arrangements for parental leave and specialist support for lawyers returning to work afterwards, “When we do big retreats, the firm will invite your family to come with you to a very welcoming space.” This fits into a broader pattern where “they want you to succeed as a professional but also as a person.”

“MTO makes me feel like I’m working at somewhere that has a backbone, and I appreciate that.”

And finally, if all of this talk of family and the holiday spirit is making the firm sound a little too fuzzily sentimental, it’s worth noting that it can come with a hard edge when needed. Dan Levin points out the firm’s commitment to taking on tough, politically charged fights, saying “this past year, law firms had to stand up for the legal profession and the rule of law. We were among those who put up their hands and did so.” Associates certainly agreed with this assessment. “MTO stood firm in its values and beliefs, which is why I want to continue to work here,” shared one insider, while another added that “MTO makes me feel like I’m working at somewhere that has a backbone, and I appreciate that.”