Mergers and Acquisitions at Latham & Watkins | Career Guide

Latham & Watkins is widely regarded as a global leader for transactional work. The firm's M&A capability is international, handling sophisticated cross-border public and private deals, private equity buyouts, carve-outs, distressed acquisitions and complex takeover defence matters. The London office acts as a hub for European and EMEA transactions, often partnering with US, Asia-Pacific and other European teams on multi-jurisdictional mandates.

The team is known for a few distinguishing features:

• Strong cross-border coordination, frequently running multi-jurisdictional transactions with integrated project management.

• Depth in private equity work, acting for both sponsors and portfolio companies on buyouts, refinancings and add-ons.

• Capability on public M&A and takeover defence, including schemes of arrangement and hostile bids.

• Sector-focused expertise in TMT, healthcare and life sciences, energy and infrastructure, fintech and financial services.

For aspiring applicants, that combination means you will be expected to demonstrate commercial awareness across sectors, attention to deal mechanics, and the ability to think across jurisdictions and disciplines (tax, competition, employment, regulatory).

Rather than listing specific headline transactions (which change frequently), think in terms of the representative workstreams you will encounter at Latham:

• Large cross-border public and private acquisitions where the firm leads complex negotiations on purchase agreements, regulatory filings and closing mechanics.

• Private equity buyouts and exits, including leveraged buyouts (LBOs), secondary sales and sponsor-backed acquisitions involving financing and tax structuring issues.

• Carve-outs and asset sales where teams coordinate disclosure, post-closing transitional services and carve-out tax and benefit arrangements.

• Restructurings and distressed M&A where acquisition agreements must be tailored to insolvency constraints.

• SPAC-related transactions and IPO-adjacent M&A where timing, disclosure and sponsor protections are critical.

If you are preparing for interviews, be ready to describe one recent deal (choose an M&A story from the Financial Times, The Lawyer, Bloomberg or YourLegalLadder's weekly commercial updates) and explain: the parties, the commercial rationale, the key legal issues (warranties, indemnities, antitrust filings, regulatory approvals), and the likely negotiation points.

Latham invests heavily in technical training and on-the-job development. Trainees and junior lawyers at the firm typically benefit from structured training combined with immersive deal exposure.

Core training features you should expect:

• Formal classroom and e-learning modules on transactional documents (sale and purchase agreements, disclosure letters, heads of terms), deal process and ethics.

• On-the-job training: junior lawyers are given meaningful drafting responsibilities early (clauses in SPAs, disclosure schedules, closing deliverables) with partner supervision.

• Secondments and international mobility: the firm regularly offers secondments to US and other international offices, and to clients where practicable. These secondments accelerate commercial understanding and client-facing skills.

• Cross-practice exposure: trainees commonly rotate through finance, tax, competition and corporate/finance-related regulatory teams to build rounded skills.

• Pro bono and professional development: structured pro bono work and mentorship schemes support broader legal skills and resilience.

How to demonstrate fit for this training environment:

• Show examples of early responsibility in previous roles (academic moots, vacation schemes, paralegal tasks) and the result.

• Demonstrate learning agility: explain a legal concept you learned quickly and applied in a practical context.

• Indicate willingness to relocate or accept international secondments where relevant.

These concrete examples make your application stand out compared with generic statements about being a "team player" or "hard working".

Daily work for a junior M&A associate in London varies with deal flow but commonly includes:

• Drafting and revising transactional documents, from heads of terms to completion mechanics.

• Conducting and summarising due diligence, creating disclosure schedules and advising on risk allocation.

• Coordinating cross-border closing logistics, preparing closing checklists and liaising with counsel in other jurisdictions.

• Managing internal documents and bundles for client meetings and regulatory filings.

• Supporting negotiation strategy and preparing briefing notes for partners.

Progression path and what differentiates successful candidates:

• Early years: technical drafting competence, meticulous attention to detail and speed in preparing documents.

• Mid-level: client management skills, independence on smaller deals and commercial judgement on risk allocation.

• Senior associate to partner: business development abilities, sector knowledge and the capacity to lead complex multi-party transactions.

Partners assess more than legal skill. They look for: commercial intuition, client service orientation, resilience under pressure, and demonstrable teamwork. Evidence these traits in your application with concrete examples and outcomes (quantify where possible - e.g. "managed due diligence for 120 documents across five jurisdictions").

Use a deliberate approach to your application. Latham receives many high-quality applications, so specificity matters.

CV and application form:

• Keep the CV concise (two pages max). Use bullet points of achievements under each role and quantify outcomes: "Prepared 40-page due diligence report under a two-week deadline; identified three material issues that altered SPA terms."

• Tailor covering answers to Latham: reference relevant practice areas, recent Latham deals from public sources and how your experience aligns.

• Demonstrate technical interest: cite coursework, moots or projects on M&A topics (SPA drafting, takeover code, competition filings).

Interview and assessment centre preparation:

1. Practice behavioural questions using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result). Keep answers focused on your contribution and outcome.

2. Prepare a short, structured explanation of a recent M&A transaction. Focus on commercial rationale and one legal issue you would tackle.

3. Do mock negotiations and commercial problem exercises with peers or mentors. Practice drafting a clause to solve a particular commercial risk (eg, a specific warranty with caps and baskets).

4. Brush up on key technical concepts: completion accounts, tax warranties, reps and indemnities, escrow mechanics, reverse breaks, and regulatory clearances (UK CMA, EU/other merger control basics).

Assessment centre tips:

• Team exercises: demonstrate leadership by facilitating others' input and summarising points.

• Written exercises: structure your memo clearly with executive summary, options, risks and recommendation.

• Technical tests: be concise and show your reasoning - examiners prefer clear commercial logic over jargon.

Use available resources to prepare:

• YourLegalLadder for application trackers, TC/CV review and weekly commercial awareness updates.

• LawCareers.Net and Chambers Student for firm-specific recruitment cycles and interview reports.

• Legal Cheek and The Lawyer for coverage of market trends and deal news.

• Financial Times, Bloomberg and Companies House for recent deal information.

• Mock interview support: alumni from your university, Career Services and paid mentoring (including platforms such as YourLegalLadder) can offer one-to-one practice.

Timing and follow-up:

• Apply early and track deadlines carefully. Use a tracker (YourLegalLadder provides tools) to manage multiple firm deadlines and assessment dates.

• After interviews, send a brief thank-you email reiterating your interest and one concrete point you enjoyed discussing.

• If you do not receive an offer, seek feedback and consider targeted experience (paralegal roles, secondments, or transactional internships) to strengthen the next application cycle.

Recommended resources to research Latham's M&A team and polish applications:

• YourLegalLadder - for application trackers, 1-on-1 mentoring, commercial awareness updates, and firm profiles.

• Chambers Student and Chambers UK - to check rankings and practice notes.

• LawCareers.Net - for recruitment guides, role descriptions and salary information.

• Legal Cheek and The Lawyer - for market commentary and news about lateral hires and major deals.

• Financial Times and Bloomberg - for reliable reporting of recent transactions to discuss at interview.

• University careers service and alumni networks - for mock interviews and introductions to trainees or associates.

Practical next steps:

• Compile a shortlist of five recent Latham M&A matters reported in public sources and prepare a two- to three-minute summary for each.

• Draft two CV bullets showing direct, transactional experience and one paragraph explaining why Latham's global, cross-border practice fits your career aims.

• Book two mock interviews (behavioural and technical) and one negotiation/drafting practice session with a mentor.

• Use a deadline tracker (such as the one on YourLegalLadder) to map application windows and assessment dates so you can prepare in a timely paced way.

A targeted, evidence-based application combined with demonstrable technical interest and commercial awareness will give you the best chance of success in applying to Latham & Watkins' M&A practice.