The Legal Cheek View
Corporate law firms often struggle to differentiate themselves, but Burges Salmon genuinely stands out from the crowd with a model that sees it do a large amount of City of London work mostly from Bristol. Allied to a prevailing organisational niceness, this makes it a really good place to start one’s career, current trainees tell us. Burges Salmon’s latest available financial results show global revenues of around £120 million and an average profit per equity partner (PEP) of about £500,000.
Trainees receive “a very diverse range of work” with “a real emphasis on the key sector approach”, one insider reports. As another rookie details: “The work is a real mixture — I have been involved in drafting applications and letters to the court and attending interesting client calls, but also document review will never be stimulating…”
Luckily, the firm’s impressive clientele list makes up for these slightly less stimulating tasks, with Burges Salmon recently advising HSBC as a lender on a major green loan, and the Crown Estate on agricultural laws pertaining to its Windsor portfolio. Other well-known names such as John Lewis, Virgin, and the PGA European Tour have also turned to Burges Salmon when in need of legal guidance.
Some “excellent”, albeit not particularly numerous, secondments — to Burges Salmon’s international alliance firms in Copenhagen, Brussels and Paris — also come highly recommended. Client secondments to big name companies including ENGIE and EDF Energy as well as organisations including the National Crime Agency are becoming more common. And some trainees now also have the opportunity to do a four-month stint in Burges Salmon’s recently expanded Edinburgh office.
The six-seat (rather than the typical four) trainee rotation model is highly regarded, with the training — which is consistently top-rated in the Legal Cheek Trainee and Junior Lawyer Survey — described as “second to none” thanks to “regular training sessions specific to the department you are in as well as a generally good level of support from supervisors”. In three adjectives, the training is “consistent, well planned and practical”. High levels of responsibility are a prominent theme, with supervisors said to be “keen to get trainees involved in substantive work and ensure we get a varied and broad experience”. Target chargeable hours are also left relatively low for trainees, allowing them to invest time in their development.
The trainee cohort, meanwhile, is said to be “one big team pulling in the same direction” with this rookie confirming that they are “yet to meet an a***hole in 2.5 years.” One tells us: “The firm’s culture is amazing. Everyone in the firm is really supportive and that permeates throughout the firm. I look forward to coming into the office every day.” Another junior praises the firm’s openness and how senior members actively spur on trainees. “Lawyers at Burges Salmon are truly a great bunch. I’m consistently encouraged to take on more challenging work, invited along to important internal and external meetings and never feel scared to put my hand up when I’m lost or have made a mistake,” they tell us. Rookies praise the open-door policy and regular socials, which include pizza lunches, rounders tournaments, weekends away and drinks after work.
To add to the utopian vibe, Burges Salmon has one of the most delightful offices out there. “I love it, I feel inspired every time I walk in the building,” exclaims one rookie. And with an “elite” glassworks canteen (equipped with a coffee-bar of course) what’s not to love? A large refurb is also in the works for later this year to “refresh” some of the more dated spaces. The Bristol HQ is nestled by the river just a couple of minutes’ walk from Temple Meads railway station, from which London (where the firm has a smaller office) is an hour and 45 minutes away. Business train trips to the firm’s second office in the capital are in first class — even for trainees.
What’s more, the Bristol canteen is apparently better than many top restaurants — and good value too. “Bakery-quality cakes for £1.30 — who could say no?” an insider reports. A weekly ‘cake trolley’ coupled with “fantastic stroop waffles” augments the culinary experience. And even the firm coffee is said to be “excellent” (single use cups have been dropped in a bid to “be more eco-friendly”). “I don’t even cook any more, the catering is so good”, another satisfied trainee adds.
Many of these much-loved pastries were even offered as freebies (e.g., free doughnuts on a Thursday and free cakes on a Friday) to lure trainees back to the office following widespread remote working. However, this luxury has since been reversed to the disappointment of many. This comes off the back of “fantastic” agile working experiences for most rookies who are provided with “surface books, mobile phones, additional screens, risers, desk chairs, remote keyboard and mouse” plus any extras you might desire whilst working from home, which trainees can do up to two days a week.
On the tech-front, juniors are said to be using “AI more and more” with an opportunity to do a seat in legal tech. Plus we hear the business solutions team promotes lawtech potential and offers clients “bespoke legal app solutions”. “We have lots of tools available, regular IT training and a team dedicated to developing our legal tech offering,” explains one spy.
Some tensions, however, arise in relation to the work/life balance with the firm to a certain extent becoming a victim of its own success. “Hours are creeping up across all teams which leads to feelings that the firm is walking a fine line between London hours on a Bristol salary,” one source informs us. “Work in the evenings is a reality,” another adds. But some have had a more positive experience. “Generally excellent, but there are obviously busy periods in which it is non-existent,” another explains. “On the whole good but it does ebb and flow. The occasional midnight finish is to be expected, but this is not a regular occurrence. I was in the office at 8pm the other week and a partner came in to check I was okay (and send me home!).” Trainee rates currently sit at £45,000, increasing to £47,000 in the second year of the training contract.
The firm is pushing to cut their emissions down 50% by 2030 and have started a BSustainable committee to promote Green Week and other environmentally conscious events throughout the firm.