Jenner & Block

• “I had meaningful work assignments which felt like I was actively contributing to the team, despite only being a summer. I got feedback relatively quickly, and partners made the effort to reach out to me and check on me [and] on my workload.”
• “Summer associates are assigned to one case team for the duration of their summer, which I think really helps to integrate summer associates into the case team, and give them access to substantive, important work. In addition to that case assignment, summer associates can take on more discrete projects on other matters. This combination allows summers to try out many areas of practice, while making meaningful connections with attorneys at the firm.”
• “All of my summer associate assignments were something that a junior associate would have been doing if I wasn't there, so I never felt like I had busy work. We also got a lot of formal training, plus any time I had to do a new assignment, the person assigning it to me gave me samples to work from. I got feedback regularly on my work.”
• “I received substantive research and writing assignments, and got helpful, thoughtful feedback from upper-level associates, and sometimes partners, throughout the summer.”

• “The summer class is small, which makes it easy to make friends and form a tight group. I really valued feeling like we were one cohesive unit.”
• “There was a good balance of activities focused on bonding within our class, as well as opportunities to meet associates and partners.”
• “The small size of the summer associate class made it easy to get to know others in my summer cohort, and the firm did a great job of providing weekly social events even though our summer was fully remote. Partners and associates were very present, and available for coffee, chats, etc.”
• “Jenner planned many fun events for our summer class, and made a point to show summer associates different parts of Chicago, which I (and others who had not previously lived in Chicago) really appreciated. The partners and associates showed a genuine interest in getting to know the summer associates.”

• “I was amazed by how friendly and down the earth the attorneys are, from the junior associates to the managing partners.”
• “My expectations have been well met. The work is challenging and rewarding, the firm culture is strongly progressive, with a real focus (not lip service) on pro bono work. Jenner walks its talk, rather than presenting only its good face to summer.”
• “I thought that the pro bono commitment and the comments associates had about the firm easing us in for the first year might just be lip service. I prepared myself for a rude awakening once the ‘real’ work started. But I truly do feel that the firm did/does a great job easing us into lawyer life and training us, and I do feel that the firm as a whole operates on the understanding that doing substantive pro bono work is excellent training. I spend about half of my time on pro bono (though that varies from associate to associate), and all of that counts towards my billable hours the first year.”

• “Attending a Chicago Cubs game in the firm's box, and ‘neighborhood night,’ where the summer class split into groups for dinner at different Chicago neighborhoods, then met together at the end of the night.”
• “Pizza making class!”
• “Bob Ross style painting with wine night.”

Our Summer Associates bond at baseball games, comedy shows, and city-specific events (from architectural boat tours to Broadway shows) but the real value of the summer program comes from the opportunity to learn the “Jenner way,” and see first-hand what makes our firm so special. As an organization filled with smart people who take their work—but not themselves—seriously, we welcome our summer associates with handpicked assignments and the chance to explore our different practices—from cybersecurity and blockchain to voting rights, antitrust, and government investigations (to name a few). Summer associates play an integral role across the firm by drafting briefs, preparing for depositions or trials, and doing the legal research and analysis we need to guide our clients. We don’t yet know which legal issues our next summer associates will be tackling, but we can promise that the work, like everyone at Jenner, will be substantive, interesting, and engaging.