What We Offer

• Our Culture
• Learning and Development
• Career Path
• Summer Associate Program
• Benefits
• 2008 Fall On-Campus Interview Schedule
• How To Apply

Our Culture

Seyfarth Shaw conscientiously maintains a collaborative culture to foster creative and innovative thinking and professional growth. Attorneys and staff join the firm for a variety of reasons, among them our professional yet informal working environment, the breadth and sophistication of our client base and our team-based approach to delivering legal solutions.

Learning and Development

In order to produce the best work product and provide superior service, we require the best talent. It’s that simple. Providing continuous education and development tools is an essential component to attracting and retaining top talent. We believe in ongoing feedback and coaching and have a robust performance management system to ensure that our attorneys and staff receive the guidance needed to excel. Some of the other components of our learning and development program include:

Orientation
Seyfarth Shaw’s “on boarding” orientation process is designed to anticipate and answer questions, connect new professionals with experienced colleagues and provide the tools needed to “hit the ground running”. We prepare attorneys and staff for success through workshops, seminars, on-line programs and one-on-one interaction. We conduct an annual associate orientation program that connects new associates to each other and introduces them to the firm’s culture, partners and other professionals.

Performance Management
Regular, timely feedback is critical for professional growth. In addition to informal feedback mechanisms, the firm administers annual on-line evaluations. Attorneys and staff are measured against a set of core competencies specific to their role in the organization. Once evaluation results are compiled, each professional receives a personalized review identifying their strengths and development needs.

Individualized Development Plans
Associates create and regularly update their own Professional Development Plan with input from their advisor to ensure alignment and success. Additionally, each practice offers detailed “experience benchmarks” which further assist associates as they plan their career progression.

Coaching
Each associate is paired with a Lawyer Development Committee (LDC) Advisor who oversees his or her development process. The LDC Advisor is best characterized as the associate’s coach and provides focus, feedback and guidance. Together, the Advisor and the associate chart and periodically adjust the associate’s career plan.

Development Resources
We employ a variety of resources to keep our attorneys’ and staffs’ knowledge and skills at the forefront of the industry. These include regular coaching and feedback, on-the-job experiences, in-house training and CLE courses, as well as e-learning programs, tools and resources.

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Career Path

Seyfarth Shaw offers attorneys a two-tiered partnership track -- income partner then equity partner. We anticipate it will take roughly 7-1/2 years for associates to become eligible for income partner consideration based on class year status.

Again, we recognize the need for flexibility in the manner in which careers develop. Our alternate work arrangement associates are eligible for partnership track as long as they meet the partnership standards.

We strive to promote staff from within whenever possible. Open positions are posted on the firm’s internal web portal to ensure that current employees have an opportunity to be considered for open positions.

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Summer Associate Program

Our summer associate program provides law students with a genuine sense of life as an associate at Seyfarth Shaw. The program consists of four components: substantive work, training, practical legal activities and social events. It is structured to be informative, realistic and collegial.

Seyfarth Shaw summer associates participate in a series of in-house training sessions conducted by the firm’s various practices. These sessions include a short presentation on the practice plus a training exercise on a particular legal skill, such as a legal writing workshop.

Practical legal activities are one of the most interesting and worthwhile elements of the program. These include client conferences, trials, depositions, court appearances, hearings, arbitrations, an outside training seminar about pro bono, and corporate and real estate closings.

Seyfarth Shaw organizes a variety of social events to ensure that summer associates get acquainted with as many of our attorneys as possible. They also have the opportunity to experience various cultural and community events unique to the cities in which our offices are located.

Currently, we have summer associate programs in our Chicago, Atlanta, Boston, Los Angeles and New York offices, with plans to expand to other offices in the coming year.

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Benefits

Seyfarth Shaw offers competitive and progressive health and welfare benefits such as participation in 401(k) plans, flex spending accounts, health insurance coverage for domestic partners and paid parental leave for both parents.

Additionally, we understand the need for flexibility in the workplace. Therefore, we offer an alternate work arrangement in which attorneys are eligible to work at a reduced schedule, and still maintain a partnership track.

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2008 Fall On-Campus Interview Schedule

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How To Apply

Legal

If you are interested in a Legal position at Seyfarth Shaw, please click here to see our open positions.

Non-Legal

If you have an interest in a Non-Legal position at Seyfarth Shaw, please forward your credentials and resume to one of the offices listed below.

• Atlanta - Non-Legal
• Boston - Non-Legal
• Chicago - Non-Legal
• Houston - Non-Legal
• Los Angeles - Non-Legal
• New York - Non-Legal
• Sacramento - Non-Legal
• San Francisco - Non-Legal
• Washington, D.C. - Non-Legal
• Brussels

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