Greenberg Traurig

About the firm

With US firms extending their arms into the London market with increasing frequency over the past decade, there’s a good chance you’ll have come across a few already yourself. You also might have heard about an American firm stereotype that often comes with that too, but just to catch you up; the general idea is high quality work, top of the market salaries, and intense hours. Now, Greenberg Traurig is by no means the antithesis of this but, as training principal James Mountain puts it, “We’re difficult, in some ways, to pin exactly where we are because we come up against all kinds of different firms – sometimes magic circle, sometimes, US, sometimes mid-market UK. I don’t think we like to pigeonhole ourselves too much into any particular segment because it really does vary across the office.” “I wouldn’t have picked a US firm because of what you hear about the work and the culture,” one trainee admitted, “but there’s none of that stuffiness here. It’s got the benefits of a US firm but maintains a city feel.”

“…there’s none of that stuffiness here. It’s got the benefits of a US firm but maintains a city feel.”

Ultimately though, GT’s excellence internationally is well-documented. The firm is praised in Chambers Global for its restructuring and tax practices. Taking a look closer to home, Chambers UK awards the firm rankings in everything from civil fraud and investment funds (real estate) to transport and real estate finance. Peel back the hood and GT is prepping for further growth in the upcoming years. Training principal Jessica Ganagasegaran (yes, there are two!), points to the firm’s new hires as an example of their movement, with “the expansion of our private equity capabilities, a new entertainment and media partner, and a new real estate partner.”

Why trainees joined the firm

International reach

“I was interested in commercial law, but I wanted that international element,” one trainee told us, “Greenberg Traurig is a smaller firm with an international reach.” It’s a pretty sizeable reach too, with a whopping 51 offices globally.

Mix of practices

“I was scatter-gunning my approach!” one source explained, “I was looking at firms that were more full-service because I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t want to be stuck somewhere niche.” Seat options at the firm offer a solid grounding too, including corporate, real estate, litigation, banking & finance, funds, tax and regulatory.

Pro bono

While pro bono is a bigger part of the day to day of associates than it is for trainees, it’s still an important part of life at the firm, and “it was still very easy to get involved with.”

Trainee satisfaction rankings

Training contract structure

Seat allocation

Trainees don’t get a say as to which seat they start in, but after their first seat they submit their top two preferences. Those we spoke with were all pretty satisfied with the process which “has improved.” There are no compulsory seats, but we heard that litigation is particularly popular.

Client secondments

Trainees can flag their interest in a client secondment through the same process, but they are only an option in your third or fourth seat. The current secondment sends trainees to a hospitality sector client. It mainly takes the form of a commercial seat, but “you can do data, ESG – anything that comes through the door. The procurement team would send me emails, I’d review contracts, mark them up, and review until signing.”

International secondments

There are international secondment opportunities for associates but currently no international secondment options at the trainee level.

Seat Experiences

Trainee life

Culture and environment

Data from our annual trainee survey

Greenberg Traurig’s office is located right outside London Bridge station in one of the city’s most iconic buildings: “It’s nice being in the Shard,” one interviewee said of the firm’s eighth and ninth floor location, which comes part and parcel with breakfast on Wednesdays. On top of that, there’s “the Shard card! You get discounts at places in the Shard and there are all sorts of events you can go to.” And as for the culture? “It’s very open door and friendly,” to the point where “even the shareholders come and introduce themselves when you’re making coffee in the kitchen!” While an area of work as demanding as law will inevitably come with it challenges, “everyone makes an effort socially, and there are things you can get involved with.”

“…even the shareholders come and introduce themselves when you’re making coffee in the kitchen!”

We heard that some departments - like corporate - are slightly quieter on the social side, while teams like litigation do host things like after work drinks. There is no obligation for people to attend most social events, but even outside of teams, for those who are interested there are opportunities to get involved. Particular praise was given to the firm’s committees which are “where a lot of people form relationships.” Along with the seasonal winter and summer parties events such as the annual office easter egg hunt sit alongside trainee socials to help newbies build those all-important relationships. Trainees have a budget for socials with £50 a head for four socials a year, which has included things like going out for food and “we went to this place in Tooting called the Great Bake Off, where we baked cakes.”

Working patterns

Data from our annual trainee survey

Although newbies aren’t given hours targets, a couple of insiders did caution against branding GT “as a soft US firm – it’s just not true.” All of our interviewees praised the fact that, from the outset “you will get great work, and it’s a great US firm. It’s good to learn and train somewhere like this, but it is intense sometimes.” Of course, long hours aren’t a given, as on quiet weeks you’re “usually going home between 5.30-6.30pm” depending on the practice and time of year, but there are occasions when working late is the expectation. We heard that in corporate “I would probably finish around 9.30pm, so it can be worse.” Litigation was said to be similar when working towards court deadlines. Banking was singled out as coming with particularly challenging hours: “I was finishing at the early hours of the morning most days for a few months.”

“…it’s a great US firm. It’s good to learn and train somewhere like this, but it is intense sometimes.”

Insiders admitted that more trainees were “needed in some teams,” but it’s something GT is working towards rectifying: “The firm knows they are bringing in more work, so they are planning on having more trainees in the future.” Trainees also stressed that “associates work really late too, so you won’t be sat on your own.” We heard that trainees are typically in the office four days a week (“Mondays and Fridays people work from home more”) with Tuesday to Thursday being core days. That said, it varies by department, with some teams like litigation and finance requiring five days.

Pay

Those we spoke to were positive about the firm’s £55k starting salary – rising to £60k as a second year. “We don’t get bonuses which is frustrating,” one told us, but interviewees praised the inclusion of private healthcare and noted the firm’s portal for other benefits. In addition, “as soon as trainee pay goes up, it’s announced here, so we’re more in line with competitors now.”

Supervision and training

Before starting each seat, trainees will sometimes receive training lasting up to a full week which consists of “45 minutes going through something in the morning” – we heard it’s a perfect length too, given “everyone is frazzled when they’ve just moved seats!” Beyond this, further opportunities depend on the department. Though we heard that “real estate has great formal and informal training,” in most departments learning on the job takes priority. Understandably, at crunch times like at the end of a deal or a deadline in litigation it can be difficult, but “most of the time it works well.” Every Tuesday trainees also have a meeting where “each trainee gives a presentation, generally on a legal topic, on a rota – then we get any updates on what’s going on at the firm.”

Pro bono & CSR

GT has a pro bono committee which sends opportunities round to trainees, a system that our interviewees had “a good experience with. You can get as involved as you like” with things like research projects working with one of the firm’s global offices. Although we heard it is a bigger part of life at the associate level. In terms of CSR, the committee raises money for their charity of the year (previous examples include Robes and Guys Cancer: “last year we put on a Hyrox and a 50k walk!”

Other opportunities include

• GROW Mentoring

Inclusion

Trainees at the firm told us that GT’s inclusion groups are active and well-supported by the firm. Particular praise was directed towards the firm’s social mobility committee, “which is quite active. Social mobility day is coming up, and we have someone to do henna coming into the office to celebrate!” The London Women’s Initiative meet once a quarter “to discuss any changes to policy that can improve diversity,” and other groups including a working parents; race & ethnicity, and LGBTQ+ group are all active.

Qualification

GT holds no interviews for NQ positions, instead encouraging trainees to have an informal chat with the team or head of training: “We get asked for soft choices in April,” one trainee explained, “then they ask for our hard choices in May.” All of the trainees we spoke with hoped to stay on past qualification: “It is a great place to learn and they’ve made good management changes, we feel like it should be a breath of fresh air!”

Putting the green in Greenberg…

GT’s London office has a dedicated sustainability desk to directly address ESG matters for clients.