The Legal Cheek View
This is the Watson Farley & Williams profile for those considering solicitor apprenticeships. Students looking to apply for training contracts should check out Legal Cheek’s main Watson Farley & Williams profile.
Watson Farley & Williams (WFW), a major player in the maritime industry, has entered the solicitor apprenticeship space, hiring its first cohort set to begin in 2025. Originally founded as a boutique firm in 1982, WFW has since expanded, offering new recruits opportunities to work in its core sectors: energy, infrastructure, and transport, as well as its growing expertise in aviation finance and renewable energy.
Apprentices at WFW begin their journey in the non-legal areas of the business. In the first year, recruits complete two six-month rotations in teams such as compliance, knowledge & learning, or innovations. This foundational year allows them to understand how the firm operates behind the scenes. After this below deck experience, apprentices get their first exposure to legal work. During years two, three, and four of the six-year programme, they rotate annually across the firm’s core practice areas, including real estate, corporate, and more.
In the final two years of WFW’s apprenticeship programme, experienced recruits transition to a ‘quasi-training contract.’ During the fifth year, apprentices will begin the same practice area rotations as the firm’s graduate trainees. This involves six four-month seat rotations over the last two years. Adventurous apprentices will also have the chance to spend four months on an international secondment in one of WFW’s sunny offices in Athens, Bangkok, Dubai, Frankfurt, Paris, or Singapore.
On the education front, apprentices spend the first four years of the programme working towards a part-time law degree, devoting one day a week to studying. In the final two years, the emphasis shifts to preparing for the Solicitors Qualifying Exams (SQE), with the goal of graduates becoming fully qualified solicitors by the end of the six-year pathway.
When apprentices aren’t navigating the demands of university studies or legal work, they can experience a variety of internal networks that regularly host social events, offering plenty of chances to let off steam with colleagues. Whether it’s connecting with their communities in the MOSAIC network or joining the PROUD and We Further Women networks, recruits can find network with colleagues and strengthen ties within the wider WFW community. For those looking to dive into extracurricular activities, sporty rookies can test the waters with the firm’s football and netball clubs. We hear on the grapevine too, that this year’s annual WFW European tournament will see sporty colleagues fly off to sunny Rome to compete against their European WFW office rivals.
This is the Watson Farley & Williams profile for those considering solicitor apprenticeships. Students looking to apply for training contracts should check out Legal Cheek’s main Watson Farley & Williams profile.