We are a European headquartered hub for litigation, transactions and advice throughout the world. We help clients grow in life sciences, technology and other dynamic sectors. We provide advice on all their legal matters and are proud to be different.

We focus on dynamic, IP-rich sectors and have the expertise to solve a broad range of litigation, transactional, and advisory challenges. We have a true cross-disciplinary practice encompassing our renowned IP, competition, regulatory, corporate and commercial, dispute resolution, IT and data protection teams. The strength of each individual practice complements the others to provide a fully integrated and comprehensive service.

The firm runs a number of workshops which offer attendees the chance to find out more about Bristows. These are a great opportunity to assess whether both a legal career, and the firm itself, are the right fit for the individual. Throughout the one-day workshops attendees will take part in a case study and hear about the firm’s core departments, in addition to meeting a range people from across the firm.

Workshops taking place in 2024/25 are as follows:

IP workshop for students and graduates (in person) – 14 November 2024

IP workshop for students and graduates (virtual) – 20 November 2024

Deadline to apply for either IP workshops – 31 October 2024

IP workshop for STEM students and graduates – 4 December 2024

Deadline to apply for STEM workshop – 11 November 2024

IP workshop for first-year undergraduates – 12 June 2025

Deadline to apply for first-year workshop – 31 May 2025.

All of the above workshops will be open for applicants on 5 September 2024.

The firm recruits up to 10 trainees per year. The training contract includes rotations around the firm’s core practice areas, including a guaranteed six-month seat in patent litigation. Other practice areas include commercial IP/IT and data protection; brands, designs and copyright; real estate; corporate, tax and employment; competition; commercial and technology disputes; and regulatory.

All seats are supervised by a partner and trainees work in lean teams with associates, senior associates and partners on each of their matters.

We also offer the opportunity to go on a three-month client secondment with the in-house legal team of a key client. This offers the opportunity to see the client relationship from an in-house perspective.

The 2024 cohort were the first trainee group to undertake the SQE route to qualification. However, if you have already completed the LPC, you will not be asked to take the SQE as well.

Further information regarding the firm's transition to the SQE is available on the firm's trainee website.

The firm do offer legal apprenticeships, along with apprenticeships in the business services groups such as HR, marketing and business development and finance. To find out more visit the apprenticeship page on the main Bristows website.

We are really proud of our long-standing positive attitude, commitment and approach towards inclusion and diversity at Bristows. We were the first city firm to appoint a female joint managing partner (well over 20 years ago now). We work hard to maintain a culture where lawyers from all backgrounds and underrepresented groups thrive and succeed.

As a firm and as individuals we do all we can to treat people fairly and with mutual respect, whether they are colleagues, clients or suppliers. This commitment enriches our work and our working lives, and we absolutely believe it has played a key part in our success over the years.

The firm's inclusion group, led by two partners, has a diverse membership from all areas of the firm and works collaboratively to raise awareness of D&I topics throughout the year to ensure staff have the opportunity to engage and learn about the experiences of people different from themselves.

In addition to this, Bristows partners with organisations including Aspiring Solicitors, IP Inclusive, and the Social Mobility Foundation to work towards increased access to the legal profession for underrepresented communities.

For future trainee solicitors we pay for their PGDL, LPC and SQE fees, if you have already self-funded your PGDL/LPC/SQE we will reimburse you up to what we would pay for our students to attend these courses. We also provide a maintenance grant of £10,000 for the PGDL and £11.000 for the SQE.

• Patent litigation
• Brands designs & copyright
• Commercial IP IT & data protection
• Commercial & technology disputes
• Corporate tax & employment
• Real estate
• Regulatory
• Competition

• Corporate & Commercial

• London
• Brussels
• Dublin

• A4ID
• Waterloo Legal Advice Clinic

• Aspiring Solicitors
• Black Lawyers Matter
• Bright Network
• Educating Matters
• InterLaw Diversity Forum
• Law Society Diversity and Inclusion Charter
• Legal Apprenticeships
• London Living Wage
• Mindful Business Charter
• NOTICED
• PRIME
• Rare Recruitment
• Social Mobility Foundation
• Stonewall
• Working Families