FAQ

1. How do I apply for a summer associate position?

S&C recruits on-campus at over 40 law schools and job fairs. Please see our 2008 On-Campus Interview Schedule for a listing of those schools and job fairs. If your law school is not listed, please see How to Apply for details about how to submit an application. You will hear back from us within a few weeks of submitting your application.

2. Does S&C hire 1Ls for its summer program?

We fill the vast majority of our summer program with students who are between their 2^nd and 3^rd years of law school. However, we hire a small number of 1Ls every year. We begin to review 1L applications after December 1.

3. I’m interested in spending part of my summer in an international or domestic branch office; how likely is it that I would be able to do so as an S&C summer associate?

We encourage those students who are interested in working in one of our international or domestic branch offices to express their interest early during the interview process. Then, depending on the level of interest from all summers, the level of need in our foreign and domestic branch offices, and whether the students have necessary language skills (where relevant), we do our best to accommodate such requests. Every year, a number of our summer associates spend at least part of their summers in our international offices. In the summer of 2008, 23 of our summer associates spent time in our Beijing, Hong Kong, London, Melbourne, Paris and Tokyo offices and 26 of our summer associates spent time in our Los Angeles, Palo Alto and Washington, D.C. offices.

4. As a summer associate at S&C, will I be able to practice in a specific area?  As a full-time associate at S&C, can I specialize in a specific area from the beginning of my career?

Prior to the summer, we ask our summer associates to provide us with their practice area preferences, which we use to match summer associates with their mentors. We encourage our summer associates to be as open-minded as possible when it comes to choosing and accepting assignments over the course of the summer, as doing so will expose summer associates to a broad number of our practice areas and will help summer associates to make an educated decision when selecting a practice group as a full-time associate.

Our full-time associates are generalists within their chosen practice group—Litigation, General Practice (corporate), Tax, and Estates & Personal—especially during their first few years of practice. For example, our General Practice associates choose one or two practice subgroups after 18 months, such as mergers & acquisitions, financial institutions, or commercial real estate.

5. Is there a mentoring program for summer associates?

Yes. We believe that developing personal relationships with S&C’s lawyers is a key part of the summer associate experience.  Every summer associate is assigned to three lawyer mentors—a partner mentor, a mid-level associate mentor, and a junior associate “buddy.” Partner and mid-level associate mentors involve their summer associates in their matters and also socialize with their summer associates outside of the office, whether at lunch, dinner, or a Broadway show.  Junior associate buddies do not give work to their summer associates—they act as a resource to help the summer associates become acclimated to the Firm and as a social companion.  

6. What if I still have questions after I receive an offer to join S&C?

We encourage you to return to S&C for a second visit after you receive an offer so that you can meet more of our lawyers and have any remaining questions answered. If you cannot travel back to our offices for a second visit, we would be delighted to put you in contact, via phone or email, with the appropriate lawyers who can answer your questions about S&C’s practice, personal considerations, etc.

7. Where do you recommend 1^st year students work in the summer before their 2^nd year of law school?

Working in any capacity that allows you to hone your legal skills, including research, writing, negotiation, and client relations, will be looked upon favorably by our lawyers during the 2L interview process. For example, many of our 2007 summer associates interned with judges, or worked in positions in government, non-profit organizations, and other private firms.

8. Is there a minimum billable hours requirement?

No. There is no minimum billable requirement for our lawyers and billable hours are not considered when determining salary or bonuses. S&C believes that its lawyers are professionals who are capable of managing their own workload.

9. Can summer associates and lawyers get involved with pro bono work at S&C?

S&C encourages both summer associates and full-time lawyers to become involved in pro bono work. Pro bono work is valued equally with time spent on billable client matters and the Firm provides whatever resources are necessary to achieve favorable results for our pro bono clients. Please see Pro Bono, for more information.

10. If I receive a permanent offer but plan to clerk after graduation, will I still be able to join S&C?

Yes. S&C highly values the judicial clerkship experience and employment offers with the Firm remain open until the end of a clerkship. 

11. Why should I choose S&C over other top law firms?

At S&C there is no such thing as second best—our culture of meritocracy, responsibility, and “on the job” training is designed to ensure that each of our junior lawyers has the opportunity to gain experience and develop into a top lawyer. We believe that S&C has the broadest practice of any top law firm and all of S&C’s practice areas are considered at the top of their fields. We are not known merely as an “M&A firm” or a “litigation firm” because our practice areas are excellent across the board. Thus, our associates can be confident that they will get the maximum opportunity to receive excellent training from top lawyers in every field. S&C also offers the most international practice of any of our competitors, with opportunities for associates to practice internationally in both transactional and litigation work, even while based in one of our domestic offices.

12. What is S&C's policy regarding lawyers who hold non-U.S. passports?

S&C and its clients have long benefited from the skills and perspectives of lawyers from around the world. Lawyers holding non-U.S. passports face particular challenges and responsibilities when assigned to one of our offices in the United States. Please read the Firm’s Visa Policy for Lawyers, which sets forth our policies and practices in relation to our lawyers who hold non-U.S. passports, and is intended to communicate the nature of the support that our lawyers can expect from the Firm and responsibilities those lawyers have with respect to maintaining their authority to be employed in the United States. Students who hold non-U.S. passports should advise us when making interview arrangements if they are authorized to work in the United States and if so, if they will require sponsorship in the future.