Cooley UK LLP

Overview

Cooley is a US-headquartered global law firm focused on advising innovative companies and their investors across the technology and life sciences sectors. Founded in 1920, the firm has grown into an international platform with 19 offices and a recognised strength in venture capital, IPOs, technology transactions, life sciences licensing and high-stakes litigation. The London office, launched in 2015, supports cross-border work for startups, growth companies, private equity and public issuers and is home to more than 200 lawyers and business professionals. Cooley’s market position is underscored by industry rankings for life sciences, technology transactions, capital markets and venture/fund formation and by firm-built innovation platforms such as Cooley GO, IPO GO and Vanilla.

• Headquarters: Palo Alto
• Founded: 1920
• Lawyers: 1,400+
• Partners: 385+
• Trainees: 6
• Offices: 19

Values & Culture

Practice Areas

• Corporate & M&A
• Private Equity & Venture Capital
• Capital Markets
• Investment Funds
• Financial Services & Regulation
• Technology & Digital
• Healthcare & Life Sciences
• Intellectual Property
• Dispute Resolution & Litigation
• Regulatory & Compliance
• Data Protection & Privacy
• ESG & Sustainability
• White Collar Crime
• International Arbitration
• Tax

Geographic Focus: Cooley is a transatlantic firm with a strong US base and strategic offices across Europe and Asia (notably London, Brussels, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and Singapore). The London office focuses on cross-border life sciences, technology, VC/private equity, capital markets and regulatory work, collaborating with the firm’s US and Asian offices on IPOs, financings, M&A, funds and multi-jurisdictional disputes.

Training Contract

Cooley offers a two-year training contract in London that emphasises early responsibility and hands-on experience. Trainees work on real client matters from their first seat and participate in a tailored training programme and a Professional Skills Course. Seat rotations are arranged across practice groups to provide breadth of experience; trainees receive supervision, a trainee buddy and regular feedback from the graduate recruitment and professional development teams.

• Starting Salary: £55,000 (first year); £60,000 (second year)
• NQ Salary: £157,000
• Trainee Intake: 6
• Qualification Rate: 100%
• Academic Requirements: Minimum entry requirements for spring and summer programmes: 2:1 degree in any discipline and 128 UCAS points (equivalent to ABB at A level). Candidates who do not meet these requirements may be considered with mitigating circumstances and evidence of excellence.
• Application Deadline: 2026-01-01

Seat Options

• Corporate & M&A
• Private Equity & Venture Capital
• Capital Markets
• Investment Funds
• Technology & Digital
• Intellectual Property
• Healthcare & Life Sciences
• Dispute Resolution & Litigation
• Regulatory & Compliance
• Data Protection & Privacy
• Employment
• ESG & Sustainability
• Tax

Sponsorship

PGDL/PGDL grant: £20,000 (recorded in recruitment data). The UK Diversity Fellowship bursary provides up to £12,000 paid in instalments; other study-support awards are available through diversity fellowships and candidate programmes.

SQE Support

The firm provides SQE grants/support: an SQE grant of £20,000 is recorded in available recruitment data (the firm also publishes financial support for fellows and summer participants).

International Opportunities

0% (insider data reports there are effectively no regular international secondments for trainees; London trainees work closely with international teams on cross-border matters but formal overseas secondments are not reported).

Client Secondments

22% chance of client secondment reported in insider data (percentage indicating trainees sometimes undertake client secondments).

Mentorship

Trainees are supported by a programme mentor, a trainee buddy, supervisors on seat rotations and the graduate recruitment team. The firm highlights an expected culture of meaningful, ongoing mentoring from experienced lawyers and a formal trainee training programme.

Apply on the Cooley UK LLP website →

Programmes & Schemes

Notable Matters

What Cooley UK LLP Looks For

Key Competencies

• Commercial awareness
• Teamwork and collaboration
• Curiosity and intellectual rigour
• Responsibility and resilience
• Strong written and oral communication
• Commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion
• Interest in technology and life sciences

Evidence Signals

• Relevant commercial work experience (internships, paralegal roles or summer programmes)
• Demonstrable commitment to inclusion or community work (DEI initiatives, fellowship experience)
• Academic performance consistent with entry requirements (2:1 degree; ABB A-level equivalents)
• Practical exposure to tech or life sciences sectors (relevant projects, coursework, or internships)
• Mooting, advocacy or litigation experience for dispute-focused seats

Benefits & Wellbeing

• Trainee salary: £55,000 (year 1) and £60,000 (year 2)
• NQ salary: £157,000
• PGDL/GDL grant: £20,000
• SQE grant: £20,000
• Paid summer programme compensation: £550 per week
• Annual leave: 25 days
• No annual target/billable hours targets (reported as 'No targets')
• Be Well @ Cooley wellbeing programmes (biometric screenings, health/wellness coaching)
• Reimbursement on health club dues, yoga classes, tennis lessons and other fitness activities
• Workday Learning access (training portal for business professionals)
• Structured mentoring and buddy programmes
• Staff appreciation events (staff appreciation week; paralegal appreciation day)
• Access to innovation and legal tech initiatives (Cooley GO, IPO GO, Vanilla, Cooley AI)

Wellbeing

Be Well @ Cooley programmes including biometric screenings, health/wellness coaching, fitness and nutrition programmes, reimbursement for health club dues, yoga classes and other fitness activities; employee appreciation events and wellbeing resources.

Awards & Recognition

• Women in Business Law: Law Firm of the Year for Gender Diversity Support (Global)
• Law360 Pulse: Social Impact Leader
• Chambers Associate: The Elite for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
• Human Rights Campaign Foundation Corporate Equality Index: Equality 100 Award
• Diversity Lab: Mansfield Rule Certified
• BTI Litigation Powerhouse (2026)
• ALB SE Asia Law Awards: Equity Market Deal of the Year (2026) for AvePoint transaction
• Legal 500 US 2026: increased recognition across 45 practice areas
• Chambers USA 2026: expanded recognition in 84 practice areas

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Public commitments include Mansfield Rule certification, recognition on the Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index (Equality 100 Award), active participation in diversity pipeline projects, law school diversity programmes and external partnerships aimed at improving racial and social justice. The firm publishes and maintains fellowship programmes and structured affinity networks to support recruiting, retention and professional development.

• 2L Diversity Fellowship
• 1L Diversity Fellowship
• UK Diversity Fellowship
• Black Affinity Group
• Asian Pacific Islander Affinity Group
• Latinx Affinity Group
• LGBTQ+ Affinity Group
• Women’s Initiative
• Caregivers Attorney Affinity Group
• Cooley Inclusion Alliance
• Jewish Cultural Affinity Group
• MENA Affinity Group
• Veterans at Cooley Affinity Group
• Black Executive Network
• Elevar Network
• DEI Committee and global DEI leadership

Pro Bono

Cooley emphasises pro bono as core to firm culture. 2025 year-end pro bono stats include 104,000 hours, 1,200 timekeepers, 1,500+ pro bono matters, 500+ nonprofit clients and 125+ legal services partners. The firm pursues high-impact pro bono work (civil rights, immigration, voting rights, innocence projects) and partners with multiple NGOs and initiatives including Election Protection, ACLU partnerships, Northern California Innocence Project and others.

Innovation

Cooley invests in applied legal technology and in-house platforms to scale client service: Cooley GO and IPO GO provide practical tools and content for startups and IPO-readiness; Vanilla is a cloud-based fund formation platform; Cooley AI builds AI-native tools to connect firm knowledge, workflows and human judgement for higher-quality, faster legal work. The firm publishes AI principles emphasising ethical, transparent and client-first application and deploys AI-enabled offerings such as GO Public and Cooley GO GObot.

• Cooley GO (including Cooley GObot)
• IPO GO
• Vanilla (fund-formation platform)
• Cooley AI (firm-owned AI company)
• Cooley GO Lab (powered by Legora)
• COOLEY ADVANTAGE and AI principles

Quick Application Angles

• Emphasise genuine commercial interest in technology or life sciences — reference Cooley’s market-leading record on tech & life sciences IPOs and platform tools (Cooley GO / IPO GO) to show sector fit.
• If eligible, apply for a Diversity Fellowship (UK Diversity Fellowship offers a paid programme placement plus a bursary up to £12,000) — mention how the fellowship would support your development and contribution to inclusion.
• Highlight hands-on experience and examples that demonstrate you can add value from day one (real matter exposure, internships, transactional or litigation support), since Cooley emphasises 'learning by doing' for trainees.
• Show awareness of Cooley’s innovation and legal tech initiatives (Cooley AI, Cooley GO, Vanilla) — the firm scores highly on legal tech, so concrete examples of technology fluency or product/AI interest will resonate.
• Reference the firm’s pro bono and social-impact work (e.g., racial and social justice projects) if you have relevant experience or motivation — Cooley integrates pro bono into development and values social impact.