A career at Weil gives trainee’s exposure to top tier corporate practice work, a diverse and supportive training environment, and the opportunity to drive internal changes. Weil’s Mike Francies, the longest standing Managing Partner of any UK law firm, shares more…
From the first day I joined the Firm, I was impressed by Weil’s company culture.
Weil’s senior people care about the Firm more than they care about their own success, which is both rare and vital. Weil is known for really listening to employees and making changes that benefit them without letting bureaucracy get in the way. We rely on our trainees to uphold our values and to propose new ideas. Everyone should feel that they have the opportunity to build their career at Weil. Some Firms have a ‘firm person’, a person who naturally fits into their culture. This is not how we operate. At Weil we want diverse teams to deliver diverse solutions; it is crucial to our success.
Having a great culture is about looking after more than just your own employees. Through our ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) commitments, we ensure our work meets the needs not only of our clients, but of our climate, local community, social values, and is delivered with proper governance. Clients do not want to be advised by a Firm that does not do the work themselves. So, it is essential that Weil leads by example.
Weil is popularly regarded amongst the top handful of firms.
The Weil London office is a top tier corporate practice in the widest sense. We do not just specialise in deals, but work on Private Equity, M&A, Banking, Financing, Tax, Antirust, Real Estate, Private Funds, Litigation, Restructuring, IP and Employment. We operate internationally, giving us the flexibility to cater for clients’ needs wherever they are based and provide tailored advice that is sensitive to local issues. With this breadth of perspectives, Weil lawyers never apply a one size fits all approach. This philosophy delivers greater value for our clients and excellent opportunities for our employees.
Weil is a great place to work, full stop.
The Firm’s size, and the quality and volume of our work, ensure our trainees have exposure to clients and excellent professional development opportunities. Most deals require at least one trainee to work closely with associates and partners, taking on tasks such as board minutes, due diligence, and document drafting. We value our trainees as a core part of our team. They are actively supported through well organised professional development programmes where they learn crucial negotiation, commercial judgement, and interpersonal skills. Through regular reviews we make sure our trainees are progressing and, perhaps most importantly, we make sure we have jobs to offer them, so they can continue to learn and grow at Weil.
You need a thirst for knowledge.
As a lawyer, you must be open to learning. Even as a partner, I learn something new every day and I have been practising law for a long time. Trainees should feel comfortable asking questions, we do not expect them to know everything on day one. The trainees that stand out are those who are actively learning and building relationships. As a Firm, we are always asking questions and pushing forward, we did a lot in private equity that was ahead of the game but now everyone has caught up, so we are continuing to innovate. This progress comes from listening to our employees, and as such our trainees are significant in determining our direction.
Weil is focused on growth across every practice group.
While actively maintaining our values and culture we are expanding to offer our lawyers and clients greater opportunities. We are extending adjacent practices, including growing our M&A, Private Equity, and Infrastructure practices. We will continue to evaluate where we are strong in our international offices, growing these areas to operate with our colleagues in Europe, Asia, and the US.