Start your career with a leading law firm, repeatedly voted a top employer
We offer a range of programmes tailored for those who are looking to enter the firm and gain legal qualification.Our dedicated early careers team are available to advise on the qualification pathways available and the application process. The team also go on to support those who join the firm as they complete their training.
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What do you see when you think of a law firm? Tradition? Power suits? Jargon? Or can you see more? An ethical employer. A hot bed of innovation. A place to grow in work and in life. A place to belong. Welcome to the World of Weightmans. Proudly one of the UK's most respected and award winning law firms. We believe thinking differently, let's us see the possibilities others don't. We grow and imagine every day. Over 1500 people in nine offices across the UK. From partners to marketers. And from paralegals to associates. Whether we're working from home or in one of our modern city centre offices. We know that life doesn't fit into neat boxes. Giving you the flexibility and balance to build a life that works for you. Nurturing the next generation of talent via our leadership programs, the development opportunities are endless. We love to give back. Our values flow through everything we say and do. Radical transparency. Team work and respect. Enterprise. We thrive in the regions. Newcastle is expanding and there's a lot happening. 2023 was a record breaking year for the award winning and fast growing corporate team in Newcastle Our respected leaders support a broad client base to help them scale up and invest in entrepreneurs to grow their brands on the global stage. And our brand new Birmingham office. With a strongly established team of over 160 brilliant people, including 25 partners. Covering sectors such as healthcare, real estate, corporate, commercial, and private wealth, and many more. Our brilliant healthcare team is recognised as a prestigious tier one in the Legal 500 directory for the West Midlands. And we impact both in our community and in the world. With a dedicated ESG lead, we aim to be net zero by 2030. And we believe in the power of CSR supporting Acorns Children's Hospice both financially and as volunteers. We bring that most powerful combination, national impact, and local knowledge. Our purpose isn't new. Seeing the possibility has always been in our DNA. It's what sets us apart, driving our vision to be a top thirty law firm. And we couldn't be more excited. Come and join us. The possibilities are endless.
Early careers at Weightmans
Our law apprenticeships
Our apprenticeship academy offers modern, cost-effective routes into the legal profession. You have the opportunity to earn while you learn and gain invaluable skills that will help you to quickly progress in your legal career. We currently offer:
Training contracts in England and Scotland
We offer a traineeship in our Glasgow office. This 24-month training programme is structured as four six-month seats across the business and is designed to provide you with excellent training and experience to gain qualification as a solicitor in Scotland. We also offer funding for the Diploma in Professional Legal Practice (PEAT 1) for those who have not yet completed it.
Following the changes in legal education over recent years, we are still accepting applications for trainee solicitor roles in England and Wales from those who have already completed the Legal Practice Course (LPC). Successful candidates who have already embarked on, or completed, the LPC will be placed on a training contract pathway. Over two years they will complete four six-month placements within our vast range of legal teams.
Legal work experience
We understand how difficult it can be to secure work experience, so this is not an expectation of Weightmans from those applying for early careers programmes. However, we recognise how important it is to gain an insight into a career before you commit to training with a firm, so we offer work experience programmes which have been designed to equip those interested in applying with key information and skills.
Our legal insights programme is for those in year 12 or above, in undergraduate degrees (excluding Law), and all others who are interested in pursuing a legal career.
Our Summer Vacation Scheme is aimed at undergraduate students who are interested in becoming a solicitor. This is a week-long placement at one of our offices and will provide you with first-hand experience at Weightmans.
What are we looking for?
We are looking for individuals with potential and the drive and determination to succeed. The competencies listed below are used to help shape our early careers recruitment processes, we assess for potential in these areas but we do not expect experience.
- Reasons and problem solves effectively with complex data and information and learns quickly
- Plans, organises, prioritises and manages resources and time
- IT literate
- Has a strong commercial focus
- Emotionally resilient, mature and positive when the going gets tough
- Customer-centric — both internal and external
- Flexible and adaptable
- Demonstrates integrity
- Is achievement-driven, shows initiative, takes responsibility with a ‘can do’
attitude - Committed to continuous improvement
- Attends to the detail and is quality minded
- Self‐aware — knows own strengths and weaknesses
- Demonstrates effective communication both verbally and in writing
- Assertive and socially confident
- Influential and persuasive
- Team player and team builder who networks effectively
- Diplomatic, tactful and empathic
- Interpersonally skilled, reads people and situations and then adapts accordingly
- Aware of and propagates a positive and professional image and persona
Why choose Weightmans?
At Weightmans our purpose to See the Possibility flows through every aspect of how we do business and treat our people. Watch the video below to learn how we See the Possibility in our business, our clients and our people.
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What do you see in a law firm? A place for tradition? Confusing jargon? Risk aversion? A last resort? Or do you see more? A strategic counsel and client ally. A hotbed of innovation. An ethical employer, trusted advisors, and thought leaders. A top thirty law firm. Here at Weightmans, we See the Possibility in everything. Proudly, one of the UK's most respected and award winning law firms. We believe thinking differently allows us to see the possibilities others don't. We see opportunities, not obstacles. We believe that purpose and profit are reciprocal. In 2023, our income increased by 22% to £126 million with profit increasing to £12.7 million. Merging with RadcliffesLeBrasseur gives us close to 1,500 people across nine offices and we continue to win. We See the Possibility in challenging the status quo. So what does innovation mean to Weightmans? Well, for a start, it's always client-led. It should never be done in a vacuum. Our lawyers are always pushing the boundaries of case law and legislation for the benefits of their clients. So seeing the possibility to innovate in other ways should come naturally to them. As the conflict in Ukraine unfolded, naturally, we were keen to do what we could to support. I was really proud that we were able to support Law School 2.0's 48 hour sprint in aid of Ukraine, aimed at getting teams together to be able to work on some of the legal challenges that had arisen. The successful firm of the future won't be successful just because they can bring a room full of lawyers together with different expertise. They'll be successful because they can bring together cross-functional teams from all parts of the business, able to work together collaboratively and solve clients' problems, not all of which are legal. We See the Possibility in our clients, striving for commercial success through ethical business. We connect and join the dots to make our partnerships more than the sum of their parts. Leveraging our experience and expertise to make connections that others can't. Over the last year, we heard from over 500 clients. And we saw fantastic growth across our segments. And we See the Possibility in our people. We advocate for fairness, trust, and inclusivity. Working collaboratively, knowing we are better as a team. Investing in our people to help them grow in life and at work. Nurturing the next generation of talent. And we love to give back, showing kindness for our communities. We became signatories to the United Nations Global Compact initiative. Our values flow through everything we say and do: radical transparency, teamwork and respect, enterprise. We See the Possibility in everything. From lemons, to lawyers and from eggs, to the environment. Seeing the Possibility has always been in our DNA. It's what sets us apart. In driving our growth and vision to become a top 30 law firm. So we couldn't be more excited because we've got the best people in the industry helping us achieve it. So, thank you to our incredible clients and people for helping us See the Possibility every day.
Meet the early careers team
The early careers team strive to invest quality time and resources to explore employees’ potential, and to ‘See The Possibility’ through the lens of equity, diversity and inclusion. We work hand-in-hand with the business to ensure those who wish to turn their passion into their career, get equal and fair access to opportunities.
We design and implement all early careers recruitment processes and then support our successful applicants through their programmes.
Denise Wright — Early Careers Manager
Denise leads the team and is the expert in all things SQE and legal apprenticeships. She designs and implements new processes and programmes whilst also supporting apprentices and trainees as they progress through our programmes. Denise has invaluable experience in training and coaching which underlines all that she does in the team.
Vicki Aspinall — Early Careers Development Adviser
Vicki's responsibility within the organisation is to support and develop those in their early careers through design and implementation of tailor made training and coaching sessions. These bespoke programmes embed both the soft and technical skills required to best equip the apprentice and trainee for a successful career in law.
Siobhan Jesson and Megan Melia — Early Careers Advisers
Megan and Siobhan work closely with all members of the team but especially help support Denise in the design and implementation of the programmes and recruitment processes. They too help support all of our trainees and apprentices by conducting regular coaching sessions and group catch ups. Along with Denise, they are a first point of contact for apprentices, trainees and team managers for any queries they may have.
Katy Moore Early Careers Coordinator
Katy is responsible for our team email inbox and will often be the first person you hear from in response to a query. Katy also coordinates all of our events and training to ensure that the programmes are delivered effectively.
Please contact the early careers team on earlycareers@weightmans.com, if you have any questions or queries around anything that we do.