White & Case

Ready for global work, supported by an environment of training and mentorship opportunities? This outfit more than makes a Case for itself.

About the Firm

If you’ve made it through law school, clearly, you’re willing to go the distance, so why not go the extra mile – and go global? When we asked associates at White & Case what defines the firm, that was one word that came up again and again: “The singular, core thing was the strength in its global footprint.” This meant that no matter where you’re based, “there are lots of opportunities for where your career can take you; you get a broad exposure to your practice globally,” ambitious juniors determined, “to get a foot in the door, it’s an exciting opportunity for growth.”

A quick glance over at the 250 rankings in Chambers Global not only confirms the scale but the firm’s best-in-class strengths across capital markets, projects, energy, international arbitration and international trade expertise, alongside recognition for its competition/antitrust, bankruptcy/restructuring, mid-market private equity and international & cross-border disputes know-how. To explore it all in depth, you’ll need to go to chambers.com.

“The singular, core thing was the strength in its global footprint.”

Even with such a footprint, sources felt the scale of investment behind them, from “lots of pro bono opportunities to the emphasis on training and mentorship, the firm makes sure that juniors feel supported.” This translates into a certain kind of culture too: “It’s a welcoming and warm environment.” Providing a snapshot of the interview experience, an insider recalled that “they spoke about cool and interesting stories from their travels and international deals, it seemed wonderful.” Associates are found across the eight offices Stateside. The vast majority of juniors on our list called the New York office home, followed by Washington DC, Houston and Chicago.

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

Summer Program

Those joining White & Case’s summer program can try any of the firm’s practices. “I did a lot of first year tasks,” a junior recalled, but the main thing is to “just enjoy it and focus on meeting people. Spend your summer building real connections.” Outside of the work, there are lots of social opportunities to connect as well. We heard that previously on the calendar there have been local baseball and soccer games, concerts (and rumors are Beyonce tickets were on the cards last year) as well as various lunches and dinners hosted by mentors and different practice groups. At the end of the program, summer associates rank their practice area preferences, before finding out their practice placements in August.

Strategy & Future

Eric Leicht, partner of the firm’s executive committee highlights that the firm has launched its 2028 strategy – a three-year plan, made up of three pillars: accelerate growth; run a stronger business; and work better together.

‘Accelerate growth’ is focused on “four global growth areas: energy, infrastructure, tech, and private capital, with a particular focus on sovereign wealth,” Leicht explains, “one example of that is the data center practice, which sits at the center of energy, infrastructure, tech and private capital on a cross-practice basis.” The private equity group has seen a rebrand to private capital industry encompassing traditional private equity, debt finance and funds. What’s more, lateral talent is to play a significant role: “We’re looking to double the flow of work between the US and the rest of the world over the next three years,” Leicht notes, explaining “we’ll target a majority of our investment in lateral talent in the US” to bolster that objective.

‘Running a stronger business’ is about fiscal responsibility and driving profitability, part of which is about modernizing business services. “We’ve brought on a new Chief Innovation Officer, Isabel Parker, who’s helping lead our AI initiative,” Leicht tells us, “we’ve taken a buy-and-build approach to AI. We’ve launched Atlas, our own chatbot, on a proprietary platform that will enable us to roll out bespoke solutions for our clients.” The firm has also recently engaged Legora as a third-party platform. Associates can go on internal secondment to help maximize the use of these tools, he adds.

As for ‘working better together’ it’s about bringing the best of the firm to its clients: “Lots of firms talk about collaborative culture, but that is a defining characteristic of White & Case. If you’re going to squeeze out the synergies of the global platform, you need to make sure that people know each other, know the clients, and our respective capabilities.” Complimenting this objective, “we have a new business generator training program that we’re rolling out as well as more initiatives around mentorship and coaching to help both associates and junior partners build their careers.”

Read more from our conversation with Eric Leicht under the ‘Get Hired’ tab.

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

The Work

Most of the junior associates could be found in the litigation, corporate/M&A, competition, and EIPAF (energy, infrastructure, projects & finance) practices. A good number were also in debt finance, capital markets, financial restructuring and international arbitration. Most practice groups have their own centralized staffing managers, but there is scope for juniors to pick up assignments through relationships with other associates and partners. Some mentioned that it can take a moment to properly ramp up in the first year. While there were mixed experiences, an insider noted, “staffing is good if you’re slow. Now I have my feet under me, I derive a lot of work organically.”

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

Career Development

“White & Case is a phenomenal place to start your career, with the level and value of the work, and the expertise of the attorneys,” an insider began. Starting out, newbies attend a week-long induction in New York covering essential skills, with dedicated sessions in third and fifth year to mark the transition to mid-level and senior associate. Aside from the on-the-job learning, there is an “abundance of opportunities” including online resources and lunch & learns. In particular, junior litigators praised “the deposition academy with others as witnesses, taking and defending, with real-time partner feedback before you get that experience.”

“They take an interest in letting me get the reps in!”

As for mentorship, first-year associates participate in a rotational mentoring and shadowing program, which pairs them with partners and senior associates who meet weekly with their mentees. That said, informal mentorship extends far beyond that: “I work with lots of mid-levels, seniors and partners who want to give me experiences, like to the first pass at a draft and then talk it over. They take an interest in letting me get the reps in!” What’s more, first years can take advantage of the shadowing program to receive billable credit for work or career-related discussions. And on that note, “there are a lot of lifers here who started as summers and now are partners; the firm is devoted to having people develop their careers here.”

That said, most juniors agreed that the path to partnership gains transparency further down the line. Alternatively, some observed that secondments are a good avenue to potentially go in-house at some point. Associates also have access to career coaches who have been trained internally to help them navigate their long-term career options too.

White & Case is recognized as an Excellent Performer for Career Development in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Hours & Compensation

Associates described the 2,000 billable target as “achievable,” particularly as there is a bucket of 200 non-client billables that counts within it. This can be a mixture of pro bono, recruitment, training, business development, as well as participation in the affinity groups. As a rule of thumb, sources described working around 40 – 50 hours a week. But they also noted with deadlines looming, busier periods can reach upwards of 60 hours.

Associates receive a bonus for hitting the billable target. For those that go above and beyond, there is also a discretionary jumbo bonus up for grabs too. Everybody is expected to be in the office four days a week, Monday to Thursday, a recent increase from the old three day policy.

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

Culture

When asked about what stood out about White & Case’s culture, sources agreed that “people are friendly, hardworking and smart, willing to help out.” Another detailed, “people make themselves available and are open to interactions, but you have to take the initiative.” Good thing there is plenty going on to get involved in, from breakfasts and grabbing lunch together to local volunteering events, office-wide happy hours as well as the usual array of seasonal events. In fact, rookies shared that with so much going on during the summer program, “it’s easy to make friends. The class year is small (for each office), there aren't many of us, we’re very close.”

We heard that “the firm has a ‘World Cup’ in Europe once a year, where everyone can come for a weekend of sports and activities. You don’t know who is a partner, counsel or staff. It's awesome you get to meet so many people from different offices,” an insider enthused, “it’s a highlight!”

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

Pro Bono

“The work that we do has a tangible impact on someone’s life.”

Associates are expected to complete at least 20 hours of pro bono a year – “that is the goal for everyone,” and up to 200 hours can count towards their billable target. There is the scope in exceptional cases for associates to receive a waiver on that limit as well. From the get-go juniors are assigned their first cases upon joining the firm. Opportunities range from contributing to women’s health and LGBT legal research databases to providing local businesses with advice, immigration and asylum, domestic violence and criminal justice cases. A lot of this comes via the firm’s internal initiative called the White & Case Access to Justice Initiative. As one put it: “The work that we do has a tangible impact on someone’s life,” as well as provides juniors with the opportunity to step up to the plate with additional responsibilities, such as taking depositions and advocating in court.

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

Inclusion

On the topic of inclusion, an associate was quick to mention that “it’s a big part of the firm’s culture. It’s international.” The eight affinity groups were noted for their informative social events such as an “after-hours tour of the new Met exhibits” and marking cultural and religious occasions. For instance, the Women’s Affinity Network was highlighted for recently hosting a talk “about benefits, parental leave and family building.” As for representation of women, juniors added, “there are a lot of women and mothers which speaks more than anything. If you’re having kids and you’re still here, the firm is doing something right.” Mentorship was another benefit spoken of highly amongst sources: “There are lots of opportunities to engage in small mentoring circles.”