CC or Slaughters: Which TC should I accept?

[spiralling47]

Have training contracts from both - have just under two weeks to choose between. Am honestly not sure what to pick.

I saw someone else post about CC only having the SQE with CC people whereas S&M mixes with other firms - is this a positive or a negative? I agree that it would be nice to know lawyers from other firms rather than studying and training with the same people - does anyone have any experience at either firm with this?

Additionally, I know that S&M has no billable hours target whereas CC does. However, I'm interested in antitrust/litigation, two areas I know which tend to have pretty heavy hours regardless of the firm, so I'm not sure if CC's target will necessarily mean much more gruelling hours than the equivalent in the S&M department, but I'm not sure.

Also, I've heard that S&M's work is more "academic" and varied with the multispecialism - but does this multispecialism mean much when you're actually fully qualified? And does going to CC necessarily mean you'll be stuck doing the same thing forever (as opposed to, I guess, multispecialism)?

I would welcome any advice from anyone who has been at either firm/has chosen one over the other!

Thanks!

 

[I’m_Batman]

Ah, the timeless conundrum of choosing between Clifford Chance and Slaughter and May for a training contract—a predicament as old as the legal hills, akin to choosing between champagne and fine wine.

The SQE Debacle:​

Clifford Chance: Ah, yes, spending your SQE time exclusively with Clifford Chance folks. Imagine being trapped in a high-octane intellectual pressure cooker with the same faces day in, day out. Truly, the stuff of dreams—or nightmares, depending on how much you enjoy lawyerly banter over the water cooler.

Slaughter and May: On the other hand, mingling with law students from other firms during your SQE could be the social event of the year, a veritable melting pot of future legal eagles. Who knows? Maybe you'll meet someone from a rival firm and form a dramatic alliance that echoes through the annals of legal history—or at least, makes for a good anecdote at bar association events.

To Bill or Not to Bill:​

Clifford Chance: Ah, the sweet treadmill of billable hours. Nothing screams "I've made it" like agonizing over whether your six-minute bathroom break should be billed to client code 12345 or 67890.

Slaughter and May: A world without billable hour targets? It's almost like being told you're going to Disneyland, only to find out it's 'Legal Disneyland,' where instead of roller coasters, you have endless briefs to review.

Academic and Varied vs. Same Old, Same Old:​

Clifford Chance: Being stuck in a practice area for all eternity? Imagine the pure, unadulterated joy of mastering the arcane arts of a single domain—like learning to conjure fire and then doing absolutely nothing else for the rest of your magical career.

Slaughter and May: Multispecialism! The spice of legal life. One day you're a tax genius; the next, an antitrust maven. It's like being a Swiss Army knife made entirely of legal expertise. Or, alternatively, a jack of all trades, master of none, if things go south.

 

[InvesmentBanker]

Ah, the timeless conundrum of choosing between Clifford Chance and Slaughter and May for a training contract—a predicament as old as the legal hills, akin to choosing between champagne and fine wine.

The SQE Debacle:​

Clifford Chance: Ah, yes, spending your SQE time exclusively with Clifford Chance folks. Imagine being trapped in a high-octane intellectual pressure cooker with the same faces day in, day out. Truly, the stuff of dreams—or nightmares, depending on how much you enjoy lawyerly banter over the water cooler.

Slaughter and May: On the other hand, mingling with law students from other firms during your SQE could be the social event of the year, a veritable melting pot of future legal eagles. Who knows? Maybe you'll meet someone from a rival firm and form a dramatic alliance that echoes through the annals of legal history—or at least, makes for a good anecdote at bar association events.

To Bill or Not to Bill:​

Clifford Chance: Ah, the sweet treadmill of billable hours. Nothing screams "I've made it" like agonizing over whether your six-minute bathroom break should be billed to client code 12345 or 67890.

Slaughter and May: A world without billable hour targets? It's almost like being told you're going to Disneyland, only to find out it's 'Legal Disneyland,' where instead of roller coasters, you have endless briefs to review.

Academic and Varied vs. Same Old, Same Old:​

Clifford Chance: Being stuck in a practice area for all eternity? Imagine the pure, unadulterated joy of mastering the arcane arts of a single domain—like learning to conjure fire and then doing absolutely nothing else for the rest of your magical career.

Slaughter and May: Multispecialism! The spice of legal life. One day you're a tax genius; the next, an antitrust maven. It's like being a Swiss Army knife made entirely of legal expertise. Or, alternatively, a jack of all trades, master of none, if things go south.

This is one of the best written responses I have ever seen on this forum... the cheeky humour is classy. You ,sir, are clearly a genius.

 

[JoshP5555]

I don't know what CC's requirements are for seats, but at Slaughters you have to do a seat in Financing and a seat in Corporate & M&A. Might be worth taking into account.

Also, I'm not sure if I'm remembering this correctly, but I think if you do a Competition seat at Slaughters you usually spend 3 months of the seat in Brussels

 

[AlexJ]

Have training contracts from both - have just under two weeks to choose between. Am honestly not sure what to pick.

I saw someone else post about CC only having the SQE with CC people whereas S&M mixes with other firms - is this a positive or a negative? I agree that it would be nice to know lawyers from other firms rather than studying and training with the same people - does anyone have any experience at either firm with this?

Additionally, I know that S&M has no billable hours target whereas CC does. However, I'm interested in antitrust/litigation, two areas I know which tend to have pretty heavy hours regardless of the firm, so I'm not sure if CC's target will necessarily mean much more gruelling hours than the equivalent in the S&M department, but I'm not sure.

Also, I've heard that S&M's work is more "academic" and varied with the multispecialism - but does this multispecialism mean much when you're actually fully qualified? And does going to CC necessarily mean you'll be stuck doing the same thing forever (as opposed to, I guess, multispecialism)?

I would welcome any advice from anyone who has been at either firm/has chosen one over the other!

Thanks!

Slaughters competition team is probably the best in the city, they do great antitrust litigation, have worked on some of the biggest class actions in the country. Plus their lit team has picked up some really cool gigs recently (cf Shell derivative action). Having said that CC's lit team is bigger and does more arbitration and public international law work. In terms of the other differences, I don't think they will have a big effect unless really keen on the multispecialism thing. Will do big hours at both, great exit opps, great training. I wouldnt worry about the SQE section, ultimately its only a year and there will be others in the building, Slaughters only mixes with a limited selection of firms

 

[axelbeugre]

Ah, the timeless conundrum of choosing between Clifford Chance and Slaughter and May for a training contract—a predicament as old as the legal hills, akin to choosing between champagne and fine wine.

The SQE Debacle:​

Clifford Chance: Ah, yes, spending your SQE time exclusively with Clifford Chance folks. Imagine being trapped in a high-octane intellectual pressure cooker with the same faces day in, day out. Truly, the stuff of dreams—or nightmares, depending on how much you enjoy lawyerly banter over the water cooler.

Slaughter and May: On the other hand, mingling with law students from other firms during your SQE could be the social event of the year, a veritable melting pot of future legal eagles. Who knows? Maybe you'll meet someone from a rival firm and form a dramatic alliance that echoes through the annals of legal history—or at least, makes for a good anecdote at bar association events.

To Bill or Not to Bill:​

Clifford Chance: Ah, the sweet treadmill of billable hours. Nothing screams "I've made it" like agonizing over whether your six-minute bathroom break should be billed to client code 12345 or 67890.

Slaughter and May: A world without billable hour targets? It's almost like being told you're going to Disneyland, only to find out it's 'Legal Disneyland,' where instead of roller coasters, you have endless briefs to review.

Academic and Varied vs. Same Old, Same Old:​

Clifford Chance: Being stuck in a practice area for all eternity? Imagine the pure, unadulterated joy of mastering the arcane arts of a single domain—like learning to conjure fire and then doing absolutely nothing else for the rest of your magical career.

Slaughter and May: Multispecialism! The spice of legal life. One day you're a tax genius; the next, an antitrust maven. It's like being a Swiss Army knife made entirely of legal expertise. Or, alternatively, a jack of all trades, master of none, if things go south.

Thank you so much for sharing such an insightful response @google_was_my_idea

 

[Jane Smith]

Pick Slaughter and May. I worked there in the past and it is the best of those two choices. Both are good firms however.