Travers Smith LLP - True Picture

Firm profile

It is not just law at Travers Smith. We treat our clients’ business as our business, their dispute as our dispute, their challenge as ours.

We act for publicly listed and private companies, private equity and financial sponsors, and other business enterprises involved in large and complex UK and cross-border matters, transactions and disputes.

Our clients know that, wherever in the world their ambitions lie, we will work as part of their team to get things done. And they know that we will do so in a straight-talking and open way.

Diversity and independence of thought are key to our success. We know each other well and we know that we get the best results when we act as a team – not just within our individual departments, but right across our firm where we welcome views from everyone.

What we do

Our business spans four key areas across advisory, contentious, regulatory and transactional focuses, comprising of the following main practice areas: Competition, Corporate M&A and ECM, Dispute Resolution, Derivatives & Structures Products, Employment, Finance, Financial Services & Markets, Funds, Incentives & Remuneration, Operational Risk & Environment, Pensions, Private Equity & Financial Sponsors, Real Estate, Regulatory Investigations and Tax, and Technology & Commercial Transactions.

What we look for

We’ll give you responsibility from day one – you will quickly find yourself on the phone to clients, in meetings and handling your own work with all the guidance you need. As such, the firm looks for people who can combine academic excellence with plain common sense; who are determined, articulate and able to think on their feet; who are self-motivated and have a healthy sense of humour.

A law degree is not a necessity – over 40% of our trainees have non-law backgrounds.

Training Programme

The firm’s comprehensive training programme ensures that trainees experience a broad range of work. All trainees sit with partners and associates, which ensures a refreshing lack of hierarchy and unparalleled opportunities to learn by osmosis from some of the most senior people at the firm. It also means that trainees receive individual and extensive training from experienced lawyers and can look forward to client contact, and the responsibility that goes with it, from day one.

During the two-year training contract, you will rotate through four different legal departments. Trainees spend six months in one of our corporate departments, with the rest of their training contract spread across the other departments. A large proportion of our trainees also spend one of these rotations in our Dispute Resolution or Employment teams. For the other two rotations trainees are asked to indicate a department of interest, which includes the opportunity to spend six months in the firm’s Paris office.

Travers Smith is a collaborative firm – we treat each other with respect and encourage our people to be themselves. We are very proud of the close-knit, supportive and non-hierarchical culture this creates. 

When and how to apply

Apply online via our website at www.traverssmith.com for a vacation scheme this summer to gain a training contract commencing in either September 2027 or March 2028.

This year we will largely recruit for training contract 2027 from our vacation schemes, however we are also running a direct training contract application process. Candidates will be asked to apply directly for a training contract or our summer vacation scheme directly via our website. Any updates will be available on our website and social media channels.

Summer vacation scheme 2025

Our Vacation Schemes take place twice in the year in the form two 2-week schemes in the Summer.  

The scheme will follow our internal programme, which includes a number of talks, workshops, and a negotiating exercise. There will also be department insights and close contact with trainees. The week is designed specifically for students to be given an authentic taste of a City lawyer's work. There are also working lunches and informal evening events.  

The schemes will run from 23 June to 4 July 2025, and 7 July to 17 July 2025 and Vacation Scheme students will be paid £750 for completing each week.  

Applications open on 1 November 2024 and will close on 16 January 2025.  

Interviews will only be allocated once all applications have been processed. Please note our interview process will be held virtually and run by a senior member of our Graduate Recruitment Panel. For more information on the panel please visit out recruitment team webpage.

Apprenticeships

Our Level 7 Solicitor Apprenticeship provides a rigorous and comprehensive learning journey, the perfect launchpad for a rewarding legal career. Our work environment is designed to provide our apprentices with the perfect climate for growth and development, supplemented with ample learning opportunities, one-on-one mentorship, and meaningful guidance. Our passion remains in cultivating talent, accompanying every individual in their journey to reach their utmost potential.

The solicitor apprenticeship is a six-year programme. For four days a week, you will be based within one of our core fee-earning teams, sitting with our lawyers and supervised by one of our senior lawyers. Throughout the six years, you will rotate around different departments and by the end of the programme, will have experienced eight of our different market leading teams. You'll be a key member of each of these teams, involved in various projects and cases with an eclectic mix of clients. By the end of the six-years, you will have qualified as a solicitor in England and Wales and will therefore be eligible to apply for a newly qualified associate role with the firm. You will also earn a salary alongside working.

You'll spend one day a week studying your apprenticeship with BPP University. The study will be varied between tutor led collaborative discussions, independent preparative study and a mixture of assessments and portfolio. The six-year study period includes an LLB in Law as well as your Solicitors Qualifying Exam. All course fees are covered by Travers Smith.

For more information and to apply please visit our website.

EDI

Our approach to diversity and creating an inclusive workplace goes beyond just ticking a box. We value everything that makes us unique and we recognise that celebrating our differences helps make the firm a special place to work. With a focus on allyship and role modelling, we are committed to creating a fully inclusive workplace where everyone can be their authentic selves.

Supporting our people
We have six fully inclusive professional networks, each led by a partner to provide high level strategic input, connectivity and support for our people. These include:

• REACH (Race, Ethnicity and Cultural Heritage)
• LGBTQ+
• Faith Resources
• Gender Balance
• Enable (which focuses on accessibility needs)
• Social Mobility Group

CSR

Our CSR Programme is diverse, exciting and ever expanding. Its success is underpinned by the passion of our people, and in turn, the programme gives us all the chance to share knowledge, experience and acquire new skills. We engage with diverse audiences and communities, which in turn helps encourage all our people to be individual, and to recognise their position not only within the business world, but also within wider society. Our programme spans across four key areas: Community engagement; Working with charities; Supporting emerging artists; and Pro bono legal.

Pro Bono

We are committed to using our legal capabilities to address environmental risk and promote sustainability, to defend the vulnerable and promote a positive and inclusive global society where opportunities are available to all, and the rule of law is respected.

Our award-winning pro bono programme targets the most impactful partnerships and legal work in the following four sectors:

1. Climate, environment, and sustainability
2. Diversity, inclusion and social mobility
3. Vulnerable groups (refugees, survivors of domestic violence and survivors of human trafficking)
4. Rule of Law

Recent highlights include:
• Partnering with JUSTICE on their rule of law work, to conduct an extensive investigation into the treatment of racialised girls and young women in the criminal justice system.
• Founding and launching the Domestic Abuse Response Alliance (DARA), the largest ever project of its nature, which has provided legal advice and representation to over 195 survivors of domestic abuse in need of protective injunctions.
• As a member of the Green Tech Legal Collaborative, spearheaded by Bloomberg, we provide legal support to ‘green tech’ startups that are addressing climate change and promoting sustainability.
• Working with Foundervine for over 5 years to increase access to entrepreneurship by providing legal mentoring and delivering masterclasses, including as part of the Barclays Black Founder Accelerator programme.

Social media

Instagram account: @TraversSmithGraduates
Twitter account: https://twitter.com/traverssmith
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/travers-smith/
TikTok: traverssmithgraduates