TCLA Direct Training Contract Applications Discussion Thread 2025-26

[hanz123]

AG's critical thinking test was so hard

 

[Lawyergyal123!]

hI guys, i am thinking to apply to Morgan Lewis direct TC,but i have no interactions with the firm. I know generally some firms care and some dont, but i was wondering if anyone has actually interacted with the firm or done a vac scheme or something so could give me an insight on what they look for.

Of course more than happy to give insights into other firms such as slaughters, Weil, Freshfields...etc from my interactions/vac schemes.

 

[Disgruntled SQE Student]

Hi, so I got rejected from nearly all TCs I applied to this cycle, but got an offer in my home country. I plan to try and shift laterally to these UK firms now after gaining some work experience in my home country. Will my rejection at TC affect a potential lateral move negatively? Will they review my TC application even after I try to shift laterally? Sorry if I sound panicky, just wanted to confirm since there’s a few other firms I plan on applying to for TCs, but if a potential lateral move is impacted I won’t apply to those firms atp.

I feel like this might be more of a question you should put to recruiters or more experienced people within the profession. It's unlikely that you will find much of a suitable answer on here as many of us are current students or junior lawyers. The r/UKlaw subreddit might be more appropriate.

That being said, I might be able to offer some insight from things I've heard and read. To put it simply, the lateral move path from abroad is fairly difficult and depends on a number of different factors, mainly your ability to convert from your home jurisdiction to the UK, and the demand in the UK market for foreign qualified lawyers. Unfortunately, it is quite rare for NQs to lateral, mainly due to inexperience and demand that can be filled by domestically trained lawyers. You will need to be content enough with working in your home jurisdiction, until say 3-5 PQE, before you have enough of a footing and legal presence to warrant a move. If your ultimate goal is to work in the UK, you do unfortunately corner yourself by accepting a TC elsewhere. You are qualified, but in the wrong jurisdiction, it might take some time to convert. You don't have much experience, so you're at a disadvantage comparatively to the domestic market, where unretained UK trainees from top firms are going to also be seeking new employment. Accepting a TC isn't really "work experience", and will reflect actual legal employment and experience when looked at by recruiters and firms both positively and negatively.

Aside from the above, it is important to note that the QWE portion of the qualification route can actually be completed abroad. I'm not quite sure the rules and regs other than anecdotally hearing of overseas firms being able to sign off on QWE for UK SQE candidates. You should perhaps have a think about this if you haven't already started the SQE process. As for specifically your questions, TC rejections are often kept anonymous and only stored for a limited amount of time. I would be shocked if a major firm remembered you from your TC application days after 5 years. Lateral moves are often done on a firm or recruiter basis rather than through the application format that we are used to. They won't review your TC app after you shift laterally either. Just be aware that lateral moves are done on completely different bases than that of TC. In the current time of extreme market competition and complete lack of space, I would be really careful hinging the rest of your legal career on a lateral move in quite some years that may or may not happen.

I apologise for being all doom and gloom. This is all anecdotal evidence, so your story may go very different ways. Wishing you all the best for the new year and for the rest of your legal pathway!

 

[xMontmorency]

I feel like this might be more of a question you should put to recruiters or more experienced people within the profession ...

Hi, so I got rejected from nearly all TCs I applied to this cycle, but got an offer in my home country. I plan to try and shift laterally to these UK firms now after gaining some work experience in my home country ...

Depends entirely on what firm and what jurisdiction. Common associate pipelines to UK firms are Australia, NZ, Canada, Greece, US, Italy, Singapore and Hong Kong. Get a role in a good firm in one of those countries and your chances are pretty good, as long as you're a good lawyer. If you're already qualified, being admitted as a solicitor in the UK isn't too hard. I don't think the lateral associate market is as competitive as the Disgruntled SQE Student suggests - firms need lots of associates to bill clients, and associate attrition is quite high in general.

Obviously, it's not a walk in the park. Lots of people want to make the move, so there is competition for the best spots.

The biggest problem is that you need to fit the kind of skills and experience the UK firms are looking for. Being a property lawyer or pensions lawyer in a foreign jurisdiction isn't very useful. I would say the following foreign qualified lawyers are quite sought after:

- US-qualified finance lawyers. There's a ton of American, Greek and Italian lawyers in the UK who specialise in high yield bonds.
- Projects and project finance lawyers. Soooo many Australians. Very little actual law involved. Deals are all international.
- Arbitration and PIL lawyers. Goes without saying.
- EU / Competition lawyers. Can qualify in any EU jurisdiction then make the switch. Lots of UK competition partners go between London and Brussels.

Bonus points if you do a UK LLM in one of these fields after having qualified abroad.

Regarding having been rejected for TC, I second @Disgruntled SQE Student 's answer. It is not going to make a difference.

 

[Disgruntled SQE Student]

Depends entirely on what firm and what jurisdiction. Common associate pipelines to UK firms are Australia, NZ, Canada, Greece, US, Italy, Singapore and Hong Kong. Get a role in a good firm in one of those countries and your chances are pretty good, as long as you're a good lawyer. If you're already qualified, being admitted as a solicitor in the UK isn't too hard. I don't think the lateral associate market is as competitive as the Disgruntled SQE Student suggests - firms need lots of associates to bill clients, and associate attrition is quite high in general.

Obviously, it's not a walk in the park. Lots of people want to make the move, so there is competition for the best spots.

The biggest problem is that you need to fit the kind of skills and experience the UK firms are looking for. Being a property lawyer or pensions lawyer in a foreign jurisdiction isn't very useful. I would say the following foreign qualified lawyers are quite sought after:

- US-qualified finance lawyers. There's a ton of American, Greek and Italian lawyers in the UK who specialise in high yield bonds.
- Projects and project finance lawyers. Soooo many Australians. Very little actual law involved. Deals are all international.
- Arbitration and PIL lawyers. Goes without saying.
- EU / Competition lawyers. Can qualify in any EU jurisdiction then make the switch. Lots of UK competition partners go between London and Brussels.

Bonus points if you do a UK LLM in one of these fields after having qualified abroad.

Regarding having been rejected for TC, I second @Disgruntled SQE Student 's answer. It is not going to make a difference.

I can definitely see where you're coming from. My own experience with the competitive market comes almost exclusively from the challenges faced by some NQ and 2 PQE friends of mine who have tried to move laterally. Firms do need a lot of associates, but the market at the moment is so saturated that NQs aren't even being kept on their training firms. The idea that a foreign qualified NQ who would need to convert would fit the bill over their own trainees is a little alien to me. Not to mention that there are many smaller firms that do not sponsor, so one's target firms will be reduced and competition narrowed to that of big international firms. That being said, specialist markets demand specialist people and for all of your mentioned KPAs, being a dual qualified lawyer can really be an asset. Especially for firms with lateral pipelines, PM, HL, HSFK and so on, it may very well be exactly as you say.