How is work assigned to summer associates?
Summer associates are given the opportunity to review all outstanding projects over the firm’s Intranet and to choose an assignment based on their interests. Once they have selected an assignment, an email is sent to the assigning attorney and the summer associate follows up with a phone call. Throughout the summer, the summer directors will check in with each summer associate to ensure that he or she has a mix of assignments varying in duration, subject matter and supervising attorney. Summer associates are encouraged to take a variety of assignments from all departments so that they can get a better sense of the entire firm.
We will expose you to a wide range of practice areas and projects to help determine the type of law you’d like to practice. A summer program coordinator, typically a senior associate or junior partner, coordinates work assignments so you will receive both litigation and business projects throughout the summer, including projects in your specific area(s) of interest.
Summer associates are given real matters that are representative of the work the firm handles for its clients. Work is assigned through our Recruiting Coordinator who will make sure you have the right number of work assignments in practice areas that interest you. Summer associates are encouraged to work a variety of assignments with many different attorneys.
To optimize their exposure to practice areas and tasks, summer associates in some of our offices rotate through various practice groups and teams. In our other offices, work variety and balance is achieved through a central project pool. Prior to commencement of the summer program, each summer associate indicates his or her preferred teams (for rotation) or areas of practice (for project assignments). The summer associate’s stated preferences strongly influence the assignments given.
