Addleshaw Goddard

Global expansion has led to some impressive financials, with the latest publically available financial data showing a revenue increase of 12% this year to £496 million and a profit per equity partner (PEP) figure of approximately £900,000. Total profit also saw a 14% increase to £211 million, largely due to a 28% uptick in the Middle East and an 11% increase in the UK. Headcount is also on the rise, growing 6% globally to take the firm to over 2,700 employees worldwide. Not bad for new managing partner Andrew Johnston’s first term in charge. Stick around long enough and you’ve got a fair chance at partner too as 21 of the firm’s recent 26-strong partner promotion round were made up in the UK offices.

At trainee level, the work is “incredible, high-profile and news worthy stuff!” Our sources report they’re “treated more like an NQ than a trainee” and you can expect “NQ-level work” to go alongside. There is of course “always a degree of slog to a TC,” as one insider says, “but with all the support teams – PAs, document production colleagues, research teams – and the use of technology throughout the firm, trainees at AG can get their hands on really interesting work besides the more administrative tasks (which usually trainees are only expected to do once or twice before delegating and managing appropriately).”

One insider offered this thorough overview: “As a trainee I have been able to work on high calibre, high value matters which have been challenging and exciting in equal amounts. Many deals are multi-jurisdictional and you regularly get to work with our international offices and overseas counsel. There are always a lot of moving parts and an onus on you as a trainee to take responsibility for your work and carry it out to a high standard. You also have scope to be able to draft a lot of complex documents with supervision and to speak with clients to answer their queries or run through documents, which can be a little scary but is excellent experience and there is always support if you are unsure. Obviously there are less exciting, more administrative tasks that you have to also do, but ultimately that is part and parcel of being a trainee sometimes and you can still learn a lot from doing them.” Levels of responsibility can vary, with litigation noted to house a particularly good calibre of work while seats like finance are more administrative in nature.

Regardless of the practice area, trainees can expect to find mega deals at AG, whether that’s advising JD Sports on a $1.1 billion acquisition of US-based athletic fashion retailer Hibbitt; acting on the UK’s first ever ‘opt-in’ class action against a cartel of truck manufacturers; or, working on the sale of London’s iconic BT Tower to MCR Hotels, big work abounds at Addleshaw Goddard.

Prior to each seat, trainees are given at least a day of training to bring them up to speed with the basic concepts involved. You can then expect weekly updates, bulletins, presentations and one-to-one feedback, alongside the occasional knowledge session hosted by the “incredible internal knowledge management” team. One rookie offered this experience: “The operative word of my training contract has been ‘training’. I feel like a totally different trainee than the one who joined 9 months ago, and in my two seats, the teams have made an effort to give both formal and informal training. For banking, we spent two days in London on a crash course, and the associates are happy to make time thereafter. There are also recordings on 20+ topics targeted at juniors that we can watch.”

Trainee praise for the quality of work at AG is matched only by praise of its wider culture. “I get on with every single trainee in my office and some of them have become my best friends. Everyone is rooting for each other when it comes to seat move or the qualification process and people are genuinely invested in each other’s happiness,” reveals one gleeful insider. Another echoed this sentiment, adding: “we’re a happy ship! AG employs like-minded trainees and we all get along well.” New recruits report “eating lunch together, organising socials and celebrating trainee birthdays” and there’s also regular office-wide events, socials and annual summer parties at some swish venues like SushiSamba.

The good vibes continue at partner level: “I have never come across someone who I have thought is not approachable,” said one. The open-plan style of AG’s offices help “produce a friendly atmosphere without a sense of hierarchy”, and while “some supervisors are better at being visible and present in the hybrid environment”, being in the office more has certainly helped in this area, and on the whole trainees describe their supervisors as being “incredibly friendly, helpful and sociable”. One spy helpfully notes that they are “regularly down for a dmc” (deep meaningful chat for any non-Love Island fans). And you’re not limited to seeking support solely from your designated supervisor as we’re told there are “a number of different mentor and buddy schemes which are really helpful in accessing other networks and building relationships”.

This sense of inclusion is no doubt enhanced by the fact that offices are open-plan with break-out pods and excellent canteens, although the survey did uncover some gripes about the discrepancy between the “very impressive” and “modern” English offices and the “lacklustre” Scottish hubs. Whilst trainees in Manchester are “yet to see any visitor not have a ‘wow’ moment upon seeing our view of the Central Library”, insiders in Scotland claim that (despite recent refurbishments to the interior) there is a lack of catering facilities — although the “beautiful views of Edinburgh Castle” partly make up for it. AG’s London trainees are getting new digs right in the heart of Bank with a move to 41 Lothbury scheduled in 2025. This apparently can’t come soon enough for City rookies, who are excitedly anticipating the two roof terraces, new fitness studio and cycle and shower facilities that the building boasts.

Addleshaw’s legal tech is constantly evolving thanks to their highly-rated Innovation and Legal Technology team, who work in-house developing and integrating tech, both for clients and internally. Trainees can do a seat within the ILT team, and AG even offers a completely alternative innovation grad scheme which sees successful candidates join the group for two years. Beyond this, rookies generally benefit from the range of tools they roll-out. As one spy details: Our Innovation and Legal Technology team are so inspiring in the work that they do. AG was one of (if not the) first to release their own internal version of ChatGPT and it is incredibly helpful. I love knowing that I am at a firm embracing technology instead of running away from it.”

All new starters get to select their WFH equipment on joining which includes two screens, a mouse, headset, laptop riser and desks/chairs on further request. AG’s current hybrid working policy sees trainees in the office three days a week on average. There’s still some flexibility in this, but with the firm recently tying office attendance to partner performance reviews, there are some who “fear there will be a push to increase office days” in the not too distant future.

If you have your sights set on an office further afield, you’re in luck. The firm has three seats each rotation in which trainees can opt to work internationally, with past destinations including Dubai, Qatar and Muscat. Client secondments are also available, and are taken with clients from a host of global companies including Asda, Diageo and BP.

Generally speaking, the lawyers considered their work-life balance not bad for a commercial firm of Addleshaw Goddard’s stature. “It depends on the seat, the work you have on and the urgency of the task but generally weekends and evenings are free and holidays are respected. But I did have some late weekends and evenings in the run up to completions in Corporate!” one trainee shared. On the whole, many reported feeling that “work/life balance is the best you can get in a law firm at AG” with one adding that the “firm really cares about life away from work and days while stimulating are rarely stressful”. Flexibility is also valued here, with one mole telling Legal Cheek their team is “very flexible when it comes to appointments and are more than happy to let me leave my desk for an hour or so during the day, as long as I’m getting the work done and meeting my targets”.

Perks at Addleshaw are nothing to write home about, with some trainees feeling the firm could do more in this regard, but there is private health and dental care, a £180 wellbeing subsidy, portal discounts, buy-and-sell holiday options, as well as the well-rated canteens in the English offices. One trainee also confessed “I would choose AG again just for the [canteen’s] shawarma”. The firm has also recently become the first major law firm to receive ‘fertility friendly’ accreditation.

There is a firmwide drive towards greater eco-friendliness, with the recent introduction of Environment Week, good recycling systems and compulsory seminars on eco topics. Each office now has ‘environment teams’ who propose and develop initiatives. One junior on the environment committee told us this “isn’t just virtue signalling” and “AG appreciates that it is now an important part of corporate life”. “A lean mean ESG machine” as one trainee described AG. Nevertheless, many agree there is “always room for improvement”, with one person highlighting the litigation teams still print off bundles to be “used once for client meetings”, and another noting that, despite the firm’s policy that domestic air travel should only be done with permission, “all Scottish trainees were straight away given the option of flying down to London for the trainee conference”.