Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP

Overview

Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP is the global presence/branding of Herbert Smith Freehills represented on this site: a large, full-service international law firm with a strong London base and an extensive global network across Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. The firm's site emphasises industry and sector-focused work (energy, financial institutions, infrastructure, technology and telecommunications among others), a heavy output of thought leadership (reports such as Global M&A Outlook and AI Tracker) and a strategic investment in legal technology (including a firmwide partnership with Legora). The firm is positioned as a Magic Circle-level practice with wide-ranging ranked capabilities across dispute resolution, corporate and finance disciplines.

• Headquarters: London
• Trainees: 61
• Offices: 26

Values & Culture

Practice Areas

• Corporate & M&A
• Capital Markets
• Banking & Finance
• Competition & Antitrust
• International Arbitration
• Dispute Resolution & Litigation
• Real Estate
• Infrastructure & Projects
• Technology & Digital
• Intellectual Property
• Energy & Natural Resources
• Financial Services & Regulation
• Employment
• Insolvency & Restructuring
• Pensions
• Media & Entertainment
• Regulatory & Compliance
• ESG & Sustainability

Geographic Focus: The firm operates on a global platform with offices in 19 countries and 26 offices, connecting a London centre to major hubs across Europe, the United States, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. The website highlights cross-border capabilities (Worldwide listings for arbitration, antitrust, capital markets and energy) and regionally focused groups (e.g., Africa, Latin America, India and Korea groups) to service clients on multi-jurisdictional matters.

Training Contract

Specific seat-by-seat structure is described via the firm's broad practice offering (rotations through corporate, capital markets, finance, litigation and dispute resolution, projects, real estate, intellectual property, employment and regulatory teams are available across the firm).

• Starting Salary: Year 1: £56,000; Year 2: £61,000
• NQ Salary: £145,000
• Trainee Intake: 61
• Qualification Rate: 94%
• Academic Requirements: Minimum degree requirement: 2:1. Minimum A Level Requirement: No minimum.

Seat Options

• Mergers and acquisitions
• Capital markets
• Finance
• Litigation and dispute resolution
• International arbitration
• Projects
• Real estate
• Intellectual property
• Employment, pensions and incentives
• Financial services regulatory
• Competition/Antitrust, regulation and trade
• Bankruptcy and restructuring
• Emerging technology
• Technology, media and entertainment, and telecommunications
• Crisis management

Sponsorship

PGDL/PGDL grant: £12,500; SQE grant: £20,000

International Opportunities

11% chance of a secondment abroad; international secondment opportunities exist across the firm's global footprint (the firm lists offices across South Africa, United States, Australia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates).

Client Secondments

11% chance of a client secondment

Apply on the Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP website →

Programmes & Schemes

Notable Matters

What Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer LLP Looks For

Key Competencies

• Commercial awareness
• Teamwork and peer support
• Attention to detail
• Resilience and ability to manage demanding workloads
• International outlook / cross-border capability
• Interest in technology and emerging regulation (AI/technology focus)
• Strong academic record (minimum 2:1)

Evidence Signals

• Commercial internships or transactional experience
• International secondment or study experience
• Pro bono involvement
• Engagement with legal tech or AI projects
• Mooting or advocacy experience for dispute roles

Benefits & Wellbeing

• Trainee salary Year 1: £56,000
• Trainee salary Year 2: £61,000
• Newly qualified salary: £145,000
• PGDL/PGDL grant: £12,500
• SQE grant: £20,000
• Annual leave: 25 days
• Average reported office start time: 09:18 (insider data)
• Average reported office finish time: 19:49 (insider data)

Awards & Recognition

• Legal 500: Total ranked practice areas: 89; 41 Tier 1 practice areas (selected Tier 1 listings include Arbitration, Antitrust, Capital Markets, Competition litigation, Energy, Corporate restructuring and others)
• Chambers: Total Ranked Departments: 20 (multiple departmental rankings across corporate finance, disputes, employment, IP, environment & climate change, tax and projects)

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

• Leading for impact Driving positive change through Pro Bono Legal, Diversity & Inclusion, Social Impact, Sustainability. Learn more
• Inclusion
• Pro bono legal

Pro Bono

Driving positive change through Pro Bono Legal

Innovation

The firm emphasises investment in legal technology (describing more than 15 years of pioneering and embracing legal tech) and has announced a firmwide partnership with Legora to provide advanced AI tools to lawyers. The website also publishes an 'AI Tracker' and related research, indicating a strategic approach to combining legal capability with AI-driven tools.

• Partnership with Legora (firmwide general purpose AI platform)
• AI Tracker (insights/research product)

Quick Application Angles

• Highlight the firm’s Magic Circle global platform and cite its cross-border capabilities (e.g., London-led teams with offices across 19 countries) — tie your commercial examples to international transactions or multi-jurisdictional problems.
• Reference the firm’s investment in legal tech (partnership with Legora and the AI Tracker research) if you have relevant tech/AI experience, projects or coursework — insider ratings show strong emphasis on legal tech.
• Mention specific practice strengths that match the firm’s rankings (for example, arbitration, antitrust/competition, capital markets or energy) and connect any relevant experience to recent firm work such as major M&A or cross-border disputes.
• Use the firm’s trainee support and sponsorship facts (PGDL grant £12,500 / SQE grant £20,000 and competitive trainee pay) to demonstrate commitment to professional development and explain how you would take advantage of those resources.
• Emphasise collaborative skills and partner accessibility — insider ratings indicate A for peer support and partner approachability, so provide examples showing teamwork, mentorship and working effectively with senior stakeholders.