DLA Piper LLP (US) - The Inside View

There aren’t many firms that are bigger than DLA Piper in terms of scale or global impact. The firm has sought to position itself right the epicenter of big business, regulation, finance and tech, and now operates in over 40 countries (with 26 offices spread across the US). That’s a level of expansion that even your sibling who’s managed to build a Monopoly hotel on Boardwalk and Park Place would be jealous of. As you might expect, DLA has built quite a reputation for itself, with top-tier Chambers USA rankings in almost 30 different practices. This includes top nods for its corporate/M&A work in Arizona, Maryland, New Jersey, Texas, and Virginia, as well as strengths across healthcare, IP, investment funds, labor and employment, litigation: general commercial, product liability & mass torts, and real estate to name a few. For those not in the know about our sister’s guide’s ranking and how it works, that’s a performance well worth writing home about.

“Most of my cohort tell me they are in it for the long haul…”

As one associate highlighted,“most of my cohort tell me they are in it for the long haul. It seems to be good place to put down roots.” DLA Piper as we know it today was created around 20 years ago, rising from mergers between a handful of powerhouse UK and US law firms. As a result, the firm takes on a fairly big cohort of junior associates (86 in 2025). New York houses the largest number of junior associates, but there are also a significant number in the likes of Chicago, San Diego and Washington, DC.

Although we don’t recommend emailing them and asking for a selfie, it’s definitely worth mentioning some of star-studded figures that are also involved in more senior roles at the company. These include Senator Richard Burr and ex- UK prime minister David Cameron.

DLA Piper is recognized as a Strong Performer for Junior Satisfaction and a Strong Performer for Mid to Senior Satisfaction in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey. DLA Piper is also recognized as The Elite for Junior Satisfaction in Boston specifically.

Strategy & Future

DLA Piper’s global managing partner, Richard Chesley, highlights the importance of attorneys at the firm acting as partners (with a small p) to their clients: “It's no longer sit there, sit at your desk (virtual or real), and wait for the phone to ring. We need to be looking around the corner. What's coming next for for our clients? What do we need to be prepared for?” Chesley also has strong words for those considering the possibility of AI ‘replacing’ young lawyers: “For us, nothing could be further from the truth... We continue to recruit very large classes out of very elite law schools, and we promote them all into our Associate ranks. We spend enormous effort to promote them within the firm to give them every opportunity they need to advance.”

Read more from Richard Chesley under the ‘Get Hired’ tab.

DLA Piper is recognized as The Elite for AI Integration in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Summer Program

Where summer associates used to be able to dip into work from all over DLA’s offering, summers now apply to specific practice groups they are interested in specializing in. As you might expect, a big part of the work as a summer associate involves legal research on billable work and writing memos. As one put it: “A lot of exposure and observation.” Those in litigation will also take part in trial prep relating to upcoming trials. More substantive tasks are available in a pro bono context, with summers working on family law and veterans discharge upgrade cases.

The Work

While there is no centralized staffing system and it does vary slightly between teams, we heard that partners dish out the lion’s share of the work. The firm also has attorney resource managers available to help guide juniors through the process. In the first year, juniors are not assigned to a particular group, but the work becomes more specialized over time. Litigation and corporate take on the largest portion of junior associates, but groups like finance, investment funds and private equity also take on a good number.

DLA Piper splits the work into two halves: disputes and transactions. The disputes side includes business groups for employment, intellectual property, regulation & government affairs, and litigation. The general litigation practice covers a broad range of business and commercial litigation. In antitrust, for example, because the practice inevitably involves a number of different jurisdictions “it is an opportunity to collaborate with lots of other lawyers in different firms and others in different offices,” one associate told us. There’s plenty of the classic document review for junior associates regardless of where they find themselves, but that comes with opportunities for client contact too, as well as drafting motions and preparing depositions.

Disputes clients: Nike, Chipotle, Tesla. Represented Porsche in a nationwide class action in federal court in Seattle relating to allegedly defective moonroofs in the Macan vehicles.

“…it’s fast paced and intense, but I love the work and working with the clients.”

The transactions side, by contrast, includes business groups for private equity, tax, corporate, real estate and investment funds. A lot of the transactions relate to big financial institutions like banks or private creditors: “It’s a booming market right now,” one associate was quick to highlight of the private credit side, “it’s fast paced and intense, but I love the work and working with the clients.” Here again, there’s plenty of research tasks for junior associates, but the bulk of the work is about ensuring the right documents get to the right parties: “You’ll start with traditional associate work. It’s grunt work, but if you want to take on more, then partners will move you up.”

Transactions clients: Netflix, Allianz, DocuSign. Represented private equity firm Milton Street Capital in the $1 billion sale of Purge Rite Intermediate to Vertiv Holdings.

Culture

As one of the firm’s NYC attorneys explained, DLA Piper’s office in the city is “uniquely friendly. It’s a place where associates are respected and appreciated.” So, what does that actually mean in practice? “Partners and associates always say thank you and appreciate your input.” This atmosphere extends beyond the New York office too, with another associate describing “no awkward smiles in the hallway! Everyone knows everyone.” Last year, all the firm’s associates went to the Americas conference, which provided the opportunity to meet, socialize, and understand the firm’s strategy. 

“At first it's intimidating, but you soon realize everyone is just a human and working together to get the job done.”

One interviewee highlighted that DLA has a “great culture of genuinely investing into your career. My personal mentor has been game changing.” We heard too that partners go out of their way to explain things in significant detail, so “you won’t be unsure what’s going on.” And if in doubt, “you can always pick up the phone and call. At first it's intimidating, but you soon realize everyone is just a human and working together to get the job done.” There are opportunities for juniors to build friendships too with regular opportunities to hang out outside of work such as specific holiday parties and food events. We also heard stories of fellow associates attending each other’s weddings. Some offices (though not all), also spoke of happy hour cultures and team specific meals out.

DLA Piper is recognized as a Strong Performer for Culture in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Career Development

Irrespective of how they view their chances of making partner, all the associates we spoke to felt like DLA Piper was a good place to base themselves in the long run. Many of the associates highlighted how good the internal programs were both for career networking and making new friends at the firm. “There’s always the opportunity to discuss and debrief why we’re making this change or doing this,” one associate explained, “pick up the phone, ask the questions.” The firm also offers a number of different formal training courses in the shape of multi-day programs. That said, it was the more informal side that really stood out: “I had great feedback from senior associates on my work. They spent two hours walking me through my first few assignments.”

“There’s always the opportunity to discuss and debrief why we’re making this change or doing this. Pick up the phone, ask the questions.”

DLA Piper also has a dedicated program intended to track people into becoming partner, named catalyst. For those who don’t necessarily have their sights set on becoming a partner, the general consensus was that the firm is very accepting of it: “There’s two sides to it,” one junior explained, “if you want to be partner, there’s the opportunity. But people also come to get the skills to go in-house. The firm will help you move towards that role.”

Pro Bono

Regardless of whom you speak to, it’s pretty clear that pro bono is a big part of life at DLA Piper. “There are a million different opportunities you can either do or seek out,” one junior told us, with previous examples ranging from upgrading veterans’ discharges to helping felons with spent convictions transition back. Of course, pro bono at the firm brings with it the opportunity for those in more junior roles to get exposure to more complex work than they might elsewhere, essential for developing skills, but it also forms a not insignificant part of the bonus structure (more on that shortly).

Pro bono hours

• For all US attorneys: More than 120,000
• Average per US attorney: 63.3

DLA Piper is recognized as an Excellent Performer for Pro Bono in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Hours & Compensation

Billable hours: 2,000 target

There’s no doubt about it, there’s a bit of a reputation that comes with BigLaw, but DLA Piper’s associates were quick to point out that it’s not always the pressure cooker you fear it might be: “This devil isn’t that scary of a devil!” one told us, “it can at times be like a 9-5, but knowing that you might go back online later.” DLA associates are given a target of 2,000 hours which is broken down into 1,850 hours of billables and 150 hours of additional activities like pro bono, business development, training, and recruitment. We heard that out of the 150 hours, pro bono will often make up around 60. Obviously, during peak times, the typical junior associate experience is unlikely to be in step with a 9-5, with 10-hour days seemingly not uncommon during times when the company needs everyone to pull together.

The basic pay structure at DLA Piper follows a lockstep system. Associate bonuses are paid out after meeting the 2,000-hour requirement. We heard that this does come with challenges, in cases where associates hit the pro bono cap early on or good work fell just below the threshold, but we were told that partners want you to make your bonus and will help to push you to getting there. Interviewees highlighted that there were structures in place for additional hours above 2,000, but this wasn’t common among junior associates. Most associates described the bonus structure as “fair” or “competitive.”

Whilst working in the office seems to be encouraged, juniors told us that there was no stigma around remote working. The general expected in office attendance is three days a week, but this quota can differ from team to team. Interviewees also told us that occasional exceptions where needed wouldn’t cause any problems. 

Get Hired

The first stage: Recruitment on and off campus  

“DLA Piper considers its summer associate program one of the most important initiatives the firm undertakes,” said John Hamill, National Recruiting Partner at DLA Piper. “We seek students who have demonstrated a high academic performance, relentless engagement in their chosen endeavors, and a willingness to engage in hard but rewarding work. We also look for strong records of accomplishment and leadership.” 

DLA Piper posts all summer associate openings to its careers page and invites students from any law school to apply. Lawyers from across DLA Piper’s offices participate in the initial interviews. 

“The firm has partners or teams of partners and associates (often alumni) conduct the initial interviews,” said Stacy Silverstone, Chief Talent Acquisition Officer. She noted that questions are typically designed to “allow us to go beyond the facts on a resume and discover and confirm the candidate’s abilities and talents, helping ensure candidates are evaluated equally.”  

Recruitment: Key considerations

“Look for opportunities to engage with the firm outside of formal interviews,” said John. “For example, DLA Piper hosts DLA Piper Day in early January. This is an opportunity to see one of our offices and network with DLA Piper lawyers. We also host a variety of receptions around the country throughout the year.”

“We recruit based on the structure of our major practice groups. Candidates should find out as much about us and our practice areas as they can – through our website and social media, by speaking with our attorneys and alumni, and by asking their school career services office. We realize that deciding whether to interview with a firm or accept an offer is an important decision, so we want candidates to feel they have as much information as possible,” said Stacy.

John added, “Our interviewers aim to get to know you beyond your resume. Focus on giving them a sense of your life experiences that will help you be a successful lawyer and contributor to our firm.”

Callbacks  

At this stage, candidates meet with members of their desired practice group and with lawyers in the geography in which they intend to work.

Stacy noted that the firm's focus at this stage "is really on getting as complete a picture of the candidates as we can."  

John encourages candidates to be authentic. “The callback interview is a chance for us to get to know the candidates and for them to get to know us.”

Summer program  

John noted that summer associates at DLA Piper “will participate in robust training programs that will enable them to gain new skills and experiences during the summer, in ways that their law schools typically do not afford them. Summer associates will have the opportunity to contribute to meaningful client projects across cutting-edge practices and sectors. They also will be encouraged to devote meaningful time to pro bono work.”  

He stressed that “it is equally important that summer associates spend time engaging with each other and with lawyers in their office and practice group.”

Summer associates are assigned advisors, readers to review their written products, and work coordinators. Stacy said the firm is committed to supporting individuals’ development during the summer and beyond.

“The highlight of our program is our annual Summer Associate Academy,” John said. That two-and-a-half-day event brings together summer associates from around the country, allowing them to meet firm leaders, participate in training sessions, and build relationships that will last beyond the summer program. 

Summer program: Key considerations

“We encourage summer associates to engage with the summer program as much as possible,” Stacy said. “By that, we mean try to be present each day. Take advantage of opportunities for informal lunches and coffees. Seek out connections with lawyers, partners, and business professionals and participate fully in the training opportunities offered.”

John said, “Throughout the interview stages, interviewers are looking for individuals who are driven by challenges and actively embrace a culture of collaboration and excellence.”

Interview with Rick Chelsey, global managing partner

Commercial strategy, market position and trends

Chambers Associate: How would you define your firm’s current position and identity in the legal market? What differentiates your firm from your peer firms in the market?

Rick Chesley: I think it's a combination of a focus on people, a focus on talent, and, most importantly, a focus on our clients – and doing that at what I would call “global at scale.” Looking at our business from the US side: We're a bit different from many of our competitors in that we have a broader geographic footprint, but, more importantly, we have a broader practice footprint which allows us to serve our clients in virtually all aspects of their legal needs.

This year, as part of our continued focus on the world at large, we integrated our Canadian operation into the US, bringing 300 lawyers into the US side of the business. I think we're signaling to the market the importance of being global at scale and continuing to align ourselves even closer with our colleagues overseas.  I do think, from a differentiation standpoint, it's a combination of who we are, what we do, and where we do it.

I also think the youth of the firm is really important for people to understand. The 20th anniversary of DLA Piper, as we know it, was only last year. Obviously, there were predecessor firms, but the firm as a whole is 20 years old, and I think that youth differentiate us. I think we've got a lot more creativity, and we've got a lot more of a focus on the future, and this allows us to be nimble.

Last year, for example, started off with enormous headwinds, geopolitical tensions, trade policies, and the tariff regime. The impact that had on our corporates was enormous, but, because of the depth of our practice and our business, we were able to bring deep knowledge and experience to the fold. That means our large government regulatory team, our trade team, our tariff team, and our government contracting teams were able to bring those resources to our clients to help them during enormous exigencies. This also allows us to better embed the firm with our clients.

This year, we brought in Lord David Cameron as a Consultant to the firm, along with Nick Burns from The Cohen Group (which is affiliated with the firm) and Senator Richard Burr, who has enormous insights on the US trade and political dynamic. Putting that group in front of our clients with our Partners is not only exciting, but it’s really cutting edge, and that's something that very few firms can match.

CA: Are there any specific developments that have happened at DLA Piper over the past few years that you'd like to highlight to students?

Chesley: I’d firstly emphasize that we’re recruiting top talent across the firm and accelerating its development to meet their own high capabilities. That means top talent at the Partner level, at the Consultant level, and at the Associate level. We bring our newer lawyers on, mentor them, train them, and develop them. This starts from day one, when they come in as a Summer Associate, and continues all the way through when they make a run for partnership through our Catalyst program. I think our continuum of support for our junior lawyers really separates us from the pack. The firm is organized into two verticals: Disputes and Transactions, and ten practice groups feed up to these verticals. This means we’ve got depth of experience across ten different practice areas, and that allows us to better cross-pollinate and cross-sell our opportunities. It's also an enormous opportunity for lawyers to get a much better insight into a large firm at much earlier stages in their careers than ever before.

I’d secondly come back to the idea of “global at scale.” We’re continuing to focus on the key money centers in an increasingly complicated global economy.

I'd also focus on innovation. We're very focused on our commitment to innovation, and we received a number of innovation awards. And that's not just AI – it's innovation at all levels.CA: Are there any domestic or international events that are currently affecting the firm's practices? These might be legal, economic, political, or social events.

Chesley: All of them. Every one of them. If you look at how the tariff regime consumed our clients, that's why we have a set of tariff professionals. We put them in front of our clients and tell them how to navigate those. There are also shifting sands when it comes to how the government operates. All of those impact our clients and our people. We've got clients who have massive contracting relationships with the government. How do we deal with those? We have a government contracting team.

I think it's really important that we, as lawyers (and that's everyone from our first-year Associates to our most senior Partners), understand the business, political, cultural, and legal issues our clients are facing. We're no longer just called on to provide legal advice – we are true counselors to our clients, and I think that's one of the biggest shifts. It’s our responsibility to give our lawyers the tools to meet their needs.CA: What would you say your firm's commercial strategy is focusing on, and how do you expect it to unfold over the next year?

Chesley: I come back to global at scale and depth at scale. I think both of those are critical for us. We probably are as deep as any firm in terms of the number of practices we have, but that's where our clients are. Continuing to make sure we have the disciplines necessary to serve our clients is one of the key commercial issues we need to address.  We also have the depth of knowledge in the places where our clients are operating. Obviously, it’s not just the US, it's not just Canada, it's not just the Americas – it's global. Our commercial strategy next year will be to make sure that we have those resources available to our clients.

I’d also like to emphasize that we now have to look around the corner for our clients. It's no longer sit there, sit at your desk (virtual or real), and wait for the phone to ring. We need to be looking around the corner. What's coming next for our clients? What do we need to be prepared for? That's probably the biggest change I've seen in the last two or three years, and it's one that I expect will continue, just due to the massive uncertainty in the markets for the foreseeable future.CA: Could you tell us about DLA Piper’s Catalyst program.

Chesley: The Catalyst program is a one-year program for our most senior Associates. It's a program that really gives them the stepping stone toward partnership.  Our Partner-eligible Associates and Of Counsel participate in this process. They are given a lot of skillset training on how to become a Partner.  It's not necessarily substantive training by the time they get to Catalyst. They're all already deeply knowledgeable in their field and at their trade, but it's really important to train people how to become a Partner, and we've seen enormous benefits from doing so. The performance of our first- and second-year Partners this year was nothing short of outstanding.

I don't attribute all of it to Catalyst, but I do attribute it to preparing them to become a Partner. It's no longer the case that you put in your seven, eight, or nine years – you become a Partner, and you continue with what you're doing. The demands of being a Partner, even a new Partner, to firms such as ours are enormous. You need to give lawyers the tools they need to not just meet those expectations, but to exceed them. It has proven to be enormously valuable to us and to them, and we're seeing the results. Our lawyers are trained substantively from their earliest days at the firm and given the tools and pathways to succeed. Whether they're a Transactions lawyer or a Disputes lawyer, it starts during the summer. This continues when they’re Associates, and they join us at a couple of firm-wide training programs and many bespoke practice-area sessions. Here, they learn the business and start to learn the substance of where they sit. For us, dedicating the time and energy into these cutting-edge programs is critical.

Once people become Partners, they continue in these programs. Back in the old days, the thought was, “Here you go. Here's a paddle and a boat. Good luck going up or down the river.” That’s a fool's errand right now. We need to get people the support they need to excel. We have development programs that continue for the first several years of partnership. In addition to this, we have an Emerging Leaders program for those of our new partners who are showing the most accelerated potential.  They spend a lot of time with our leadership team, and we give them the tools so they can become future leaders of the firm. Those who have graduated from that program have excelled here.

We're seeing the real benefits of this type of process. Our lawyers follow a multi-stage career path. There's no rigid timeline. There are different stages of being an Associate. We break them into a two-phase model of Associate and Senior Associate. The training and the mentoring programs really follow those stages. We emphasize three core competencies: lawyering excellence, client service excellence, and professional and personal initiative. All of these are supported by the programs.

CA: Have you had any feedback from people that are on these training programs? How have they found them?

Chesley: Yes, we get feedback all the time. We’re in the process of finishing our year, and we're working on our compensation and bonus system. We speak to the Partners and those who have gone through these programs. You not only see it, but you hear it when you speak to them. The feedback we're getting is both qualitative as well as quantitative.

In terms of the importance of it: It's even more important today. We've got lawyers in more than 20 offices, and we still have a lot of people who work partially or even fully remotely. It's really important to bring people together in these programs and make sure they're able to develop together and develop relationships. That’s just another benefit of doing these programs and dedicating significant resources to training and mentoring efforts.

CA: When you spoke with us last time, you said that regulatory work and AI were sectors you expected to thrive during 2025. Were there any sectors that performed well this year for DLA Piper that were maybe slightly unexpected?

Chesley: From an industry sector standpoint, the tech sector did extremely well. Financial services, which has a strong tie to regulatory, was extremely strong and busy.

In terms of other practices that were very busy for us last year: Private equity was very strong in the investment funds business. Both the LP and the GP side was very strong. We have a multi-faceted finance business, and that was also strong.

As the year went on, it picked up dramatically on the Transactions side. The Disputes side of the business was strong but not as constant, I would say. We're starting to see more and more Disputes work come out of the regulatory regimes, and we’re seeing a lot more work there, as a lot more corporations are under stress and strain.

We won't report our numbers just yet, but we will end the year with a record financial year, and I think that really shows the strength of the firm’s strategy.

Inside the FirmCA: How is the firm evolving to accommodate the needs and expectations of the next generation of lawyers?

Chesley: We have an enormous range of well-being initiatives. We've been supportive of that even before COVID-19. So, you know that's something we're very focused on. We like people in the office three days a week, but we also accommodate hybrid arrangements depending on the needs of the team. I think we will continue to see more people coming into the office, and that’s what we're looking for. Being in the office, if it's an enormous stress or strain, is not productive. It's not helpful. But, when we need to be there for all the things we're talking about and, most importantly, for our clients, we're there.

We will continue to support our lawyers from the most junior to the most senior in whatever it is they need in these efforts.

The Legal ProfessionCA: Thinking about the ways in which the legal profession is developing, what's one skill that you've learned in your career that you think is important for young attorneys to learn?

Chesley: Be flexible. Being strident or being too regimented in an ever-evolving industry will not help your career. It will not help your employer or your firm, and it will not help your clients.

I think it’s also important to know when to get help. We live in a much more complex world right now, and that's one of the things we bring to the table for all of our lawyers and our clients: Know where to get the support you need. There are so many unique issues that come up. We are truly fortunate to have professionals in virtually all of these fields, so we know where to go. I tell people it's a long race, it's not a sprint. Be patient, be flexible, and know the resources that you have because this is not an individual sport, this is a team sport, and you have to approach it that way.

The Fun Bit

CA:When you were back in law school, did you have an easy meal that you turned to after you’d had a long day studying?

Chesley: A big plate of nachos. That was my favorite. Cheese, jalapeño pepper, sour cream.

CA: What was the first concert you went to?

Chesley: The Eagles.CA: Is there anything else that you wanted to communicate to students?

Chesley: I’d like to use this opportunity to say that we are really focused on our recruiting efforts. We want you hear and we want to work together with you to give you robust mentoring, training, and opportunity.  We know there’s a lot of concern out there that somehow AI is going to overtake the profession at the earlier years, but for us, nothing could be further from the truth. We are focused on you and your development into topflight high performing lawyers.

We continue to recruit very large classes out of very elite law schools, and we promote them all into our Associate ranks. We spend enormous effort to promote them within the firm to give them every opportunity they need to advance. That doesn't necessarily mean that they will all stay here at the firm — meaning that we're very happy when people choose to go to clients, to the government, to education, and even to other firms (that happens). Our goal is to really give them the best experience, training, and knowledge to be a skilled practitioner and to give back (whether that’s to clients, communities, or elsewhere). That really is our mantra, and we're going to continue to abide by that.