Devonshires LLP - True Picture

Devonshires training contract review 2026

The Firm

Finding the right law firm is a lot like finding the right home, (stay with us here!) Both come in all different shapes and sizes, catering for a variety of needs, but the bottom line is finding a place that can provide you with the support you need.

Luckily, trainees at Devonshires got off on the right footing. While the firm is well known for its focus on social housing work, it ensures newbies get a taste of everything legal work can offer and still have a life outside the office.

“You get everything a big corporate firm offers without selling your soul.”

“You get everything a big corporate firm offers without selling your soul,” underlined one newbie. Training principal Chris Drabble echoes this ethos, explaining that, “what’s important is that, even with the firm’s growth, we haven’t lost our DNA and we’re still a friendly, approachable firm at all levels.”

Another integral part of the firm’s TC is making sure trainees get the full experience up front. Drabble explains that the trainee environment is “very hands on, one of the differences in our training contract is that trainees get real exposure to clients straight away. They are very much involved from the get go.”

Most of our interviewees were based in the London office with a couple located up in the Leeds hub. The firm also has footholds in Birmingham and Colchester, with the former recently welcoming its first batch of trainees. Across the four offices, the firm has secured its place in Chambers UK with top marks in multiple social housing departments as well as a nod for construction as well.

The Seats

About half of each Devonshires’ trainee cohort started their life out at the firm as a paralegal. In many cases, we heard that former paralegals tend to move straight into the department they were working in previously for their first seat on the TC. Outside of this example, incoming trainees don’t have a say in which seat they are first allocated but are able to put forward three preferences for the subsequent rotations.

We heard that second years are given priority when being assigned seats, but insiders acknowledged the firm does its best to accommodate everyone. “The firm does try to listen to your preferences,” one source told us, “I know of a few trainees where that hasn’t worked out for them, and I know people who have tailored their contract to what they asked for.”

Trainees are required to do at least one contentious and non-contentious seat and a rotation in real estate is also mandatory, as well as the firm’s largest departments housing management and property litigation.

“There’s nothing I’ve come across that I don’t like doing…”

Housing management and property litigation is the main staple in Devonshires’ arsenal, and we can see why. The client list is mainly comprised of social housing providers, in fact, the firm represents over 200 social housing providers in the country. To give a recent example, the firm advised Sage Homes on their acquisition of 2,915 new build homes from Vistry Group. The new homes are spread across 70 sites and will be delivered over a two-year period. The matter is worth a total of £819 million.

Work in this team is varied and includes matters involving disrepair, boundary disputes, antisocial behaviours, gas injunctions, procession proceedings and more. “We resolve a lot of disputes between landlords and tenants,” explained one insider, “it’s all been a great learning experience to cut my teeth on.” Trainees get stuck into anything from drafting, contacting witnesses, completing schedules, instructions to counsel, researching advisory work, and direct client contact.

Sources were very pleased with the range of work on offer: “There’s nothing I’ve come across that I don’t like doing. I love handling the possession papers because you get an insight into people’s lives, and I find that really interesting.” Rookies felt they were taken seriously in the group and were given the opportunity to show their strengths to the rest of the team. “I have full responsibility of all my matters,” one happy trainee relayed, “I will see them from start to finish, I will go to court and sit in on proceedings, and that’s always quite fascinating.”

The other side of the firm’s property coin is its real estate practice. Just as with housing management, real estate has multiple divisions of work in its bucket including commercial property, residential conveyancing, IP work, renewable leases, residential transactions and site acquisitions.

“The work I would do is quite varied,” one insider began, “there were days where it was just admin work, and days where I was running smaller transactions.” Recently, the firm was involved with its longstanding client Fairview New Homes and the sale of 25 apartments to Clarion Housing Group, which had a total matter value of £20 million.

Trainees got tasked with drafting reports on title, reviewing documentation, helping with commercial leasing, attending seminars, drafting, and project management. Sources in this team were also pleased with the responsibility they were given and praised the group as being “a great place to be able to learn. I felt like my supervisor was going out of their way to get me as much experience as possible.”

“it’s good experience and the support is always there if I need it.”

The firm’s construction team is smaller than others allowing for a more tight knit feel. The department covers both contentious and non-contentious work, and with so much to play with our sources described how they were still “ramping up in terms of our workload.” The firm has somewhat of a speciality in fire safety, but the group’s remit spread further than that, including arbitrations, construction contracts, and architect disputes.

Rookies got tasked with writing up meeting minutes, briefing counsel, letters of claim, and getting drafting experience. “I’m doing a chronology at the moment which is basically a fact-finding mission and presenting it all in a readable manner,” one newbie revealed, “it’s good experience and the support is always there if I need it.” The firm recently acted for Guinness Partnership Limited on phase one of its redevelopment project which will overhaul 50 acres of East London docklands. The matter is valued at £190 million.

Moving away from the property heavy teams, the clinical negligence department is a contentious seat that can offer a different sort of experience. The work mainly involves representing claimants looking to sue healthcare providers on a variety of matters. This usually means going up against some private institutions, but mostly NHS bodies. “It’s quite an emotional seat,” confessed one insider, “you get to help people, and you really get to know your clients.”

In helping with those claims, trainees get exposed to a great deal of client contact and find themselves reviewing medical records. Sources pointed out that due to the weight of the work, they were happy with the responsibility they were given: “I think it was just right. I wouldn’t have wanted more because at the end of the day I’m still learning and you’re dealing with people’s health.”

Trainee Life

Outside of the work, “the culture is one of the biggest perks we have,” recalled one happy trainee, with another chiming in, “it’s a real strong point I’d say, all the partners came and introduced themselves from day one, I never felt like an outsider here.”

Words like welcoming, approachable, and supportive all came up multiple times in our chats with trainees. In fact, one happy trainee highlighted that “I can’t rave enough about it! It’s an inclusive, friendly and family feeling firm, they’ve got your best interests at heart, I’d recommend it to anyone.”

By way of example, sources told us the firm is strong around mental health awareness and was praised for their efforts on diversity too: “When I was looking through the partner class on their website, one of the green flags was seeing the range of different backgrounds the partners were from.”

On the social side, most departments have one or two events a year, but trainee specific events happen more often. We heard tales of clay pigeon shooting, darts, and a mixologist coming in to dazzle our sources. “There’s a lot of young people that want to do the fun stuff,” assured one trainee.

In fact, the firm was said to make a big effort to get all trainees to socialise, giving regional trainees travel into London for socials. For department-based events, senior staff tend to make an appearance which was positively received by our interviewees: “Supervisors come as well, and it’s nice to see them in that light and a more relaxed atmosphere.”

Speaking of supervisors, we heard that the level of this tended to vary depending on the person, but sources pointed out it can also be very driven by the trainee themselves. “It really depends on how I shape it,” one insider noted, “if I need help with a task, they’ll be more hands on but if not then they’ll let me get on with it.” Even then, Devonshires knows it can take a village, and our newbies saw the benefits of that: “Even if my supervisor is away, everyone wants to help so I have options I can go to.”

Training sessions were common and, as a general rule, they seemed to appear at a minimum once a month per department, although certain groups also run more frequent webinars. Juniors are also assigned a trainee buddy in the year above (something they’ll then do in turn for the year below), and an associate mentor to ask the questions that may require a little more experience to know the answer.

The London office is situated in Finsbury Circus between Liverpool Street and Moorgate, which made a perfect spot for our sources: “I love it, it’s a commuter’s dream.” Having a recent refurbishment in the last couple years meant insiders had nothing but positivity to share, highlighting the big kitchen area, accessible rooftop, and wellness room. As for Leeds, the team up north has been steadily growing to the point they had to upsize, and it’s gone down a treat with newbies, one source beamed “it’s the nicest office I’ve ever seen if I’m being honest with you!”

The hybrid working policy drastically shifts depending on which team you’re in, with some sources reporting just two days in the office a week, while others are in closer to four or five. “Everyone seems to have different rules, it’s quite flexible overall,” explained one junior. As for hours, “we’re contracted 9-5.30pm,” multiple newbies quoted to us, emphasising the legitimate commitment to work/life balance which the firm touts.

On the occasions where work gets hectic and more hours are required, it doesn’t go unnoticed: “If you have to go much later, the partners make a special effort to thank you.” It’s thanks to these hours that most insiders were fine with the slightly lower salary compared to others in the City, arguing that “there are places that pay more, but they also want more from you.”

“…I never felt like an outsider here.”

When all is said and done, and qualification is around the corner, trainees are encouraged to speak with the departments they’re interested in joining and convey this to HR. Afterwards, a jobs list is released which should be tailored to match their expressed interest. “If there’s a lot of competition, then there’s a formal interview,” relayed one trainee, “if not, then it’s more of an informal talk.”

Beyond that, our interviewees were optimistic about making Devonshires their forever home. One surmised, “it’s a place you can stay and build your career; other partners have done it and they’re still relatively young.” The firm retained 15 of 16 qualifiers in 2025.

How to get a Devonshires training contract

Training contract deadline: 30 June 2026

Applications

Devonshires receives in excess of 200 applications a year for its training contracts in London, Leeds and Birmingham, each submitted via the firm’s online application form. The folks at Devonshires are open-minded when it comes to past work experience (although work with Local Authorities and Housing Associations is a good place to start), looking for candidates with a broad skill set who have done their homework on the firm.

Assessment & Interviews

The firm whittles its 200+ applicants down to around 60, who are then invited to an assessment day. Prior to the assessment day, applicants who are successful at the initial application form stage take an online aptitude test measuring inductive, numerical and deductive reasoning. Come the big day, candidates will take on two written exercises and a group exercise, which may or may not be law-related, but the aim is to create an opportunity for candidates to learn a bit more about the experience they’re likely to have at Devonshires. At the end of the day, the firm then hosts a networking event for the candidates to meet the current crop of trainees and speak with Partners.

The assessment day also features an interview with a panel of two (usually a Partner and a Senior Associate), which is structured and scored. Those who are successful on the assessment day will face a final interview with a panel of two equity partners. This interview is less structured and is focused on the candidates’ application form answers, experience and aspirations.

Interview with Devonshires training principal, Chris Drabble

The Firm

Chambers Student: How would you describe the firm? How would you describe its position in the market?

Chris Drabble: We have historically been recognised mainly as a social housing practice however that’s certainly changing and we’re very much a full-service firm. As an example we’ve got some niche practices such as commercial fraud and inquests but we are keen to make it clear that social housing is not the only string to our bow. I’ve been here eight and a half years since setting up the Leeds office and what’s important is that, even with the firm’s growth, we haven’t lost our DNA and we’re still a friendly approachable firm at all levels. Colleagues aren’t afraid to ask questions and we have an open-door policy.

CS: Are there any highlights from the last year you think would be helpful for our readers to know about?

CD: I’m based in Leeds as I mentioned, we recently moved into this office about six weeks ago. We needed a bigger space and have doubled the size of our footprint from our previous office.  The new office is fantastic, located in what is a thriving business hub. In terms of the training contract, we’ve introduced a few new things, we’ve embraced SQE and are providing SQE 2 sponsorship. Last year we introduced a vacation scheme across all client-facing offices. For those candidates, it gives them a fast track path to getting a training contract final interview. We’ve introduced qualification leave; our qualifiers can take up to four weeks leave (two paid and two unpaid) if they wish to have a break after all their hard work. We’ve increased salaries across all our offices as well. We’ve got 27 trainees right now, and these things will hopefully make us more attractive. We’ve made these changes by asking people at the firm what they would like. We’re very much of the view that everyone has good ideas and should be able to shape the direction of the firm. 

The Training Contract

CS: How would you describe the training environment/culture that you have aimed to create at the firm?

CD: It’s very hands on, one of the differences in our training contract is that trainees get real exposure to clients straight away. They are very much involved from the get go and work directly with the Partners and Senior Associates. I still have the view that the training contract is the best route to get to be the best rounded lawyer. We give our Trainees exposure to all these opportunities which allows them to discover which areas of the Law they enjoy. We have a very good retention rate and generally keep the vast majority of our trainees. We encourage a collaborative nature and have a mentor and buddy system as well, everyone has that opportunity for guidance and a sounding board going forward. And those relationships often carry on past the Training Contract and into qualification. I’m acting as mentor for two salaried partners, so it continues throughout. We see this as a long-term career structure.

Applications & Recruitment

CS: What sort of person thrives at the firm? How can a candidate really impress at interview?

CD: Be yourself, we want people to feel comfortable and be their true self throughout the various assessments, it helps us to get to know them better. Get stuck in, don’t hold back and never be afraid to ask a question. Being inquisitive helps candidates to build a stronger understanding of the Firm. Lastly, do your research! It’s important to get that right and be prepared for the interview.

CS: And finally, do you have any advice for those thinking about pursuing a career in law? Either at your firm or more generally?

CD: Speak to as many people as you can in different types of law firms. Law isn’t for everyone, the more you understand about it the better you’ll be able to decide if it is the right career path for you. Take the opportunities to go on vac scheme placements to understand what’s out there and see what might work for you. As a Training Principal, I’m happy for individuals to reach out to help give them a steer. I’d welcome that opportunity.