The Legal Cheek View
It’s the largest US law firm in the UK by headcount, the second largest law firm in the entire world by revenue and potentially the only law firm in the world that organises a corporate ski trip to introduce new recruits. It can only be LA titan Latham & Watkins.
Founded in depression-era Los Angeles in 1934 by Dana Latham and Paul Watkins, L&W historically specialised in tax and labour law: a far-cry from the rainmaking practices of leveraged finance, private equity and capital markets that the financial giant has become so synonymous with. But amidst a stagnant transactional market Latham & Watkins has shown that its bow still has many arrows as revenues rose almost 7% to $5.68 billion (£4.48 billion) after taking a slight dip last year. Profit per equity partner also righted itself after dropping last year, climbing over 7% to $5.5 million (£4.3 million).
In the UK, Latham has achieved the fourth largest revenue on record, surpassing some Magic Circle firms on their home turf. A rise of 7% now means revenue in the firm’s London office sits at a staggering £588 million as Latham’s plan to broaden its London clientele with blue-chip corporates bears fruit. Not only has the firm managed to become huge but, unlike some of its rivals, also spectacularly profitable; PEP remains double that of most Magic Circle firms while its revenues are five times that of some Silver Circle players. Net profit has increased by over 80% since 2009, so it might come as no surprise to see some of the biggest and steadfast Magic Circle players, such as Freshfields’ Mark Austin CBE jumping ship to this US giant.
This is not quite the Wild West environment of some of the small US firm London offices, where UK trainees can be something of an afterthought. With around 32 training contracts a year up for grabs, Latham offers more London graduate opportunities than many sizeable British firms and as such has a fairly well-developed (if minimalist) training infrastructure.
Unsurprisingly, life at Latham is not for the faint-hearted: “There are quite a few late nights and [it] sometimes feels like it doesn’t stop.” That said, finishing times are said to “vary wildly”. One trainee offers this experience: “It depends on market performance especially for transactional seats, there are days when I have finished all work at 5pm, and others when I’m having to work weekends. In specialist advisory seats, the general working hours as a trainee is from 9am to 9pm, and is generally busy on a day to day basis, though weekends are more respected.” Others were less philosophical on the topic, offering shorter snippets of wisdom such as “long hours” or “it’s a US firm so my work/life balance is as expected”. Overall, the consensus is that whilst it can be “non-existent” at times, the firm has a “very positive approach to having a life outside of work”. One source stresses “you are encouraged to take a break when you have earned it and there is no facetime culture of hanging around when you don’t need to”.
As is common with US outfits, the training is said to “vary from department to department”. Some claim that there are “lots of resources and always new training when we go into a new seat” whilst others say there is more of an on-the-job approach.. Bigger seats such as corporate get two weeks of induction training which insiders reckon is “probably the same if not better than MC training”. However in smaller practice areas such as data and technology, “there is no formal training” one insider claims, “just doing”. Another adds: “You are very much left out on your own at times, this is a good learning curve for the most part and forces you to think on your feet and use your initiative. Other times it can be the most scary experience of your life.” That said, the more formalised training is said to be “comprehensive” and trainees are also encouraged to suggest their opinions. “Senior associates (and sometimes partners!) also engage in training in the form of mock exercises that are very entertaining and instructive,” one recruit adds. Generally, Latham’s newbies seem happy with this approach: “The firm strikes the right balance between giving you the substantive training you need to hit the ground running without spoon-feeding and still giving you the opportunity to learn by doing,” one spy explains. “There is such a thing as too much training and that is definitely not the case here.”
In addition, fellow trainees are on hand to help. “I could not fault my cohort for being supportive, friendly and an inevitable shoulder to cry on at 2am after a long and gruelling day. It is more like a friendship circle than anything else,” one reports. This apparently extends beyond the office, with another insider explaining that they “celebrate each other’s birthdays together and on special occasions like Chinese New Year, people host parties or dinners at their places”. There is competition for certain seats, which can put a strain on rookie bonds in the lead up to qualification, according to some LC spies. But, generally, our sources were quick to note that their peers are “generally supportive” and – anyway – whoever let a couple bad apples spoil the bunch?
Not least because trainees are said to be given a “very generous budget to spend on socials”. The usual events include office-wide summer parties, ad-hoc after work drinks, regular socials across Latham’s affinity groups and a corporate ski trip which is subsidised for trainees!
Partners, meanwhile, are generally of the matey and direct variety. “My current supervisor is an absolute legend and most people I have worked with are cool too,” one Latham rookie reports. “In general, very approachable, although I can’t comment on every department. There are some partners I would be nervous to speak to, but then you do and they’re always very friendly,” another revealed. This can, however, vary between departments. One trainee told us: “You get the odd associates who aren’t as friendly or approachable but there are so many who are super lovely and happy to answer questions. One of my corporate supervisors is just amazing. He is incredibly busy but never fails to answer my questions with careful thought. He doesn’t make me feel like a bother. That’s incredible for my learning.”
In keeping with Latham’s ultra-lean model, the work — much of which is high-end corporate finance-related — spans everything from the mindless to the mind-bending. At Latham, there is an expectation that trainees will be proactive, with what you do “dependent on how forward you are in asking to try new types of work”. High quality work is always up for grabs, but it is up to trainees to take on the challenge. “The work is varied and interesting — while you sometimes get the mundane trainee “grunt” work, associates in certain teams are highly invested in your growth and proactively take steps in ensuring you’re exposed to substantive work. The gap between a trainee and an NQ is not very stark at Latham because of the responsibility that trainees are given from day one. There have been instances where I was given responsibility and work above the level I was at” said one rookie.
Deals and cases range from working on the billion pound sale of Manchester United to Jim Radcliffe all the way to advising NATO innovation fund its investment in Europe’s leading satellite launch vehicle company Isar Aerospace — “it simply cannot be beaten”, summarises one rookie. As well as “very complex legal work” that is known to leave you “at the edge of your seat most of the time”, others enjoy the fact that trainees have “control over their own workstreams”.
On the perks front, juniors praise “generous mentoring budgets” that “offer a lot of flexibility with connecting across the firms and meeting new people. It’s also nice to be able to connect with peers and seniors outside of a large networking event or for deal related matters”. Other sweeteners include an iPhone 14, a retreat to Barcelona in the first three months, free manicures, spin classes and pilates with mentors, free concierge service and a ski trip in Austria, that’s alongside the usual gym subsidies and cycle to work schemes — oh, and as the sizeable salary of around £172k isn’t to be sniffed at either. A few trainees we spoke to also recommended the firm acquire gym facilities or offer better gym discounts.
As for the office, change is on the horizon; Latham has secured around 200,000 square feet at 1 Leadenhall and is due to move in early 2026 – “Everyone is counting down the days until we move into the new place,” said one excited trainee. Not that rookies are complaining about the current digs on Bishopsgate. “We have open plan floors where everyone gets free organic snacks and drinks, standing desks, noise-cancelling headphones and access to fancy showers with hotel-style shower products and amenities,” one tells us. Meanwhile, the in-house canteen, ‘Red and White’, offers “a waffle machine, frozen yoghurt machine and a daily rotisserie chicken” as well as an extensive menu. One trainee had this to share: “They have a free coffee machine and free fruit. The staff are absolute gems. At lunch there is always a hot option which includes a veggie option as well as soup, salad bar, sandwiches and Tuesdays-Thursdays an additional hot option. People complain about it not being great but for canteen food I don’t think it is bad at all and it is heavily subsidised. We have free lunch, free breakfast and free cakes once a month.”
As for working from home, “you get all the equipment you need and specialist equipment if required” and the IT team “is always available”.
What’s more, tech-minded trainees at Latham will be happy to hear the firm has recently rolled out its in-house ChatGPT AI tool — “LathamAssist” — which is tailored to legal enquiries. Rookies at L&W are very happy with how useful the tech is and give a special shout out to the tech team for being “amazing”.
Further afield, Latham offers secondments to popular destinations like Hong Kong, Singapore and New York. Around a quarter of trainees usually do an international secondment, though the fact that many admitted choosing not to go on secondment is a true vote of confidence in the London office. An alternative explanation might be found in fears surrounding qualification: “It had always been the only thing I wanted to do during my training contract until I realised having another qualification option is probably a better idea than going abroad.” At the end of the day, however, Latham regularly puts in high retention rates and it appears that juniors feel a strong attachment to the firm: “I really admire my law firm and can’t think of a law firm that’s comparable to it”.