Morgan, Lewis & Bockius

About the firm

Make no mistake. Large American firms can cast their nets far and wide, hooking in some seriously big clients even when you're dealing with them from across the pond. Morgan Lewis is no exception. As the firm's former chair, Jami McKeon, told our sister publication Chambers Associate, Morgan Lewis is "never going to be the place that has a flag in every city, then lets those offices succeed or fail on their own."  The same ethos can be felt in London, where, despite housing more than 100 lawyers, the office is still described by trainees as a place where "everyone knows your name."

"…everyone knows your name."

It's a combination that gives the best of both worlds: the backing of a global firm with the feel of a much smaller outfit. Chambers Global recognises Morgan Lewis with more than 70 accolades, highlighting the breadth of its expertise. In Chambers UK, the firm also earns praise for its investment funds work, including investor representation and private equity secondaries, as well as corporate M&A, capital markets, aviation finance, insurance, business immigration, employment and intellectual property.

2026 is a significant year for Morgan Lewis in London. Partly, this is because the firm is moving to a new office, with some welcome upgrades expected. More notably, however, a new firm chair will take the reins of the global platform for the first time in 12 years. While an office upgrade will undoubtedly be welcomed, a change at the top is likely to feel bittersweet. The outgoing chair is particularly well regarded by trainees, with one explaining that the “philosophy of the firm's chair really resonated” and that “you could see it had trickled down” throughout the firm. New Chair of the firm David McManus, meanwhile, has spent 30 years at the firm, so knows a thing or two about how it operates.

Why trainees joined the firm

Global powerhouse

The firm has 33 offices globally across Europe, Asia and the Middle East. As a result, secondments are common and cross-border disputes frequently crop up in the work.

Smaller trainee cohort

A small training cohort, and by extension, one that allows for an increased degree of responsibility, is what drew most trainees to this firm, and they did not appear disappointed. One interviewee revealed that “the small training cohorts really attracted me, and they have really come with benefits… I feel like I’ve been exposed to very advanced things.”

Pro bono drive

The firm is serious about its expectations of trainees to undertake pro bono. Indeed, it expects trainees to meet pro bono targets, and to get involved with a wide range of initiatives.

Trainee satisfaction rankings

Training contract structure

Seat allocation

At Morgan Lewis, trainees rotate across six seats over the course of their training contract. Of these, one will be a contentious seat, and another will be a transactional seat. When selecting their first seat, trainees rank their preferences in descending order. The firm does its best to assign trainees one of their top three choices, though allocations depend on business needs and not every department will necessarily take on a trainee every year.

The process of submitting preferences for the next seat begins about halfway through their current one. During this process, they are given the opportunity to have an informal chat with Graduate Recruitment and afterwards provide their choices formally in writing. Typically, trainees find out where they are going six weeks before moving seats.

International secondments

The firm offers international secondments in Singapore, Abu Dhabi and Dubai. There is usually one trainee on international secondment per rotation, though this does depend on business need and trainee interest.

Seat Experiences

Trainee life

Culture and environment

Data from our annual trainee survey

“It’s a US firm with high-profile clients, but one with a really friendly culture and a global reach.”

To get a sense of life at Morgan Lewis, it pays to listen to the firm's trainees. One interviewee argued that “in spite of the reputation that American firms have over here, it’s genuinely a really nice place to work.” Another trainee emphasised, “it’s a US firm with high-profile clients, but one with a really friendly culture and a global reach,” adding that “I hope more people consider Morgan Lewis.” By and large, the firm’s associates and partners were described as very approachable and friendly characters.

The size of the firm’s trainee intake ensures that everyone will know your name, and that visibility contributes to further opportunities. Explaining what this feels like day to day, one trainee told us, “You feel like you are a contributing member of the team and when you are given responsibility, it feels like you are also given trust.” Socially, however, it might be useful to think about every Morgan Lewis team as a different island in the Galapagos: each team was described as having its own social culture and a tendency to be a little insular. Both litigation and CBT were described as a particularly social bunch.

The firm was praised for making a conscious effort to put on events throughout the year. Insiders talked of mini golf tournaments and pub crawls for St Patrick’s Day. While attendance can fluctuate depending on workloads, trainees told us that junior lawyers generally make an effort to get involved. As one trainee reflected, “It's hard... some people don't want to spend more time at a job where you're already working long hours.” The firm’s annual Christmas parties, however, are very well attended and have historically helped foster cross-team socialisation.

Working patterns

Data from our annual trainee survey

Trainees are expected to work in the office three days a week. Whilst we heard confessions that sometimes the office can feel “a little empty,” Tuesday and Wednesday were described as busy days when the majority of people are in the office.

Wrapping up work around 7pm seemed to be the average finishing time amongst interviewees day to day. Even so, with transactional deadlines and trial preparation, “hours can be a bit brutal,” one source admitted, before clarifying that the firm is not one with a facetime culture and instead has a very “grown-up attitude” towards the way juniors work.

It seems that so long as your work is done and you meet your mandated in-office hours, the firm has very few qualms about you choosing to work late at home rather than at the office. Senior lawyers reportedly check in to see what your capacity is like and are big on urging trainees to take breaks and have lunch. In the words of one trainee, this is not a place where you hear “horror stories” about working patterns.

In terms of perks available, trainees can expense breakfast if they come into the office early, and if they are working late in the office past 8pm, they are able to order a paid-for Deliveroo.

Pay

Data provided by firm and our annual trainee survey

Trainees felt that they were well compensated for their work and that the salary was on par with or above the market rate.

Supervision and training

Data from our annual trainee survey

Over the course of a seat, trainees at Morgan Lewis usually receive around eight training sessions, but ad hoc input from those in their teams supplements this. Trainees told us that, if you ask for more feedback or training, associates and partners alike are more than happy to talk you through things: “Let me know if you have any questions, call me, Teams me, we are in this together.” In particular, a source noted that, “it’s the whole team not just most senior, NQs, associates, supervisors have been incredibly patient.”

Often trainees will share a room with their supervisor, which ensures regular contact, even if they are not directly working with them. Beyond this, weekly and sometimes bi-weekly check-ins are scheduled. We heard that supervisors are “great at giving structured, detailed feedback.” Graduate Recruitment also check in during the formal mid- and end-of-seat reviews.

Inclusion

Diversity and inclusion was something that our interviewees felt was significantly emphasised, and something that the firm is actively trying to build upon. Amongst other groups, trainees can join a women’s group, a disability committee, an LGBT+ committee and a first-generation lawyers’ team. The firm hosts events around religious holidays, such as a Ramadan iftar meal. It also takes part in social mobility programmes that widen access to the legal profession for students.

Trainees also believed that the firm was committed to promoting positive mental health through both informal and formal approaches. For example, insiders discussed the firm’s signposting of wellbeing resources and creation of an environment where they felt as if they could raise any concerns with their supervisor, Graduate Recruitment or other trainees. We also heard that there had been the opportunity to try a relaxing and meditative sound bath.

Pro bono & CSR

In the eyes of trainees, Morgan Lewis pushes pro bono “really heavily”, and it is taken “as seriously as billable work.” Indeed, the firm expects every trainee to undertake at least 20 hours of pro bono. This target is not taken lightly according to interviewees, who pointed to communications stating that 100 per cent of the firm’s lawyers have completed their target! We spoke to several trainees who exceeded their pro bono targets, and some highlighted undertaking pro bono work with their supervisor. These opportunities allowed trainees to step up to the plate and “run your own thing,” with supervision.

Other opportunities include:

• Partnership with the National Domestic Violence Centre.

• Supporting Amicus, a charity dedicated to defending individuals facing the death penalty in the United States.

• Running workshops that provide students from disadvantaged backgrounds with advice and guidance on pursuing a career in law.

• Organising charity clothing drives for organisations that provide disadvantaged jobseekers with professional attire for interviews.

Qualification

The qualification process begins around three months in advance with an initial meeting with Graduate Recruitment, where candidates confirm the department they would like to qualify into. This decision is then considered by the London office and sent to the US head office for final approval. Later (typically around June), trainees are informed about the available positions and subsequently fill out an application form and complete an interview.

Insiders appeared cautiously optimistic about the future, with some noting that not every department is hiring each cycle. That said, all our interviewees appeared aligned in their intention to stay on at Morgan Lewis, should there be a place offered to them.

More than new digs…

Morgan Lewis is making a statement with its move to Goldman Sachs' former European headquarters, taking on 75,927 sq ft of prime real estate.