TCLA's Most Bookmarked Content 2020

[Jaysen]

As we get to the end of the year, I thought you guys would benefit from reading the Most Bookmarked Content of 2019/2020. With our upcoming forum upgrade, we'll have a page where it is far easier to access the best advice on this forum.

In first place comes Alice's advice on case studies:

So asides from article interviews I only ever prepared for M&A case studies. @Jessica Booker has duly noted that not all case studies are M&A case studies so please do remember that this advice is catered to M&A.

1. Start reading commercial news for ten minutes a day and be consistent. Strong candidates will support their points in case study interviews with real-life examples. so, if you recognise a competition concern in a case study you might want to reference something like the failed Sainsburys/Asda merger to substantiate and strengthen a point.

2. Look at the departments in law firms and understand what each of them does. This will allow you to go into the case study with a framework through which to think. If you remember about IP departments in law firms then your mind will trigger you to think about branding concerns or patents in a case study even if it is not explicit or obvious - this will show the interviewer you can think more broadly and beyond the scope of what is written if required. If you remember about disputes, then you might be better attuned if you read something which might subtly hint at a litigious claim.

3. Try to read thought leadership pieces and listen to podcasts about the trends and themes in certain departments: for competition you might want to explore the increasingly interventionist nature of competition authorities and think about the impact this can have - by mentioning these topical issues you can make yourself stand out. For M&A, you might want to look at shareholder activism and the impact of this too. There are many other issues and trends you can research which might give you helpful information which can be leveraged at the interview.

4. Look at share vs asset purchases.

5. Look at debt vs equity financing and understand the pros and cons of each and when they might be most appropriate

6. Look up the following and know what they are:

- warranties, indemnities and representations
- restrictive covenants i.e. non-compete and non-solicit clauses
- Look up what a non-disclosure agreement is and what heads of terms are.
- Look up a balance sheet and just try to become more comfortable with what this is and what it shows.

7. Practise writing out diagrams which explain an M&A deal - try to have an understanding of the different parties, who they are, their motives and what type of transaction it is (i.e. share or asset) and how the transaction is being funded.

8. On the above, always consider what the motives are of each party - this is really important to show your understanding

9. keep your client's interests in mind - you will no doubt need to make a decision on this proposed deal - whether to advise for or against. Always remember you are acting in the interests of your client so try to balance the opportunity with risk and offer solutions. So many candidates can issue spot, but really strong candidates are those who can recognise issues and risks and advise the client as to how these might be mitigated.

10. Look up SWOT and PESTLE as these can offer you some more frameworks in which to structure your analysis and opinion whether the case study is written or presented. Always leave 7-10 mins to consider your structure and to make sure you have an opinion as this is crucial.

11. Don't forget to look at the price and any financials - they won't be too tricky but just try your best to weigh up whether you think the price seems reasonable/fair or not and whether there are any financial imbalances/issues you can spot.

 

[Jaysen]

Next is @Saksham Malik's advice for the Watson Glaser Test:

Below is a list of every practice test I took for the Watson Glaser.

· https://www.wikijob.co.uk/content/aptitude-tests/test-types/watson-glaser
· https://www.wikijob.co.uk/aptitude-test/watson-glaser
· https://www.jobtestprep.co.uk/watson-glaser-sample-questions
· https://www.thelawyerportal.com/e-learning/free-watson-glaser-practice-test/
· https://www.assessmentday.co.uk/watson-glaser-critical-thinking.htm
· https://www.thelawyerportal.com/e-learning/free-watson-glaser-practice-test/
· https://careers.cliffordchance.com/middleeast/your-career/law-grads-students.html
· https://www.barstandardsboard.org.uk/media/1344440/watsonglaser_form_ab_example_questions.pdf
· https://www.iprep.online/courses/watson-glaser-test-wgcta-free/#free_web_res
· https://www.talentlens.co.uk/product/watson-glaser/
· https://www.talentlens.co.uk/company/about-us/practice-aptitude/
· Pearson thinking test, mentioned on the linklaters application page: http://www.pearsonvue.com/phnro/wg_practice.pdf

Below are a few online guides I read for the test:

o https://www.thelawyerportal.com/free-guides/training-contract-overview/watson-glaser-test/
o https://www.jobtestprep.co.uk/watson-glaser-sample-questions?affiliateID=10248&affiliateID=10248
o https://www.assessment-training.com/blogs/tips-to-pass-a-watson-glaser-critical-thinking-test
o https://www.assessment-training.com...laser-critical-thinking-test-and-does-it-work
o https://www.iprep.online/courses/watson-glaser-test-wgcta-free/
o https://www.wikijob.co.uk/content/aptitude-tests/test-types/watson-glaser

 

[Jaysen]

In third place is a list of the types of questions I used to ask at events (please apply your own judgement).

Questions to ask partners

• Is the firm dominated by the states or more collaborative? What do you make of the relationship between offices?
• How does the London office fit in with the broader strategy of the firm?
• Does the US cultural influence make any difference on your day to day work?
• How involved are you with US lawyers on a typical case? Does this pose challenges regarding time zones?
• How involved is London in the firm’s overall decision making?
• What are the biggest challenges about working on multi-jurisdictional deals (that aren’t related to the actual work)?
• What proportion of partners trained within the firm?
• Do you think there will be any consolidation among the major city firms?
• Why do you think the best friend's network/alliance/merger is the best model for global practice?
• Why do you do what you do? What gets you up in the morning?
• Is the aim for the firm’s culture to be uniform across borders or distinct in each jurisdiction?

Questions to ask trainees

• How did you end in at your practice area? Where would you have gone if you hadn't ended up here?
• Is there any scope to contribute ideas to the firm as a trainee?
• How is it ensured that trainees on client secondments get the same standard of training?
• How do you view the rise of US firms in London?
• How would you describe X firm’s place in the market?
• In terms of personal training/development, what does the law firm offer?
• What are you most looking forward to in your future?
• How many of you tend to work on a deal?
• Do you find the culture non-hierarchical? Open door policy?
• How involved are you with business development (BD) and promoting the firm?
• What do you wish you’d known about being a trainee before you started that you now do?
• How does the lack of billable hours affect your practice?
• With the best friends network/alliance approach, has do secondments work?
• Because there are fewer trainees at this firm, would you say there is greater trainee responsibility/exposure?
• What was it like when you actually began at the firm? How did you find the transition?

Questions to ask graduate recruitment

• How are seats allocated?
• What are the skills you look for in a trainee?
• Is there a mentoring programme available on the training contract?
• Why did you join?
• Can you tell us about the structure of your training contract assessment days?
• How do trainees receive feedback? Is there a formal appraisal?
• Are there opportunities to get involved in pro bono work?

 

[Jaysen]

In fourth place, we're back with Alice:

Written App
With the 850 word personal statement, they said to check the website for what they are looking for as they have lots of buzzwords for skills and competencies they would ideally like to see us evidence. I say evidence in bold as I know we have so many new applicants to this cycle and it took me a few apps and a lot of help from @Jaysen to realise a crucial difference between an 'ok' app and a great one is the degree to which you substantiate your claims! They did say though that you can 'show don't tell' so do not worry about making everything absolutely explicit and constantly repeating 'this example demonstrates X'. Give them the examples which demonstrate skills, be sure to use STAR, and make sure you use the word count effectively.

This is a snippet taken from the FAQ section on their website, but they also have a graduate recruitment brochure and a handy application guide!

'We look for many skills including determination, enthusiasm, time management, flexibility, attention to detail, an interest in business, willingness to work as a team, and a sense of humour. When writing your application, make sure you link your experiences to the types of skills we look for. See our website for more information on what skills make a great lawyer.'

They advise that if you have met them at a presentation evening then feel free to note this in the work exp section. However, do not simply tell grad rec what the event entailed. This also goes for other firms - they do not want you to recall facts and stats but tell them what really struck out to you on a personal level and what was it that got said that really resonated with. They want to know what it is you learned and enjoyed the most from these experiences so if you had a really great conversation with a future trainee about a practice area that interests you then this is the sort of thing you might want to consider telling them.

The overriding bit of advice on the PS was to make it personal - tell them the story of 'you'. They advised that they want to see 'why commercial law', 'why the firm' and 'why you' covered, but it sounded to me as though they are not mutually exclusive sections but the 'why you' should be prevalent in the former two sections too. I think the beauty of these apps is that you can make them your own but they did say to aim for 30% why comm law and why the firm and then 70% why you. I am personally just going to try and keep the 'why me' as sustained as possible and would advise people not to get to worried about this weighting in a strict sense. They really want to be able to get a sense of personality coming through your writing so try and get someone to read it. Obviously, try not to go full-blown story-time and ensure you still have a professional structure and do not mistake 'I have wanted to be a commercial lawyer since I was seven' as being the best story to tell. They were quite clear on this and think it is sound advice to give across all other personal statement/cover letter style apps.

As I allude to in the last para, structure is important - I think that all apps, like essays, need to flow. This doesn't necessarily mean making inauthentic and tenuous connections but try to pick the best things about you that you wish to talk about and maybe play around with how best to order them. They do say that 'why comm law' and 'why the firm' and 'why you' do not have to be in any particular order so just go with what feels right to you.

WG Test
Freshfields physically read every single app they get, there is no automation in sight to help filter apps out, and the tests are sent to those who they think have sent strong enough apps. Sadly guys, there are no tips out of the ordinary here other than to try and stay calm and do your best. I would again recommend the how2become critical thinking test book available on Amazon (should be a green cover) to help with this assessment. Once the test is done, there is no crude benchmark as such. Grad rec said they do look at the app and WG in tandem to see how a candidate weighs up holistically. If you have a poor WG score but an incredible app you may still get an interview and vice versa if your app may have been one of the weaker ones.

Interview Day
This will be a half day assessment centre.

Written task: This is to test the quality of your written work and your attention to detail skills. It is a 45 minute assessment.
Analytical interview: This is basically an article from a newspaper like the Financial Times perhaps, and you will have to discuss it with a partner. They advised us to think about the key issues and what the writer is arguing or putting forwards as their view. They will no doubt try to steer the conversation to a business and commercial matter so try to view the article through your 'commercial lens'. They also advised to look engaged and enthusiastic. If I can share anything here - this is vital. For my tricky interviews in the past I have really tried to influence my mindset and see them as fun challenges where I am not expected to know it all but merely try my best. Really try to keep upbeat and smile and don't allow your nerves to get the better of you if you can try.

Compentency/Situational/You interview: This interview i got the impression as being relatively open-ended and that there are no strict questions or formulas that partners will follow. a few possible questions mentioned were:
1. what are you most proud of?
2. what are your success stories?
3. what challenges have you faced and what has been the outcome?
4. have you ever failed at something?
5. when have you received negative feedback and how did you respond?
6. when have you managed multiple deadlines and how did you go about this?
As always, they recommended to use STAR to guide your answers and structure them.
As with any AC too, have questions prepared for the people interviewing you and they also did say there would be a tour during the day - this is not assessed though obviously still be professional.

They said that they really do want candidates to assess well across the three assessed tasks at the AC but that everything is accounted for. If you do only reasonably in one element of the day but you excel in the other two then they will take this into account.

 

[Jaysen]

And in fifth place, we have @Jessica Booker's TSR advice on doing well on a vacation scheme (in addition to what was said on TSR):

"
[In reference to advice on TSR] I posted this:

Most of the above I agree with, but here are my additional points:

1) If you do something stupid, at least have the maturity to own up/apologise/make amends. Whether its getting drunk (yes it happens A LOT on vac schemes) or messing up with a piece of work (e.g. leaving confidential information somewhere stupid), the worse thing you can do is pretend like it never happened

2) Don't ***** about anyone or anything - word gets around quickly if you do. It only makes you look bad.

3) Don't succumb to the "pack" mentality or cliques that can form in a larger vacation scheme group. I've seen enough good applicants get caught up in negative group energy or false rumours, and subsequently not get a TC at the end of it.

4) Don't use your working day to prepare for any assessments (like your interviews). There is nothing worse than candidates who decides to take on little to no work on the day of their interview, so they can "prepare". You are being paid to do a job, remember that this should be your priority between 9.30-5.30pm."

The "most of the above I agree with" was posted by someone else, but I have edited it to what I agree with and posted it below:

"My general advice would be to treat the entire VS as an extended interview. A good rule of thumb would be to behave as you think an ideal trainee ought to (eg confident, sociable, enthusiastic, intelligent). Some more specific points are:

- Always be on your best behaviour at all times. Try not to be on your phone/ Facebook at your desk (if you have to check, go to the bathroom). Getting drunk is absolutely a no-no (and yes, I have heard of it happening on other VSes).

- Be sociable and friendly to everyone, not just the lawyers. Being nice to support staff (eg secretaries, receptionists, paralegals) doesn't take much (and is the decent thing to do at any rate). Also, they can be extremely helpful, and you never know if their opinions will be taken into account in making offers.

- Be confident, but not cocky. Don't be intimidated talking to partners or senior associates.

- Organization is very important. You should always carry a notebook with you at all times to write down information. The moment you get a piece of work, ask (1) When is this due by and (2) How should it be done (eg hard or soft copy, whether the firm has a standard template that should be used). You might have to prioritize, and if you have no more capacity, try to convey that sensitively (eg I'm currently finishing up an urgent assignment from x, perhaps I could come over after I'm done at y date and time? Or I'm rather loaded at the present - would it be okay for me to send this piece over at x date and time instead of y?). In general though, try to take on as much work as you can without compromising on quality.

- If you need clarification, don't be afraid to ask. Better to ask early and get some guidance, rather than find out that you've been barking up the wrong tree right at the end!

- Be enthusiastic about your work. I used to go around knocking on doors asking for work whenever I had nothing to do, and got positive feedback about it (it's a fine line between enthusiasm and being annoying though - think I used to go round twice a day and that was fine).

- Don't knock any work that's given to you, even if it isn't very "legal" or intellectual (eg proofreading, due diligence). Take everything with a smile, and make sure you do your best, even if you don't find the work all that exciting. Heck, if the lawyers want you to do paralegal/ secretarial things (eg pouring water for clients), you better do it competently with a big smile!

- Do all your work well. Triple-check and re-read everything before you send it out (including emails). If necessary, print it out and go over it in hard copy line by line - it's usually easier to spot typos this way.

- If you have no work, you could consider going to other departments to ask (and it's a good opportunity to try other areas of the law if you're interested!). If you have absolutely nothing to do, spend the time reading up on things like the Financial Times or the firm's internal training materials.

- Take your assessments seriously (eg client pitch, negotiation exercise). Ask the trainees who came through VSes for advice.

- Be careful with what you say to anyone - you never know whether it will be taken into account (eg your supervisor might 'informally interview' you on the first day you get to your seat). You always want to give the impression that you want to be here, and that you're a great fit for the firm.

- Talk to other people! As much as a VS is for the firm to assess if they like you, it's also an opportunity for you to decide if you like the firm and if a legal career suits you. Talk to everyone about their experiences (including support staff - they can be very insightful about a firm's culture). I was quite scared of talking to people because I didn't want to distract them, but the key is sensing when they're "free" to talk. Most people are pretty happy to talk to you if they aren't swamped with work. And certainly approach them at social events if you see them hanging around.

- Befriend the other interns, but be aware that some of them might have ulterior motives (some see VS/ TC as a zero-sum game). It makes the VS much more enjoyable, and you might be able to collect useful information. Plus, it's good to get to know your potential colleagues early on.

 

[Jaysen]

In number six, is this recommended podcast list from @D:

Commercial Awareness is not something you can cram. It is built up over time and is the result of how you engage with the business world that exists around you.

If any of you are like me, I hate reading! So, I found my particular method of increasing commercial awareness was simply listening to a podcast or two each day while on the bus to Uni. Over time, I found a series of useful podcasts that I could dip in and out of when time permitted, as well as some short daily podcasts to keep on top of the news!

I use Spotify to listen to podcasts, however, I have no doubt these are available on other platforms. Here are the ones I recommend. Click the link and follow! (For reference, there are many, many out there! These are simply the ones I prefer).

FT Daily News Briefing - 6-7 minutes of daily news
https://open.spotify.com/show/1410RabA4XOqO6IV8p0gYF?si=8IxqydHSR_avyrgesSo5WQ

The Economist: Money Talks - 30 minutes, once a week, covering stories at a deeper level
https://open.spotify.com/show/2Yvo8QxZf7WlSEsIwKjtX4?si=2y73y9hIQa-8p212SYC2OQ

The Economist: Intelligence - 30 minutes, daily, covering both business and political issues. Suitable for wider knowledge
https://open.spotify.com/show/12zKAMNyS2GNentUzxq9QN?si=voyTYnYwR7GLdXgl8kYSyA

The Economist Radio: 30 minutes, once a week, covering a broad range of geopolitical and business issues
https://open.spotify.com/show/2ZFDmgDS2Z6xccP51s1zFQ?si=qKQXInhZS8KhYP4wQBwNcw

BBC Radio 5: Wake up to money - 45 minutes daily, chat show covering the daily business issues. Recommended if you have a longer commute, otherwise, use the FT Daily News briefing
https://open.spotify.com/show/1Q9XAxIXE1HQ656Ft7CtZR?si=s8VxXeTjRKaUwVuG031D7w

The Bottom Line - It features issues with clear commercial implications, often with a focus on what business sectors are doing, without feeling too 'heavily' commercial. An easy and quick listen (all under 30 mins) and genuinely interesting topics - Thanks @ath120!
https://open.spotify.com/show/4tnEpf6izermKcJMN2Wa2g?si=-2_C79QKTFCa0ff5Xu-_YA

"The Commercial Awareness Podcast" by Tapiwa Museba - it provides weekly updates on what has happened in the legal world, provides analysis and allows you to see the importance of the events in context. It is aimed at aspiring solicitor, future & current trainees and was invaluable in my understanding of the commercial world - Thanks @Karin
https://open.spotify.com/show/1bgdRgOpphAb6hqxjuMrTQ?si=oHID6xidSCqFJtvysIOKeQ
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-commercial-awareness-podcast/id1440864554

 

[Jaysen]

In seventh place is @J Wu's explanation of the differences between law and investment banking:

A few reasons you might choose law over IB:

1) The work is much more varied in law (day-to-day). As an analyst, a lot of work in IB is spent making pitch books/information memorandums on powerpoint, playing around with excel or doing research.

2) Law firms generally offer a broader range of practices. Banks generally offer M&A, capital markets (or growth capital at tiny boutiques like mine), restructuring, asset management and sales & trading (simple overview). When you join the bank, you don't usually get to sample multiple areas either (rotations might occur around industry teams, but not between banking divisions). The scope of work at law firms is much broader with more opportunities to explore areas such as tax, competition, project finance, real estate, white-collar crime.

3) You specialise a lot in banking (varies between banks). My flatmate is in the industrials team at an M&A-focused boutique and he focuses predominantly on M&A within the industrials sector.

4) Banks are huge (bulge bracket, mid-market, (elite) boutique all have 1000s of employees still) so for people who want to work somewhere where they won't be a number, that's a lot harder to find in banking. The alternative is going to a tiny boutique like the one I'm at (10-20 people max), but the deal exposure and learning experience is not as high quality.

5) The hours are marginally better in law. Average leaving time for most law firms is roughly 7pm/8pm/9pm, whereas it's a few hours later for a lot of banks (varies between banks and depending on culture ofc.). Many people go into IB knowing they will leave a few years down the line for a hedge fund/private equity firm/in-house corporate department. People do genuinely burn-out and the hours are not sustainable unless you really enjoy what you're doing.

This is just my take on this question, but hope this helps!

 

[Jaysen]

In eighth place, we have @Hazal's brilliant advice on discussing commercial stories:

I’ve written a bit on this topic before but I think it’s one of the hardest, yet most important, questions to get right (although, if you’re brilliant at writing commercial stories but can’t articulate why you’re interested in a specific law firm, then there’s no point). It's difficult because we often go through our lives not questioning why we’re attracted to the things that draw us in. Therefore, a question like HSF’s Introduce us to a topic you know about and explain why it interests you or MoFo’s Please detail a recent news article that has interested you and highlight how this might have an impact on Morrison & Foerster’s business can throw many of us off track. It’s crucial that you understand how to write about your topic in an interesting way and that you’re answering the question as closely as possible. This week’s tip will hopefully cover most concerns around writing about the stories that interest us.

1) Picking a topic

Of course, before you can even start writing you have to have an invested interest in a story. For a question like HSF’s, where the question can be guided by you, I wouldn’t worry about choosing a story that relates to the firm. In this instance, it’s more important to pick something you’re truly interested in so you have the passion needed to drive good/easy writing. If you’re stuck at this point, the best places to go are:

i) TED/TEDx talks or YouTube: Covers a huge array of topics and issues so it might inspire you to follow a story they’ve already touched upon. Also easy videos to sit back and follow

ii) Podcasts: Any commercial podcasts will do. Same as above, they will cover a wide range of stories and there may be one that particularly sparks your interest. I would recommend The Economist: Money Talks podcast.

iii) Have a browse through news websites: You might have a particular favourite site or paper, but whatever it may be, sift through and see if there’s anything that grabs your interest (so long as it has a commercial streak). Have a look at pages other than the front page as well for further inspiration. Once inspiration hits and you’ve found something, really question yourself: what exactly was it that drew me in and hooked me?

2) Researching the topic

Even more important than picking your topic is knowing your topic and feeling excited about it. When I chose to write about Netflix for my HSF answer, I found a great TED video with the co-founder and noted down what was said every time I thought “that’s cool” or “that’s interesting – I've never heard/seen that before”. This motivated me because I enjoyed the process. Your question can’t be that long though so whatever you’re researching, there’s no need to go overboard. As long as you have all the stats or facts to back you up, you’ll be fine. In addition, quotes are a nice addition sometimes. Collecting this is particularly important if your question is asking you to relate it back to the firm as the above MoFo example does.

3) Structuring your answer

It’s important to write in an engaging way but to not lose sight of why exactly a story has interested you and simply cite facts. Therefore, you need to have a clear structure first. I would recommend:

i) Brief but engaging introduction to your topic/story

ii) The 2 stand-out reasons why it engaged you, stated concisely and clearly

iii) The backing evidence for those reasons

iv) A concluding point for the reader to remember your interest

Remember that 2 and 4 can be completely different. So, for example, if my reason for liking the Netflix story is 1) it’s use of data 2) it’s use of debt, I need to conclude what that means for me in point 4. In this case, my answer would be Netflix drives competition in the entertainment industry through 1 and 2 and competition interests me because I enjoy seeing the economy working and consumers being given competitive prices and an abundance of choices. If your chosen story has an emotional link to you somehow, that’s also a good thing to exploit. In conclusion, make sure you dedicate as much time to describing the topic as explaining your interest (maybe more so to your interest, but never devote more to the facts themselves).

4) Engaging your reader

Once you’ve established your structure and your interest, you’ll need to try and get your reader as interested in your topic as you are. The first one or two lines are crucial to this as they’ll set the tone for the rest of your answer. A tip that Jaysen once gave was: Try to form an opinion on the topic. To make your answer strong, lead with your opinion rather than simply describing the topic. (Alternatively, give a brief description and then go into an evaluation). Taking that advice, I used a quote by an industry expert that summed-up what I was trying to say which allowed me to flow through into my argument. In addition, I think it’s very useful to read good journalistic writing that you personally find engaging, evaluate why you were engaged and attempt to incorporate the same tricks into your writing. Although you don’t have much word count to manoeuvre in, I would recommend reading an Economist article. They always have engaging beginnings.

But remember, don’t lose sight of what’s really going to win you points – clear, concise language (see here) that presents the story, establishes your interest and concludes your interest.

 

[Jaysen]

Finally, we had Alice's explanation on how you can go about differentiating law firms:

1) What working/billable targets does the firm have? Does this fit with your personal working style and preferences?
2) Partner remuneration - is it lockstep, modified lockstep? - this can affect culture and can be beneficial or not depending on your work preferences again
3) Firm's values/principles (Most firms do pro bono but WHAT pro bono do they do and are they big on mental health initiatives and championing women in the workplace, etc? )
4) Management structure/firm governance - can impact culture and flexibility in your work, especially at the partner level!
5) Global reach and international strategy (look at number 25 - Do all offices share a single profit pool or not, i.e. LLP model? Are the international offices collaborative? Is the London office autonomous or is it more of a satellite office if the firm is US heritage?)
6) Lateral hires made recently- helps to understand the firm's strategy and areas of growth/focus
7) Work benefits - work from home, help for parents who are still fee-earners?
8) What networks are available i.e. diversity network, women's network?
9) Extra-curriculars in the firm? i.e. netball team?
10) Do they have any specific initiatives, i.e. mental health initiatives if they don't already have a network geared towards this? A similar point to values really but more testing how tangible these values are in the sense of having dedicated groups etc.
11) Trainee intake size
12) Tech?
13) Awards and rankings - roll on friday etc
14) Practice group/industry strengths
15) Scale - in London and globally - can impact levels of work available to you and opportunities for professional development
16) Retention rates - very important I think!
17) Culture - always try and meet and engage with firms where you can - did you have a positive impression of the people there? Don't just consider your personal experience but look around you - are partners and trainees socialising naturally too?
18) Full service offering?
19) Firm's origin - more pertinent for the US but is it a New York bred firm or did it begin its roots in LA? Can have a cultural impact to a degree and may indicate the types of work undertaken and clients?
20) Clients? FTSE 100? Private Equity Houses? This can help with understanding strengths and areas of focus too.
21) Do they prefer homegrown talent or does the firm tend to make lateral and partner hires? Consider your own long term plans and ambitions for the future.
22) Do they have strong mentorship programs in place?
23) Specialists or multi-specialist? Relates slightly back to scale really but think about the sort of person you are and which you would prefer.
24) Regular feedback and appraisals?
25) Swiss Verein or LLP? (Look at Shearman's Whiteboard Wednesday video for this, linked here: https://ukgraduates.shearman.com/20...n-vs-global-partnership-whiteboard-wednesday/)
26) When you have looked at all of this and picked out key things that are important to you, can you substantiate why these are important to you through your past experience and current situation?
27) Have these bullet points helped you to consider main competitors? If so, who are they and what are they doing specifically which these other firms are not? Why is this significant to you?