Careers - Summer Associates - FAQs

A. What Thompson Coburn looks for in a summer associate candidate is simple - a future associate. We are looking for candidates who have the ability and motivation to be outstanding attorneys. Generally, that is reflected in strong academic performance and good interpersonal skills. In addition, we find that your activities outside of law school courses are a predictor of your future success and will balance your legal practice. There is a broad range of personalities and life experiences that can combine to make an excellent attorney, and Thompson Coburn is interested in recruiting people with diverse backgrounds and interests.

Q. Does the Firm allow split summers?

A. We find that the summer flies by and six weeks just does not give you the chance to really get to know us and to develop a picture of life as an associate at Thompson Coburn. We know that your choice of a future home is a tough decision, so we do occasionally allow split summers but only with out of town firms. We do require that you spend at least six weeks with Thompson Coburn. We also have a very strong preference that the first half of the summer be spent here so that you get the full benefit of the orientation, training and opening social functions.

Q. What is the interview process and how are callback interviews handled?

A. The majority of Thompson Coburn's recruiting of summer associates begins with on-campus interviewing (OCI) at schools all over the country.

After OCI, we will contact you for an interview at our offices. During the callback, you'll meet with four or five attorneys for about a half-hour each. We make sure that you talk to a few associates to get a good idea of associate life at Thompson Coburn and try to accommodate any practice area interests you may have. For those invited from out of town following an OCI interview, we generally pay for your travel costs.

If you're interested in Thompson Coburn and we're not coming on campus to your school, please send your resume directly to us. We strive to have a diverse summer program and encourage applicants from schools we do not visit.

With any application, we comply with NALP (The Association For Legal Career Professionals) guidelines with respect to offers and deadlines for acceptance.

Q. How does Thompson Coburn handle work assignments?

A. It's hard to choose a practice area when you have had limited exposure to legal practice. Therefore, we have developed a system where you choose assignments from a pool of available work. We encourage you to try projects in a variety of areas. You will not be given busy work; expect to perform billable work for our clients and occasional CLE projects to assist our attorneys in their specialty areas.

Q. Will I have the opportunity to work on any pro bono projects?

A. Thompson Coburn is very proud of our commitment to pro bono work. Summer associates have an opportunity to work on a number of individual pro bono cases, such as those we accept from Legal Services of Eastern Missouri.

Q. What type of training will I receive as a summer associate?

A. Thompson Coburn provides a variety of in-house seminars specifically designed to introduce you to the legal profession and practice at Thompson Coburn. Some of the programs from past summers have included: our annual mock trial, frequent in-house practice area presentations, and presentations by clients and local judges. In addition, you're frequently invited to accompany attorneys to court for arguments and motions, closings, and meetings.

Q. How will I be supervised and evaluated while participating in the summer program?

A. We are committed to making your summer at Thompson Coburn rewarding and enjoyable. In addition to the Recruiting Department, every summer we have a partner and at least two associates who serve as summer coordinators. They are involved in every facet of the summer program, from supervising the project bank to performing midsummer evaluations for each summer associate. For each project, the supervising attorney provides the Employment Committee with a written evaluation of your work. We also maintain a file of all of your written product which is reviewed by the Employment Committee at the end of the summer.

Q. Will I get feedback on my work product throughout the summer?

A. In addition to a formal midsummer evaluation, we strongly encourage every attorney to give detailed feedback on any project you perform. You will find that most attorneys are willing to sit down with you and review your written project or research results in detail. Your mentor is also available to review any and all of your work product and help you get it into final form.

Q. Do I have a mentor assigned to me?

A. Yes. Every summer associate is assigned an associate mentor. Your associate mentor will serve as a valuable sounding board on projects, the Firm, and any questions which may arise. In addition, mentors help you finalize your written work product and help you when you hit a brick wall on a research assignment.

Q. What types of social functions are planned for the summer associates?

A. We plan a variety of structured and informal events because we want you to get to know each other, get to know us and get to know the city you are working in. In St. Louis, activities range from participating on the firm softball team, watching the St. Louis Cardinals play, barbecues at attorneys' homes, a Firm-wide picnic, or an impromptu trek to St. Louis landmark Ted Drewes Frozen Custard.

Q. What does the compensation and benefits package include for summer associates?

A. Summer associates in 2007 will earn $1825 per week, plus a $500 starting bonus and parking.

Q. Will I have a secretary this summer?

A. Summer associates have the same administrative support as any attorney at Thompson Coburn. You will be assigned a permanent Thompson Coburn secretary whom you will share with other attorneys or summer associates. In addition, we have a word processing staff available to help you with your larger projects.

Q. Will I have a computer to use for the summer?

A. We're very proud of the technological capabilities at Thompson Coburn. As a summer associate, you will have a desktop computer that, through our Firm-wide network, allows access to all of our offices, the Thompson Coburn Intranet, the Internet, Westlaw, Lexis, numerous library materials on CD-ROM, and a host of unique applications specifically designed for our system. Our Training Department can help you get up to speed on any programs that are unfamiliar.

Q. How are offers made to summer associates? Do most of us receive offers?

A. The summer associate program is one of our primary sources of new attorneys at Thompson Coburn. Typically, over 90 percent of our summer associates receive offers to join us as an associate following graduation from law school. The Employment Committee makes the hiring decisions based upon evaluation of your written work product, comments from your supervising attorneys for each project, and your intangible contribution to the Thompson Coburn community.