Firms

Sidley Austin LLP

Web:  www.sidley.com 

Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

 

Web:  www.sidley.com 

Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

 

Survey results

Survey results

 

The lowdown (in their own words...)

Why did you choose this firm over any others? 

 ''A small number of trainees'; ' the amount of exposure'; 'quality of work is much greater'; 'excellent pay benefits'; 'due to its size in London I really do feel a part of the whole firm'; 'I wanted to do high-quality work but was not interested in a huge Magic Circle firm where I would be one of hundreds of trainees'; 'good opportunities for excellent career progression'; 'international finance group'; 'people are judged on merits'; 'excellent salary'; 'interesting and high-profile matters with an international element'' 

How does your training compare with peers' at other firms? 

 ''The firm puts a heavy focus on quality training'; 'good exposure to interesting matters'; 'supportive supervisor'; 'working directly with partners'' 

Best thing about the firm? 

 ''Top-quality work from top-tier clients'; 'still a small enough office to feel like you're known'; 'making a difference'; 'smart and supportive people around you'; 'friendly atmosphere'; 'the Christmas party'; 'other social events'; 'interesting work'; 'gives a lot more responsibility than other firms I think'; 'well organised'; 'the people'; 'friendly atmosphere'' 

Worst thing about the firm? 

 ''Not enough client contact'; 'no work life/personal life balance; 'lack of client contact'; 'limited secondment opportunities'' 

Best moment? 

 ''Working with a partner on a complex transaction for a month: felt really involved in the whole thing'; 'finishing an appeal hearing'; 'involved in an intense deal'' 

Worst moment?

 ''Getting unclear instructions from a junior associate'; 'I made a few very silly technical mistakes and the document was then sent to the client''

The Lex 100 verdict

 The Verdict

The firm

Sidley Austin's London capabilities are largely reflective of its expertise in the US, with particular strengths across the finance sector. It has a good record in hedge funds and an established position in structured finance, competing with the Magic Circle and fellow US firms. 

The star performers

Commercial property; Corporate restructuring and insolvency; Corporate tax; Debt capital markets; Derivatives; EU and competition; Hedge funds; Insurance: insolvency and restructuring; Investment funds; M&A: smaller deals up to £50m; Property finance; Securitisation.

The deals

Represented the sponsors on the restructuring of €1.35bn of debt partly securitised in the Fleet Street 2 CMBS; advised Swiss Re as counterparty in the first bond to transfer longevity divergence risk to the capital markets; acting for Regus Group in relation to the restructuring of its UK and Irish business; advised a US-based hedge fund trade association on the AIFM Directive.

The clients

The Aon Corporation; Cornerstone; FLIR Systems; MiFID.

The Verdict

US firm Sidley Austin attracts those looking to work on 'diverse, interesting and high-profile matters with an international element'. Taking on a small intake means that trainees get a 'greater amount of exposure' to some 'interesting matters' often with a strong finance bias. Surrounded by 'smart and supportive' staff one trainee reports how much they 'feel like a part of the whole firm'. There are some 'excellent' pay benefits and people are 'judged by their merits' so if you do a good job people really will notice. Due to the smaller size of the office you may find yourself working with a partner or senior fee-earners on complex transactions, helping you to 'build better relationships with colleagues', as well as get some excellent experience. It is no surprise therefore that the firm is a Lex 100 Winner for quality of work. Grumbles tend to centre around the fact that secondment opportunities are somewhat limited and there could be more client contact. However, on the whole trainees seem pretty content. If you have an interest in international finance and are looking for 'diverse and challenging' work - with a great pay package to boot - then this is the firm for you.

A day in the life

A day in the life of.....

Anna Kaczor, first-year trainee, Sidley Austin LLP 
Departments to date:  Insurance, financial services regulatory
University: Warsaw School of Economics 
Degree: MSc Finance and Banking, first class 

---

8.30am: On my way to work I flick through the newspaper before reading a legal article which I need for drafting a note later today.

9.00am: After making tea and catching up with my secretary I draft the note on the provisions of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and its effect on a client who requires permission to cease conducting regulated activity. I want to send this to the partner as soon as possible as he needs to read it before we attend a call with the client.

10.15am: I send out the note to the partner and start working on a regulatory due diligence report. Recently a capital markets associate and myself attended the offices of an insurance company to review documents in their data room and today I must finish the report and ask a partner to review it before it is sent to our New York colleagues.

11.30am: I have had to learn to prioritise my workload - whilst working on the due diligence report my supervisor asks me to urgently discuss a presentation I recently prepared with an associate in the international finance group. The presentation detailed a comprehensive set of reform measures, designed to strengthen the regulation, supervision and risk management of the banking sector.

12.00pm: I attend insurance accounts training run by an external trainer. Most of my team attend, as do a number of clients. This is great as not only do we get to learn from the speakers' knowledge and experience but we also get to network with clients.

1.00pm: I make it back to my office just in time to attend the client call with the partner to discuss the note I prepared this morning. Although I do not have much input into the conversation I enjoy taking part in the call as I see the importance of the note I was asked to research and draft. I take a detailed note of the call which will later be used when drafting a letter of advice for the client.

2.00pm: I spend some time organising my emails. The firm has a superb document management system which ensures I am organised. As one of our associates needs to send a mortgage deed to a client in a few hours, I proof-read it and draft a mortgage condition. Then I prepare a blackline document and insert comments - this enables the document to be easily compared with any earlier versions. I liaise with our document production department who improve the formatting of the document; they are always on hand to help out when I need them.

4.00pm: I finish my regulatory due diligence report. After checking the formatting of the memorandum with my secretary I review the report with a partner. This is not daunting - all of our partners are very friendly and approachable. Following the partner review I make some final amendments to the draft report and send it to my colleague in the capital markets department.

5.30pm: I read a few PLC financial services updates and I scan through the Financial Times Daily News Index that one of our information officers has emailed to me. I received a few invitations to attend trainee training sessions while working on the earlier tasks, so I add them to my calendar.

6.00pm: My supervisor asks me to send an e-bible (essentially a CD) to a client so I draft a letter, check that the e-bible is of high quality, fill in a courier form and bring it downstairs to our general office team who take care of the rest.

7.00pm: The firm is organising a sailing team to compete in an industry regatta. I head out for an evening drink with 'the Manches Cup' 2011 crew. Employees and partners will take part in the regatta and it will be a great chance to network and socialise. We will sail from Port Hamble Marina to the Isle of Wight and have a 'Stars of Hollywood' fancy dress party. I am looking forward to it!

About the firm

About the firm

Address: Woolgate Exchange, 25 Basinghall Street, London EC2V 5HA

Telephone: 020 7360 2016

Fax: 020 7626 7937

Website: www.sidley.com

Email:  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Managing partner: Drew Scott

 

Other offices: Beijing, Brussels, Chicago, Dallas, Frankfurt, Geneva, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, New York, Palo Alto, San Francisco, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney, Tokyo, Washington DC. 

Who we are:  Sidley Austin is one of the world's largest full-service law firms, providing a broad range of services to meet the needs of large and small businesses across a multitude of industries, financial institutions, governments and individuals. See www.sidley.com.

What we do: Our principal practice areas are: corporate, competition, corporate reorganisation and bankruptcy, debt and equity capital markets, debt restructuring, debt finance and structured finance, employment, financial services regulatory, hedge funds, insurance, IP/IT, litigation, real estate and real estate finance, tax.

What we are looking for: Candidates from both law and non-law disciplines who are focused, intelligent and enthusiastic with personality, humour and a real interest in practising law in the commercial world.

What you'll do:  Trainees have the opportunity to spend time, up to six months, in any of the following practice groups: corporate and securities, corporate reorganisation and bankruptcy, insurance, international finance, real estate and real estate finance, and tax.

Perks: 25 days' paid holiday per annum, private healthcare insurance, pension, income protection scheme, life assurance, contribution to gym membership, interest-free season ticket loan, walk-in GP service, eye test, employee assistance programme.

Sponsorship: Full course fees for the LPC and GDL; maintenance grant, up to £7,000, during the LPC and GDL years.

 

Facts & figures

 Facts and figures

Trainee places available for 2014: 10

Applications received pa: 550 

Percentage interviewed: 10% 

Salary

First year: £39,000

Second year: £43,000

Newly qualified: £70,000

 

Total partners: 40

Other fee-earners: 73

Total trainees: 17

APPLY NOW

Application process

Apply to: Lucy Slater, graduate recruitment officer.

How: Online application. Visit www.sidley.com/careers/world/london/trainees.asp. 

When to Apply: By 31 July 2012 for a training contract in 2014. 

What is involved: Online psychometric assessment; partner interview.