Crowell & Moring

Our Survey Says

VAULT’S VERDICT:

Crowell & Moring looks for candidates who fit its independent, friendly, and non-hierarchical culture, often hiring from DC-area schools. The culture is also social, with attorneys and staff attending weekly on-site happy hours and organizing organic events on their own. Partners and associates work together on small, leanly staffed teams, with partners encouraging associates to share their opinions and listening to them. The partnership shares financial updates at an annual state-of-the-firm meeting. The firm offers training in general areas and assigns formal mentors to new associates, and partners are known to step up to train associates on the specific skills they need. Associates appreciate the firm’s flexible hybrid work schedule, which lets them choose when and where they work provided that the work gets done. They also like that Crowell & Moring provides options for its billable hours requirement: Associates can choose a 2,000-hour track, 1,900-hour track, or balanced-hours track with a lower requirement. Up to 100 hours of pro bono work is creditable to the requirement, with the potential to include more hours. Associates say that the firm pays slightly below market, a difference they can recoup with a generous bonus model that rewards exceeding billable hours requirements. Making equity partner is a realistic goal, and associates say the process is transparent. Non-equity partner and counsel roles are available too, as are strong exit opportunities in the government and in-house with clients. Some of the firm’s top perks include 40 hours of billable PTO and free counseling.