Watson Farley & Williams - True Picture

Watson Farley & Williams training contract review 2026

The Firm

As a general rule, the more a person has travelled, the more interesting stories they have to tell. In fact, the same can often be said of law firms too. From its London HQ, Watson Farley & Williams works on major deals across the world, from finance matters in Africa to renewable energy projects in northern Europe. And with international work, comes international travel. For our sources, the guaranteed international secondment for trainees was “one of the big selling points for the firm.” In fact, trainees can sometimes go abroad twice, “which is a massive privilege; very few firms in the city have that opportunity. If you want to travel abroad, it’s one of the places to be!”

Of course, time abroad isn’t just a holiday, it’s an opportunity to experience the firm’s key sectors from another angle. Watson Farley & Williams’ European and Asian offices rank highly in Chambers Globalfor their work in aviation, projects and infrastructure and shipping, among others, all areas trainees might work on during their secondment. Back in the UK, the firm receives recognition for its asset finance, shipping and energy and natural resources work.

“If you want to travel abroad, it’s one of the places to be!”

WFW takes around 19 trainees per year, which gave trainees the “feeling that you have good relationships with seniors and it’s easy to get to know people.” In fact, the firm itself is relatively small for the City, which means lawyers in general “know each other a bit more,” explained one, “people feel like they know each other more and they’re a part of something.”

The Seats

WFW follows the slightly less common 6x4 month seat rotation, to expose trainees to a broader range of practices and departments (and also to fit in their secondment). The secondment can be used to fulfil the contentious seat requirement, but there is also a requirement to sit in assets and structured finance. As trainees move through their TC, it is generally a seat by seat conversation about where they will go next. Generally, trainees were happy with the process.

The process for secondments works in a similar way, with trainees will express as many options they are open to as possible: “Bundled up in that process is an understanding of the work you’ll be doing and what work is on offer if you go to particular office.” Trainees can also indicate which time of year they would like to go. The process takes place once a year, so trainees often know where they’ll go quite far in advance.

As one of the compulsory seats, trainees in assets and structured finance will be assigned to either the shipping or the aviation section of the department. The group takes on seven or eight trainees per rotation - usually five in shipping and two or three in aviation, although the split might fluctuate. Sometimes work crops up in rolling stock or even buses, and trainees are welcome to get involved in that alongside their usual workstreams.

Regardless of the type of asset, the work is primarily for borrowers and lenders, with the department focused on financings, refinancings and sale and purchase agreements. WFW recently advised HSBC UK on the financing of Bibby Marine’s zero emission electric Commissioning Service Operation Vessel, a type of specialised ship for the commissioning and maintenance of offshore wind farms.

“…it’s always cool being involved in those major headliner deals as well.”

Trainees typically draft security documents and fee letters, call clients and local counsel, and run the CP process: “A lot of your time in assets is spent dealing with registries from different countries, we do loads of stuff with Liberian registry and the Marshall Islands,” one insider told us. Trainees work on deals of all sizes, “the smaller deals are great for more exposure, it’s always cool being involved in those major headliner deals as well.”

We heard that “it was quite a steep learning curve because it was quite fast paced but I enjoyed that. I feel like I gained a lot of experience.” Another explained why the seat is a requirement: “It is basically the bread and butter of the firm, once you’ve done assets, you understand how the rest of the firms supports that department.”

While the projects department has plenty of oil and gas clients, renewables is “a growing part of that team,” work including wind farms, solar projects and battery energy storage systems (BESS). The department is composed of a project finance and project development team. Project finance usually takes three trainees per rotation, while project development normally takes one. “I think project finance is really interesting,” shared one insider, “in an asset finance deal, you have an actual ship to take security over. In project finance, there’s no project currently running, so it’s more high risk which adds an interesting element.”

There’s also work in corporate financings and trade finance deals. A lot of the work revolves around UK developments, but there are a number based overseas too: “Some will have a big impact to the amount of renewable energy the countries they’re based in can produce which is really cool.”

In one recent example, the department advised a group of banks (that included Santander) as lenders on the financing of a solar infrastructure project initiated by a subsidiary of Amarenco across Ireland, Spain and Portugal, with support from the firm’s tax department. We heard that trainees will typically do CP management tasks and draft ancillary documents. Those in project finance will often communicate with third parties like insurers, and our interviewees described working with their colleagues in other offices and local counsel in Africa and South America.

In corporate, the work tends to revolve around M&A and corporate shipping work. Perhaps unsurprisingly, a lot of this relates to the energy sector too, with recent deals including the likes of Vattenfall’s sale of its interest in the the Norfolk Boreas and Norfolk Vanguard offshore wind farm projects to RWE for £963 million.

“The work I’ve done in corporate would be what you would expect to do as a trainee in corporate,” one interviewee told us, such as carrying out due diligence (going through data rooms, reviewing contracts and helping with SPAs). That said, we heard that as trainees progress through their seat, they receive more drafting opportunities and during quieter periods, they might get involved in business development projects like helping partners put pitches together.

“What I found so stimulating was the process of problem solving. You are presented with a difficult question and have to do the work to set out and defend a position on it.”

The dispute resolution department handles general commercial disputes, as well as work for clients in the energy and transportation sectors. A trainee here will work for one team within the broader department, for example maritime disputes, construction disputes, ESG disputes or aviation disputes. Whichever team they’re in, trainees research, draft, bundle and do disclosure.

As one trainee put it: “What I found so stimulating was the process of problem solving. You are presented with a difficult question and have to do the work to set out and defend a position on it. I absolutely love it.” This process involves going through data and trying to draw out and identify points that could support an argument. In summer, when a lot of courts are closed and therefore there’s less time in court, trainees might help seniors to write articles and do other BD.

Trainee Life

When asked about the firm’s culture, trainees were keen to emphasise how “people give you a lot of time.” We heard that everyone from partners down to junior associates were willing to answer questions and provide both feedback and training opportunities. “They will help you learn how to reach the answer yourself next time, in a nice way,” one told us, “the amount of work people need to do can mean late nights. It can be a lot of pressure on people, but throughout, people have remained calm and helped me learn.”

“…the amount of work people need to do can mean late nights. It can be a lot of pressure on people, but throughout, people have remained calm and helped me learn.”

Every year, staff from WFW’s European offices head to a city in Europe (a different one each year) to take part in the firm’s annual sports tournament and meet their international colleagues. Anyone can volunteer to go, regardless of their skill level, and places are randomly assigned. Back in London, the office puts on a Christmas party every year and the canteen organises themed socials throughout, like a summer garden party, a Halloween social and a Valentine’s Day party.

Departments hold their own social events, often these are quite informal like drinks trolleys or going to the pub. Our sources also enjoyed spending time with their cohort, whether that was through occasional firm-organised trainee socials or informal plans like popping to the pub after work. Trainees can also join the firm’s sport teams which include netball, football, running and chess.

The DEI networks, such as MOSAIC (ethnic and racial diversity), PROUD (LGBTQ+ and allies) and We Further Women, host events throughout the year like the firm’s Pride party, a MOSAIC book club and an annual diversity and inclusion week. Varied volunteering opportunities include litter picking on the banks of the Thames, planting trees in Northamptonshire, participating in the London Legal Walk and mentoring sixth form students from lower socio-economic backgrounds.

In September 2026, the firm will be relocating to 25 Moorgate: “I’m quite excited for the new office because obviously it’ll be completely refurbished,” said one trainee, “it’ll be a completely different sort of environment because it’ll be brand new.” One big difference is that the layout will be open plan. Currently, trainees need to be in the office three days a week and they should aim to match their office days to their supervisor’s.

Hours vary quite a bit depending on the department and time of year, but trainees reported that an average day would be roughly 9.30am to 7pm. According to our sources, the asset finance team was among the busiest, especially during autumn and in the lead up to Christmas, during which times it is not uncommon for trainees to finish up at 11pm or later.

Despite this, “I would emphasise that it’s not constantly late finishes and it’s definitely not a culture where they expect you to be online all the time,” one insider reassured. Another said: “You don’t go into law thinking it’s 9 to 5, but generally, I think the hours are pretty good compared to other firms.” Trainees believed their salary was fair and “representative of the work you do as a trainee.”

Larger teams reportedly provide organised training sessions when trainees begin their seat, and there is an expectation that trainees will attend the training sessions put on for the whole department. Small departments provide shorter training programmes, but trainees are still supported by their supervisor. There are also sessions on topics like legal writing for all trainees.

“You’re more likely to take your work from your supervisor than anyone else because they’re your immediate superior, but that has its caveats,” such as working for a different senior if their work is more trainee friendly, explained one insider. Supervisors are “always happy to answer any questions you’ve got and make a real effort to get you involved in what you want.” The mid-seat review is an informal chat and the end-of-seat review is more formal with some documents to fill in before and after.

The qualification process kicks off when HR sends an email to trainees to ask for their preferences. HR then takes this info to departments to ask how many NQ positions they can offer that year. This is communicated to trainees who then give their firm choices and interviews take place. Trainees can apply for as many departments as they like. Speaking about the process, one trainee told us that “it’s always going to be stressful but, on the whole, it’s managed pretty well.” In 2025, WFW retained 16 of 18 qualifiers.

How to get a Watson Farley & Williams training contract

APPLY HERE

Vacation scheme deadline (2026): 6 January 2026 (opens 7 October 2025)

Training contract deadline (2027): 24 May 2026 (opens 7 October 2025)

Watson Farley & Williams receives around 1,400 applications each year: about half are for the firm's vacation scheme, while the rest are from applicants gunning directly for a training contract.

Both types of application start with an online form that asks for details of an applicant's academics and work experience. “Although we recognise the value of legal work experience, especially for those applying directly for a training contract, we understand that it can be challenging to gain this, so we encourage candidates to instead focus on the transferable skills that they may have developed through legal and non-legal work experience, and to use these skills to demonstrate that they understand the role of a trainee solicitor at a commercial firm,” says a member of the early careers team. 

The form also covers motivational questions you would expect such as ‘Why do you want to work at Watson Farley & Williams?’ “Given we’re a sector-focussed firm, it is really important that candidates at least demonstrate an interest in some of our sectors – we’re not expecting candidates to be experts, but just to have and show an interest,” adds the early careers team member. 

The form also includes various open-ended questions, including questions about extracurricular activities. The early careers team member notes that these questions give candidates “a chance to talk about activities that have provided them with some life experience and some useful skills.”

Assessment centre

For vac scheme and training contract applicants alike who impress on paper, the next step is a video interview and then a visit to an assessment centre. The assessment centre is fairly typical in that it involves group and written exercises. The early careers team member shares: “We brief candidates ahead of each exercise, and we have tried to make the exercises and tasks as realistic and as close as possible to the sorts of things trainees do daily at the firm.”

There is also an opportunity to chat with some of the current trainees to find out more about their experiences at the firm. The early careers team member insists that “the trainees are not briefed to feed back to HR, as we want people to be able to relax and ask questions,” though we suggest keeping to your best behaviour regardless.

The vacation scheme

Following the assessment centre, WFW chooses its vac schemers. The early careers team member encourages trainee hopefuls to apply for the scheme: “Generally we find vac schemers are better informed about us and what we do, and as a result can make an informed decision about whether we are the right firm for them. Ideally, we aim to offer training contracts to a high percentage of our vac schemers, as they have spent time seeing the firm first-hand and we've seen what they can do.” That said, “we deliberately leave some places for those who apply directly,” they point out. “We find we're fishing in a different pool of applicants at this point – we often pick up people who attended other vac schemes and then decided a firm wasn't for them or people, who for various reasons, were unable to apply for a vac scheme.”

The firm runs three placements – one in spring and two in the summer in June – and each lasts two weeks. 

Final interviews

The firm aims to interview around 25% of those who have attended an assessment centre, including vac schemers who undergo their interview during the second week of their placement. Direct applicants, meanwhile, attend over the summer. These interviews will be conducted in person.

The interview is conducted by a partner and a member of the early careers team and opens with a chat about the interviewee's motivations and interest in law.

The rest of the interview is split between competency-based questions and those designed to eke out a candidate's personality. “We want to ensure that they understand the work we do and are motivated to work for us in the long term,” says the early careers team member, adding: “We especially want to see an interest in the sectors we work in and some commercial awareness around these, though we don't expect them to be sector experts at this stage.”