Culture

• "I have made some great friends from my intake. Friday drinks are common and we all seem to get on well." -- First year trainee
• "It’s a very friendly firm. There is a real buzz here. The trainees have really bonded well, and regular pub trips are guaranteed." -- First year trainee
• "The culture is what I particularly like about the firm. Inevitably there is a small sense of hierarchy, but people at whatever level are never made to feel that they can't approach someone. A partner's door is always open. I have worked within some brilliant teams who work well together. There is plenty of socialising. We often have team nights out, and as I trained with the firm I also socialise frequently with those in my intake." -- Newly qualified solicitor, Litigation
• "I work in a very supportive and fun environment. The team I work in values working together, and knows what makes a good team. We arrange social events on a regular basis, whether it be drinks, lunches, games nights, etc. Work is generally done in smaller teams of partner/senior associate/junior associate or partner/mid-level associate, but where there are big tasks to conduct (i.e. disclosure) everyone will be asked to muck in so that the job gets done efficiently, we meet the deadline, and people are not working night and day." -- Junior solicitor, Litigation
• "Very much an open door policy – I feel comfortable talking to anyone, and everyone takes the time to talk to you or answer your questions. I have always felt very much part of a team and my colleagues (both peers and supervisors) have always been supportive and great to work with. We often socialise as part of or across teams." -- Mid-level solicitor, Corporate
• "Despite the introduction of a new associate appraisal system designed to move away from focusing on PQE, the practice remains quite hierarchical, although all of the partners in my team are extremely approachable and sociable. The team is extremely supportive and, generally speaking, fluid in terms of who works for which partners on what projects. The team is also very sociable – both in terms of official team-wide events, smaller pastoral group activities and friendships outside of work." -- Junior solicitor, Litigation
• "Good collegiate atmosphere. The associates are all of a similar age and so tend to go out a lot together. There are also great opportunities for sport if you are that way inclined. You are expected to work very hard, though." -- Junior solicitor, Banking
• "There is a good feedback/mentoring system – you have a partner mentor and generally sit with your supervisor for mid-seat and end of seat appraisals. Trainees do support each other and socialise together regularly." -- Second year trainee
• "The firm's culture is one of the principal reasons I chose it. The vast majority of people are friendly and approachable. While workloads can be heavy, and late nights at times a norm, there is no expectation that you stay late simply for the sake of it. My supervisor will work hard during the day and if he has the opportunity of doing so he will get home as soon as possible after 6pm. The firm also actively encourages participation in sports and pro bono. In my experience, other trainees, especially the more experienced ones, are very supportive and occasionally we do socialise whether at lunch or in the evenings." -- First year trainee
• "The trainees of the same intake have two representatives who will organise trainee social events e.g. ice skating, parties, etc. There are also a lot of emails around inviting you to team drinks, trainee drinks or colleagues’ birthdays." -- First year trainee
• "Trainees definitely stick together and socialise from time to time but it varies with each intake." -- Second year trainee
• "The working environment is good and everyone is friendly, although there are obviously always exceptions to this. The trainee network is great and you all support and help each other, and there is lots of trainee socialising, but this is dependent on working hours." -- Second year trainee
• "Trainees have to go and ask various associates for work, it is not usual for trainees to stay and help another trainee who is snowed under, which is a shame as it would help everyone. At the start of the seat the trainees tend to socialise more, but as we get busier, we do so less and less." -- First year trainee
• "Good support network – we cover each other when we have the capacity to do so. Trainees are very sociable and often go out for ad hoc drinks together after work." -- First year trainee

Hours

• "I wouldn't say I spend too much time in the office. The firm is very good with flexi-time and generally good with agreeing holiday." -- Newly qualified solicitor, Litigation
• "I tend to spend around 180 – 200 hours a month on billable work, and another 10 – 20 on marketing and training/practice development. I have had to cancel holiday and the partners can be pretty inflexible about this." -- Junior solicitor, Banking
• "The hours you work obviously depends on how busy you are, and whether a number of deadlines fall within the same time frame. You can work 15 hour days when you are extremely busy, but when you are not, you can do your seven billable hours a day and leave by 6.30pm. The London office has a flexible working policy; however I have no experience of this myself. You are able to work from home if you have deliveries, etc." -- Junior solicitor, Litigation
• "I bill 133 hours a month on average and spend 20 – 30 or so hours a week non-billable (including pro bono, assisting with recruiting, etc.) on top of that, but it can be much higher. There appears to be plenty of flexibility regarding part-time working, especially for parents, but holiday is very intransigent – no carrying over holiday and it’s very difficult to take holiday near the end of the financial year, and I don't know of any policy where you can purchase additional holiday." -- Junior solicitor, Litigation
• "I bill approximately 150 hours a month and spend approximately 50 hours a week in the office. The firm is relatively flexible with a number of fee earners working part time, although holidays must be taken during the calendar year they accrue and cannot be purchased or carried over. Having said that, after four years fee earners are entitled to another four weeks unpaid leave (as on qualification)." -- Mid-level solicitor, Corporate
• "Hours are varied but it depends only on whether there is work to do. If you have finished all you need to do for the day, it seems fine to leave at 6pm!" -- First year trainee
• "The working hours vary in different teams. Usually I come to the office at 9am and manage to leave before 8pm during my seat. But of course, as a City lawyer, you would expect some late nights, but I only have two or three nights every month staying until midnight for closing, which is much better than I expected." -- First year trainee
• "I probably work around 55 hours per week – exactly what I expected." -- Second year trainee
• "I am working less than I expected, around 50 hours a week." -- First year trainee
• "50 – 60 hours a week depending on my seat. I'm probably working slightly more than I expected. The problem is that it seems to be frowned upon to take a break during the day so going to the gym or getting some fresh air seems to be something that has to be done before or after work, which means that you end up not going, and I think not being as productive." -- First year trainee
• "Anything between 40 to 80 hours a week." -- Second year trainee
• "I work anything from 45 – 65 (70 once) a week. All in all, I'd say they're very good and there isn't a culture of ‘beasting’. Trainees do like to brag about their hours or pretend to be martyrs, but I wouldn't pay it too much attention!" -- First year trainee
• "My first seat is intensive but reasonable. The days are very intensive, but my supervisor and I haven't left the office after 7.30pm this month." -- First year trainee

Pay

• "£59,000" -- Newly qualified solicitor
• "£63,500" -- Junior solicitor
• "£70,000" -- Junior solicitor
• "£105,000" -- Mid-level solicitor
• "The bonus programme is meagre. Pay is good, but not commensurate with hours put in." -- Junior solicitor
• "The bonus structure is not very good, and does not motivate people to work beyond their target hours." -- Junior solicitor
• "Bonuses are very low compared with other firms." -- Junior solicitor
• "Salary is quite good, pension scheme and all other options (cycle to work, annual travel pass loan, etc.) are good offers." -- First year trainee
• "The overall salary is in line with those offered by other City firms." -- First year trainee
• "Very competitive salary. One of the market leaders." -- First year trainee
• "Get paid a lot for just having walked out of university!" -- Second year trainee
• "It's about standard for City law firms, though these rates haven't seen an increase in a while." -- First year trainee
• "For what you do and the fact that you’re essentially still training, I think the pay is very good (doesn't mean I wouldn't take more though!)." -- First year trainee

Interviews & Assessments

• "I interviewed for a training contract and had an assessment day which involved teamwork exercises, a pitching exercise and a verbal reasoning test. I then had an interview with HR followed by an interview with two partners. The questions were based on my application form, my law degree, previous work experience (legal and non legal) and commercial awareness." -- Junior solicitor, Litigation
• "I was interviewed by two partners during a Christmas vacation scheme. They asked various questions about my background and CV, as well as some problem-based scenarios." -- First year trainee
• "I had a half-hour interview with one associate for the vacation scheme. At the end of the vac scheme, I had an hour interview with two partners. Overall, the interview is more like a chat about yourself and the firm. Most of the questions focus on your previous experience and your interest in law." -- First year trainee
• "In order to get a training contract, it was necessary to get a good report from my vacation placement, then a half day of group assessment and interview with two partners, who were charming." -- Junior solicitor, Litigation
• "They know what they want and only take the best candidates." -- Junior solicitor, Banking
• "I had one round with a negotiation and an interview with two partners. Questions ranged from current issues to firm strategy." -- First year trainee
• "The usual application form, then I went for an interview, assessment day, etc. The interview was with two partners, 45 minutes of grilling about why I left the bank, and why I wanted to be a lawyer." -- First year trainee
• "After my training contract I was kept on, but my interview for the training contract was with two quite senior partners. It lasted for about an hour and was more like a chat about my degree and why I wanted to be a lawyer. That didn't mean it wasn't tough – there were plenty of questions to answer which made me think – but I think it's a very good reflection on the firm that they don't just want to put the fear of God into people. I like the fact that Norton Rose isn't like Freshfields or Clifford Chance and that's why I wanted to come here." -- Newly qualified solicitor, Litigation
• "I had one round (interview and assessment on the same day). The interview was with two partners and was a serious chat about legal skills, grades and abilities followed by an informal chat about me. The assessment was on the same day as the interview and involved a discussion exercise in a group of other interviewees.”-- Second year trainee
• "I got hired via the vacation scheme route: a written application for the vac scheme, an interview for the vac scheme, two week vac scheme with written project and feedback, and an interview at the end of the vac scheme for a training contract. My vac scheme interview was with an associate, quite informal talking mainly about what I had written in my application. The training contract interview was one hour with two partners who were global heads of departments with more demanding commercial questions." -- First year trainee
• "I had my training contract interview after my vacation scheme and was then offered a training contract afterwards. Both interviews (for the vacation scheme and the training contract) were friendly. The questions ranged from general questions about my CV to some commercial and general legal questions." -- First year trainee