Cooley

• “During my Summer, I worked on a variety of projects, including drafting updated public company documents, drafting memos, attending conferences to take notes, attending litigation strategy meetings, and putting together proof charts. Overall, I feel like I was treated as a real associate over the summer (minus the expectations) and that my contributions were appreciated.”
• “I had several substantive assignments during my summer, which focused heavily on research and writing. With at least a week of training and orientation, I think Cooley did a good job of making summer associates feel supported. There are also plenty of opportunities for shadowing motions and oral arguments.”
• “Training was very thought-out and well-rounded; assignment portal for assignments was super helpful in making sure we were getting a good variety of assignments.”
• “The training was fairly thorough. The first week of the summer was dedicated to training, and we had additional summer associate/practice area trainings throughout the summer. The work assignments gave us a flavor of what actual associate work looked like, including research, drafting, and some discovery response assignments.”

• “Our summer class had a lot of fun. We had social events planned every week, with lunches and activities scattered throughout. We would also attend informal happy hours with attorneys and administrative staff to promote camaraderie. As a summer class, we would also make time to go to beach, play pickleball, or have host an impromptu ping-pong tournament in the office.”
• “The firm organized a lot of fun activities, including kayaking, a hike, a beach picnic, a happy hour. They even let us organize our own trip to a baseball game.”
• “The firm does a great job of integrating summer associates with the firm through its social events. The events were not only fun but also planned to foster a sense of community and collaboration. The firm also planned some events for only summer associates, such as its Seascape retreat, where I was able to foster close relationships with the other summer associates in the office.”
• “Social aspects were encouraged and took various forms really getting to know partners and associates in the office, having partner and associate mentors, being encouraged to connect with attorneys in different offices. The outings were of high quality as well.”

• “The firm has central staffing, but a lot of people still reach out directly to partners and associates to get work, and building social relationships with partners to obtain work is still very important.”
• “On the whole, the summer was mostly reflective of practice at Cooley. However, my impression during the summer was that cross-office work was common and encouraged, which I believe has subsided since then. I have also had more visibility into the large-scale investigations of tech platforms Cooley tends to handle, which are not projects that summers typically take on.”
• “Honestly pretty similar. Definitely more work, though it is a lot more rewarding to see a litigation matter evolve over the course of months instead of just 10 weeks. I also enjoy the teamwork aspect of being an associate, which I experienced less of as a summer associate due to the nature of only being around for 10 weeks”
• “My experience has been fairly in line with what I expected and experienced as a summer associate. I was able to choose my practice area, the nature of the work I was given, and have worked with the partners I expected. Work-life balance has been better than I anticipated.”

Cooley’s summer program gives participants an unfiltered introduction to life and practice at the firm. It enables them to experience Cooley’s commitment to providing extraordinary legal services in a professional and collaborative environment. Our program provides opportunities for our summer associates to interact with each other locally and firmwide as a class, which creates bonds that go beyond the summer program. Constructive feedback is shared at the conclusion of each assignment and in formal mid- and end-of-summer feedback sessions. Assigned mentors ensure that each summer is integrated into the firm over the course of the program.

With real assignments, hands-on skills training, participation in practice group meetings, and feedback from Cooley lawyers, summer associates can expect to get a real sense of what it means not only to practice at Cooley but also to “Be Cooley.”