Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP - True Picture

Willkie training contract review 2026

The Firm

Unlike a lot of the firms in our guide, Willkie’s training contract is a relatively recent phenomenon, having only surfaced in London back in 2021. But the firm has had a presence in the city for much longer, and that brings with it the best of both worlds: “I saw it as a brand-new opportunity where I could shape things,” one told us, and that’s because the programme is still evolving: “It’s not an overly formalised or concrete system.” This even more so in the context of a small six-person trainee cohort.

“I saw it as a brand-new opportunity where I could shape things…”

Of course, the other side of that coin is that having been around for a while “the firm still has a strong foothold in the London legal market.” This includes strength in areas like private equity, litigation and insurance. In fact, the firm bags strong Chambers UK rankings in investment funds, financial crime and competition law, alongside a top tier ranking in non-contentious insurance nationwide. 

The Seats

Trainees at Willkie complete four six-month seats, made up of a mix of contentious and transactional practices, and it’s a balance trainees appreciated: “I liked that it balances contentious and transactional work. I didn’t want to be pigeonholed,” one told us. The seat allocation process was described as “organic and flexible”. Prior to starting, graduate recruitment asks for your top three choices, and we were told everyone was given at least one of these.

Once training begins, the process becomes more informal; trainees still have to formally submit their choices every six months, and “we have an ongoing conversation in our monthly check-ins with graduate recruitment, where they get a good sense of where we are leaning.” It is compulsory that trainees do a contentious and a corporate seat, which is either private equity or insurance, but with a small cohort, there’s room for flexibility.

Private equity is one of the largest departments at Willkie, and the team represents UK, European and US sponsors across the breadth of private equity-related matters. This includes buyouts, acquisitions, public and private transactions, minority investments, joint ventures and exits. As a result, there’s plenty for trainees to sink their teeth into: “I was involved in all aspects of the deal, and they came in thick and fast!”

We heard that trainee responsibilities ranged from “managing entire work streams involving high-end companies” to “liaising with local counsel.” It can be headline-hitting stuff too, with one recent example being that the firm advised Insight Partners on the sale of threat intelligence company Recorded Future – one of Insight Partners’ portfolio companies – on its $2.65 billion sale to Mastercard. While Willkie encourages trainees to take on responsibility, rest assured there are supervisors at hand: “You are given lots of autonomy and responsibility while being supervised. A key theme here is that you learn on the job, but you are supported the whole time.”

“…as I gained respect and trust I was given more responsibility…”

Restructuring  is another popular seat at Willkie, with the group a good starting point for trainees looking for a solid base in their development as a lawyer. The group covers work in both cross-border restructurings and formal insolvency proceedings, and here again work crops up in the UK, Europe and the US. For trainees in the seat, “you challenge transactions, restructure plans and react to creditors,” one told us; “as I gained respect and trust I was given more responsibility, like being the first point of contact for clients and managing large funds.”

Being the first point of contact in this way means answering questions, updating the client on documents and incorporating their drafting suggestions.Typical trainee tasks in the seat also included the likes of coordinating with local counsel and overseeing the signings at closing. In one recent matter, the firm advised Motors.co.uk on its acquisition of the Cazoo brand from Cazoo Ltd, which fell into administration in 2024.

As one of the firm’s headline practices, the litigation group at Willkie is something of a focus for the firm. Work in the team spans commercial disputes, white-collar crime, and cross-border investigations. Competition litigation is also a specialty but forms a separate seat. In one recent case, the team was instructed by Which? to bring collective proceedings against Apple on behalf of consumers seeking £3bn+ damages for loss caused by an alleged abuse of dominance.

Trainees told us they had the chance to attend court hearings, draft witness statements and sit in on strategy calls: “I did a lot of work on the smaller matters going on during my seat in litigation, such as drafting letters delving into the substantive points of law as well as reviewing pleadings, for example.”

As another of Willkie’s big hitters, a seat in corporate insurance gives trainees an opportunity to sit in on one of the most important practices at the firm: “The seat revolves around work for large insurance companies relating to catastrophe bonds or high-risk instruments,” one source told us. Insurance companies do indeed make up the bulk of the firm’s client list, especially where they need advice on restructurings, mergers, transactions and insurance-linked securities.

If you’re wondering what a ‘catastrophe bond’ is (and you’re not alone), it’s when catastrophic insurance risk is transferred to investors – in short, you’re likely to gain plenty if nothing happens, and lose plenty if it does! “I did a lot of transactions documents, legal opinions, and security documents,” one told us, “it has been a very document-focused seat, but it gives you an opportunity to put your transactional knowledge into practice.”

Trainee Life

Here at Chambers Student, we often hear worries about the long hours of US firms, but trainees were quick to bust the myth: “US firms do get a bad reputation with how much they work people or ‘steal your soul’ but Willkie sits differently to the rest. There isn’t a firm quite like Willkie.” In fact, trainees described the working model as “entrepreneurial and informal, yet traditional.”

The current cohort was unanimous in that the big selling point of Willkie’s London office is the view: “We’re up on the 25th-29th floors,” one pointed out, “it’s a great view.” The office comes complete with a central hub area with sofas and open spaces. Lunch is free on Thursday and every other Monday (courtesy of JustEat). There’s also Deliveroo after 7pm and taxis after 9pm. Another selling point of the Willkie office setup was that trainees are provided with iPads to assist with their work. As one put it: “It means I can send a quick email or give a status update or check in a document from anywhere to make sure everything is in order.”

Trainees are required in the office four days a week and are able to work from home on a Friday depending on business needs. We heard that typical finish times are between 7pm and 8pm in quieter spells, but there are some late nights when the work ramps up. A hefty £60,000 first year salary (rising to a whopping £175k as an NQ) made those late finishes a little easier.

“I now feel I have the confidence to voice my own views. Legal thinking is really fostered here.”

Willkie’s trainees share an office with their supervisor, meaning that feedback is daily and instantaneous! “My relationship with my supervisor is really great, sharing an office means that they get to know your working style, they see what you’re working on and you can ask questions anytime.” As well as helping work ethic, it means trainees don’t develop “unhelpful habits” prior to the formal seat reviews.

No matter which seat you are in, trainees at Willkie are encouraged to think as well as behave like lawyers. We were told that: “My supervisor encourages me to give him updates on how proceedings went with my own opinion. I now feel I have the confidence to voice my own views. Legal thinking is really fostered here.”

Training at the firm “is more learning on the job, which is useful as you learn much quicker. Theory may not apply practically!” That said, each teams will host regular sessions around once a month, and firm-wide sessions will bring external speakers in to provide training on topics like how to read company accounts – something that is apparently relevant to a number of different seats.

“We have monthly drinks events, summer parties at rooftop bars and we are all going to Venice for a getaway in September,” one trainee told us. If that’s not enough, there is also a contributory ski trip – Willski – with ski passes and dinner paid for by the partners. We heard that trainee/partner relationships are friendly and that the senior members of the firm are always present at events and dinners, allowing trainees to get to know them on a personal as well as professional level. As one put it: “This is Willkie’s selling point”

Another trainee surmised, “the work is fantastic, but the culture is the best. I’ve never dreaded coming to work.” More senior lawyers are always on hand to help out too: “They are generally very approachable, they will stop to chat to you in the corridor, and they help plan as well as attend the events.”

“There has never been a situation where someone who intended to stay was not given a space in the team they wanted.”

Sources described the qualification process as “very open,” and newbies are told where there is space as soon as it becomes apparent. Insiders were pleased to share that every person who has gone through the qualification process has been offered a job: “They make a distinct effort to accommodate everyone.” Graduate recruitment, we were told, usually has an idea by the time qualification rolls around of where certain trainees will be looking to qualify. In 2025, the firm retained 5 of 6 qualifiers.

How to get a Willkie training contract 

• Vacation scheme deadline : Midday on 10 December 2025 
• Training contract deadline : All trainees are recruited via the vacation scheme 

Applications 

Willkie receives over 1,300 applications a year for its vacation schemes, which also doubles as its application for a training contract at the firm. 

There are four stages to each application. The first, the online application form, has “two questions: Why law? Why Willkie?” explains graduate recruitment manager, Gemma Baker. The application also includes “space for people to include their extracurricular activities and positions of responsibilities, as well as the standard work experience/employment and academic sections.” The important thing, warns Gemma, is not to copy and paste from applications to other firms – which is sensible advice no matter what firm you’re applying for. Willkie reviews applications on a rolling basis but will not fill up places before the deadline. Baker emphasises: “It is our strong recommendation that candidates only submit your application when they feel it is ready rather than submitting it as early as possible.”  

For those who are selected, the next stage is a video interview. This interview provides candidates with a chance to further demonstrate their “genuine interest in Willkie, as well as their interest in the commercial world,” says Gemma. She emphasises that it’s important to be able to show your motivation and interest in the business of law. 

If you impress there, you’ll be invited to do a written exercise, which “is marked anonymously by at least two different associates from Willkie’s London office.” Gemma explains that as part of the firm’s initiatives to make the process as inclusive as possible, “neither marker would have seen, and will not see, any applications or video interviews and each exercise is marked on a completely anonymous basis (ie, candidate names/universities etcetera are not given to the marker).” 

Those who get past this stage are invited to an “interview with a partner and a senior associate,” which are “conducted on a CV-blind basis,” Gemma tells us, and “take place either over Zoom or in person.” That interview focuses “on motivational questions and a commercial case study.” Gemma adds: “We are real advocates of Rare’s contextual recruitment system, which we actively use throughout the screening process.  We also make adjustments to each stage of the process upon request.” 

The vac scheme 

The firm runs two vacation schemes a year, in spring and summer, and both are two weeks long. Candidates sit in two different teams, with a partner and an associate. Willkie wants to give candidates an experiential vacation scheme, meaning they will “gain hands-on experience of live work, giving them the opportunity to undertake real, meaningful work and showcase their potential.”  Former Willkie vac schemer and current Willkie trainee Lucas Prokopi says that “from day one of the vacation scheme, I felt genuinely welcomed. Trainees, associates and partners took the time to support me, answer questions and involve me in meaningful work. The open, down-to-earth culture and the real responsibility I was trusted with made it clear Willkie was the right place to start my legal career.”