Freshfields

Overview

Freshfields is a long-established global elite law firm with a near-300-year heritage, operating from a network of international offices and advising major corporates, financial institutions and governments on high-value, cross-border mandates. The firm combines deep sector and cross-jurisdictional expertise (notably in M&A, international arbitration, antitrust/competition, capital markets and tax) with a strong innovation and legal-technology capability, including dedicated Knowledge and Innovation teams. Freshfields positions trainees and junior lawyers on high‑profile, international matters and invests heavily in formal training partnerships and postgraduate support to develop practice-ready lawyers. Its global footprint and focus on cross-border work distinguish the firm for candidates seeking complex, international practice experience.

• Headquarters: London, 100 Bishopsgate
• Lawyers: 2,800+
• Trainees: 70
• Offices: 33

Values & Culture

Practice Areas

• Competition & Antitrust
• International Arbitration
• Capital Markets
• Corporate & M&A
• Tax
• Dispute Resolution & Litigation
• Insolvency & Restructuring
• Financial Services & Regulation
• Private Equity & Venture Capital
• White Collar Crime
• Intellectual Property
• ESG & Sustainability
• Energy & Natural Resources
• Environment & Planning
• Technology & Digital
• Data Protection & Privacy
• Employment
• Real Estate
• Regulatory & Compliance

Geographic Focus: A global firm with a strong presence in London, key US offices (New York, Silicon Valley, Washington DC), major European centres (Frankfurt, Munich, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels), and a substantial Asia network (Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore, Tokyo). The firm focuses on cross‑border, multijurisdictional mandates for multinational corporates, financial institutions, sovereigns and major sponsors, leveraging its Knowledge and Innovation capabilities to serve clients across 33 offices in c.

Training Contract

Freshfields runs an eight‑seat Trainee Associate Programme (two‑year duration for the UK Trainee Associate Programme). Seats rotate every three months by default, with flexibility for trainees to remain longer in a seat. Trainees receive formal classroom training integrated with practice work, access to the City Consortium Solicitor Training Programme (CCP) / BPP SQE preparation, mentoring from supervisors, buddies and partners, and the firm aims to place every trainee on an international or client secondment (typically in the final six months). Trainees receive four weeks' paid qualification leave on completion of the programme.

• Starting Salary: £56,000
• NQ Salary: £150,000
• Trainee Intake: 70
• Qualification Rate: 68%
• Academic Requirements: Freshfields typically looks for strong academic performance (most candidates have a 2:1 or above). The Trainee Associate Programme is open to penultimate- and final‑year undergraduate students from any degree discipline and to recent graduates; the Solicitor Apprenticeship has specific A‑level requirements (AAB or equivalent) and residency requirements for school‑leaver applicants.
• Application Deadline: 2026-11-13

Seat Options

• Dispute Resolution & Litigation
• Corporate & M&A
• Competition & Antitrust
• Employment
• Tax
• Intellectual Property
• Capital Markets
• Financial Services & Regulation
• Private Equity & Venture Capital

Sponsorship

The firm funds PGDL/CCP/BPP courses or the PCLL (for Hong Kong prospects) and provides maintenance grants while studying. As part of an announced partnership, selected future trainees will be offered a fully funded LL.M (Law & Technology) at King’s College London plus a £20,000 maintenance grant. Supplementary figures: PGDL grant £12,500; SQE grant £20,000.

SQE Support

Freshfields is part of the City Consortium and works with BPP Law School to deliver SQE1/SQE2 preparation (City Consortium/CCP). The firm covers course fees for the PGDL/CCP where relevant and provides structured SQE preparation during training.

International Opportunities

The firm aims to send all trainees on a secondment in the final six months of the programme. Destinations cited include Silicon Valley, New York, Hong Kong, and Dubai; Hong Kong trainees are guaranteed two overseas secondments (three months in Beijing/Shanghai/Singapore and six months in London).

Client Secondments

Freshfields offers client secondments as an option and states trainees may be seconded to clients; supplementary insight data indicates a c.29% chance of a client secondment.

Mentorship

Trainees are assigned a dedicated supervisor, a buddy and a partner within the team. Additional mentoring and coaching is offered for prospective trainees from under‑represented backgrounds and trainees are encouraged to connect with colleague networks and trainee communities across offices.

Apply on the Freshfields website →

Programmes & Schemes

Notable Matters

What Freshfields Looks For

Key Competencies

• Determination
• Entrepreneurship
• Enthusiasm
• Time management
• Flexibility
• Attention to detail
• Commercial awareness / interest in business
• Teamwork
• Resilience
• Language skills (for regional London‑Asia routes)
• Analytical thinking

Evidence Signals

• Commercial internships or vacation scheme experience
• Pro bono or community outreach involvement (social mobility programmes)
• Strong academic record (typical 2:1 or above)
• Language skills for Asia routes
• Virtual work experience certificates (The Forage)
• Legal writing samples or research experience (for arbitration/internships)

Benefits & Wellbeing

• Year 1 trainee salary: £56,000
• Year 2 trainee salary: £61,000
• NQ salary: £150,000
• PGDL grant: £12,500
• SQE grant / study support: £20,000
• Fully funded LL.M (Law & Technology) places for selected future trainees plus a £20,000 maintenance grant (King's College London partnership)
• Firm covers PGDL/CCP (BPP) or PCLL tuition (depending on programme) and provides maintenance grants for PCLL students
• Four weeks' paid qualification leave on completion of the Trainee Associate Programme
• Wellbeing app and access to professional wellbeing support
• Peer‑to‑peer Mental Health First Aid network and global mental health support team
• Access to Innovation and Knowledge teams (legal tech/AI exposure)
• Extensive colleague networks and mentoring schemes

Wellbeing

A global wellbeing framework covering mind, body and balance; peer‑to‑peer Mental Health First Aid support; a wellbeing app with professional support; senior leader training on fostering high‑performing teams; local wellbeing offerings and executive sponsors network.

Awards & Recognition

• FTSE Women Leaders Top 10 Performer for Women on Boards (UK) 2024
• Social Mobility Index - Top 10 employer (UK) 2024
• Mansfield Certification Plus (UK/US) 2024
• Stonewall Top Global Employer – Gold 2023
• FT Innovative Lawyer Awards 2024 (Innovation in regulatory solutions – GenAI‑driven client solution)
• Most Digital Law Firm in Europe 2023 (Awards, Europe)
• Law.com Best Law Firm for UK Pro Bono 2021
• UPJ Special Award for Corporate Engagement (pro bono)
• City Bar Justice Center Pro Bono Service and Community Impact award 2024
• Sanctuary for Families’ Above and Beyond Award 2023
• International Refugee Assistance Project Excellent Pro Bono Case Team award 2024
• Benchmark Litigation U.S. Awards 2026: Case of the Year (Sciannella v. AstraZeneca) and Hall of Fame induction for Boris Feldman

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Mansfield Certification Plus; Stonewall Top Global Employer – Gold; Social Mobility Index Top 10 employer; FTSE Women Leaders recognition; partnership work with Social Mobility Foundation and local scholarship/mentoring programmes.

• Asian Affinity Network
• Black Affinity Network / Black Employee Resource Group
• Campos Frescos
• Christian Network
• Freshfields Enabled (disability network)
• Gender Equality Network and Women’s Networks
• Halo and Champions (LGBTQ+)
• Jewish Network
• Mental Health Affinity Network
• Muslim Network
• Social Mobility Network
• Valor and Champions (Veterans)
• Freshfields Aspiring Professionals Programme (partnership with the Social Mobility Foundation)
• Freshfields Stephen Lawrence Scholarship Scheme

Pro Bono

Over 1,600+ lawyers across 33 offices gave over 112,000+ hours of free legal work on 661 matters for over 330 pro bono clients. The firm focuses pro bono efforts on child rights, refugee rights, women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights and human trafficking and runs strategic partnerships with NGOs and charities.

Innovation

Freshfields treats innovation as core to service delivery: combining legal expertise with data analytics, AI and legal technology to create smarter service delivery. The firm runs an Ideation and Adoption function to pilot legal tech and AI solutions, uses AI classification/extraction on legal matter data, and embeds Knowledge specialists to turn legal data into actionable insight. Trainees and junior lawyers have exposure to the Innovation team, the Freshfields Lab and Knowledge products as part of their development.

• Freshfields Lab
• Innovation team / Ideation and Adoption team
• Knowledge team and Knowledge & legal data capability
• AI classification and extraction solutions and other internal AI tools
• Smarter service delivery programmes and pilots
• City Consortium Plus / bespoke training linking innovation to practice

Quick Application Angles

• Demonstrate commercial awareness with cross‑border examples — reference Freshfields’ work on high‑value M&A, international arbitration and securities litigation (for instance the firm’s recent securities litigation wins) to show you understand the client and global dimensions of the work.
• Highlight interest and experience in technology, data or AI — the firm invests formally in AI/legal tech (Freshfields Lab, Innovation team and Knowledge capabilities) and is funding LL.M places in Law & Technology; candidates with tech curiosity or data experience will stand out.
• Connect to the firm’s community and pro bono priorities — reference the Aspiring Professionals Programme, social mobility and pro bono focus (e.g. refugee and modern slavery work) to show cultural fit and commitment to impact.
• If applying to the London‑Asia route, emphasise language skills and international experience — the programme requires linguistic capability and places trainees in Hong Kong and other Asian offices, so concrete examples of cross‑cultural work are valuable.
• Use available virtual work experiences and arbitration internship outputs as concrete evidence — complete The Forage simulators or provide legal research/writing samples from internships to provide demonstrable, relevant experience.