Participant Review

I really enjoyed the DLA Piper Insight Programme. The Grad Recruitment Team took the time to meet us before the programme at the hotel and the range of programmes increased my understanding of the workings of an international law firm and DLA Piper's commitment to Pro Bono, Diversity and Inclusion and its international expertise. Each event was really informative and engaging and the speakers made their workshops interactive and fun! The friends I made during the Programme is a great bonus!

The DLA Piper Insight Scheme was very beneficial, enjoyable and the Grad Team looked out for our well being! The partners gave us very informative, engaging and inspiring talks and they valued our questions. The range of activities covered many aspects of what an international commercial lawyer would encounter and it was really nice to socialise with trainees and fellow participants during breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The Graduate Recruitment team were incredibly warm and friendly. Trainees and Partners encouraged us to ask questions and gave us very helpful tips for applications and advice on what qualities we should strive for to become a successful international lawyer. They also gave advice on how to tackle the assessment centres.

Beyond equipping us with key basics such as CV writing and tips for tackling assessment centres, the candid sharing on what a lawyer actually entails and how we should go about developing the mindset to become a good lawyer is incredibly helpful for a first-year law student. Furthermore, diving deeper into topics such as Diversity and Inclusion, Pro Bono and the different sectors in the business world increases commercial awareness and allows us to probe further into key commercial and social issues. The range of cross-jurisdictional experiences gave more insight into different business culture practices which will be very useful for an aspiring international commercial lawyer.

The Graduate Recruitment Team structured the insight well because the information flowed really well as the speakers that came in later which touched on the commercial law ideas such as ICO and IPO were covered briefly through the demystifying law workshop series. Events flowed seamlessly and the breaks between sessions allowed us to recharge with the coffee, tea, snacks and socialising with trainees and fellow participants. This allows us to bounce off different learning points. Each day started and ended timely, allowing us to catch the train/coach.

DLA Piper's general atmosphere was really warm, friendly and welcoming. The Graduate Recruitment Team, trainees, associates and partners were very enthusiastic about working for DLA Piper and their stories are inspiring. As a first year, talking to law firm partners may seem intimidating, but the partners, especially the partners from the international office in Hong Kong, are really bubbly and down-to-earth. All the partners, trainees and Grad Recruit Team are very willing to give us advice and really encouraged us to ask them questions.

DLA Piper Graduate Recruitment Team really invested their time getting to know us during the Insight Programme and helped us understand what they were looking for in applications and assessment centres. Throughout the three days, the advice from speakers and the useful workshops enabled me to develop my commercial awareness, mindset and more effective communication skills.

The Insight Programme gave a flavour of what the trainees, associates and partners day-to-day work. They were really enthusiastic whilst sharing their stories and you can tell that they truly enjoyed working at the firm. The incredible opportunities for client secondments and international offices was a common highlight moment among the trainees. With offices over 40 different jurisdictions, the level of cross-jurisdictional work covered by DLA Piper can be challenging but extremely exciting and rewarding.

DLA Piper's warm, work hard play hard culture and the strong emphasis on teamwork is a common theme picked up during the 3-day Insight Programme. Strong bonds can be seen even at pre-trainee level, and the trainees mentioned that the induction programme at the Royal Military was a key highlight that allowed them to forge very close bonds with trainees from other DLA Piper offices.

The content of the Insight Programme was invaluable because it motivated me to incorporate the advice from the partners and trainees into my lifestyle to develop myself holistically, to be more in touch with my strengths and weaknesses and to be more agile. Through the programme, I was able to understand what are the key characteristics, skills and mindset of a successful lawyer and it really affirmed my goal of becoming an international commercial lawyer.

Dinner and travel expenses were reimbursed. Hotel accommodation was provided for participants based outside of London. The accommodation location was a 15-minute walk away from the office and this makes it convenient to get to the office and to socialise with the other participants. We were provided with breakfast, lunch, tea breaks and dinner during the Programme.

Yes, there were opportunities for networking and meeting trainees from the Hong Kong and Australia DLA Piper offices allowed us to understand the international aspect of DLA Piper's work in depth. The session with the Hong Kong Partners provided invaluable insight into what multi-jurisdictional work entails and the different business cultures from around the world.

There were many opportunities for networking with DLA Piper's trainees. From more formal panel discussions where the trainees, pre-trainees (doing the LPC) answered questions, gave advice and shared their most memorable cases to more informal group networking sessions through lunch and speed networking sessions, we were able to get a better understanding of the firm, the legal industry and the different practice groups.

The firm's commitment to Diversity and Inclusion through IRIS and the Women's Network, as well as DLA Piper's strong commitment to improving access to justice, is very inspiring. Trainees were enthusiastic when sharing about their involvement with Coram Children's Legal Clinic and REDRESS. The 'Work Hard Play Hard' culture is a common theme and trainees are encouraged to pursue their interests.

Absolutely! DLA Piper's Insight Programme gave me invaluable insight and advice for a career in law, as well as useful information on the changing legal industry (SQEs, AI etc...) and guidance for future applications for vacation schemes and training contracts. The Insight Programme is beneficial to both non-law students and law students alike as the topics engaged in the Negotiation workshop allowed law students to think outside the box when bouncing off ideas from non-law students and this work synergy is a nice reflection of how lawyers work.