Brown Rudnick LLP - The Inside View

Anyone who’s ever received advice from an elder will have heard the adage ‘birds of a feather flock together.’ It’s normally provided as a warning, but not this time. In fact, we’re thrilled to tell you that the fledgling lawyers who have nested at Brown Rudnick are certainly of the same flock: one built on a love of easygoing camaraderie. So, if you’re a people person, rejoice! “I really liked the sense of community I felt when talking to people at the firm and looking where to go,” beamed one associate when we asked why they chose to start their career at Brown Rudnick, “I loved the people, and that’s what drew me to the firm!” With this sentiment being common among our interviewees, other big draws included an impressive work-life balance, the firm’s impressive clientele, and the attainable path to partnership.

“I really liked the sense of community I felt when talking to people at the firm and looking where to go.”

You might have heard Brown Rudnick’s name in the headlines thanks to its part in a trial involving a certain Pirates of the Caribbean actor, but over at Chambers USA, it’s the firm’s bankruptcy & restructuring work that takes center stage, receiving a standing ovation in its home state of Massachusetts year after year. The firm’s restructuring work, in fact, has even made its way into the Chambers Global guide, and its environment work in Connecticut has been given its flowers too.

The firm’s relatively conservative proportions, including less than 20 junior associates, are by no means a reflection of the firm’s might. In fact, associates appreciated the firm’s scale; “because we’re a leaner firm, the tasks I’m able to get are pretty challenging, which I prefer.” Speaking of the magnitude, Brown Rudnick’s largest offices are in Boston and New York, though it has a further four outposts stateside and another across the pond in London. So, the associates on our list were mostly based in Boston and New York, with a couple working out of DC.

Strategy & Future

Vince Guglielmotti, CEO at Brown Rudnick, shares that the firm’s strategy has “identified our pillars – our core strengths – and we’ve been very diligent in maintaining our market share both through retention and bringing laterals into those spaces.” Those five pillars are global litigation, crisis management, brand & reputation management, life sciences, and technology. As Guglielmotti explains, “We understand and have great clients and market share in those practice areas and industries.... That’s where our continued focus is going to be.”

2024 saw the firm open a new office in Houston, and Guglielmotti details: “We’re growing strategically, bringing in great lawyers that fit our practice areas and culture, and we’ll continue to do that in key practices areas and geographies.”

Read more from our interview with Vince Guglielmotti under the ‘Get Hired’ tab.

The Work

Though some juniors are hired into a specific practice group upon joining the firm, others start as generalists and have some flexibility regarding what kind of work they can get involved in. The firm has two departments – corporate & capital markets and dispute resolution & restructuring – with around 60% of juniors working in groups under the latter umbrella. The groups housing the most juniors across the firm were litigation, white-collar defense, investigations & compliance, and corporate, though these were only home to a handful of associates considering Brown Rudnick’s modest junior intake.

With only a small group of rookies at the firm, work allocation seemed to flow pretty freely. We heard that assignments mostly come from partners because “once you’ve built a reputation, other partners find out about you and pull you into deals.” That said, there’s always the firm’s practice management team to fall back on, as this newbie elaborated, “There’s a formal structure where you can go to practice management and they’ll get you on something, but I tend to work with the same people; I’m constantly busy!”

The firm’s dispute resolution & restructuring department covers bankruptcy & corporate restructuring; white-collar defense, investigations & compliance; commercial litigation; and brand & reputation management. Insiders mentioned working with a range of corporate clients on matters ranging from SEC matters of forfeiture. Sources felt that there is a lot of variety in their work, appreciating the great experiences they’re exposed to through access to exciting work. Initially, rookies are typically tasked with working on research memos and organization tasks, but “wherever I can get involved, my team definitely allows and encourages me to.” Partners will, of course, review everything that juniors produce, but an interviewee explained “I definitely feel very involved in the process. It might be the nature of the work, but I don’t feel like I’m doing too much busy work.” They even shared that the work they’d done as summer associates had been used by partners on a few occasions!

Dispute resolution clients: Fairfax Financial Holdings, Allied Partners, iStar. Represented NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal in defense of a putative federal class action lawsuit over his alleged involvement and endorsement of an NFT project.

“The type of work and support has been quite amazing.” 

In corporate & capital markets, practice groups include finance and IP, as well as general corporate work. The corporate group’s work involves things like fund formation, debt equity, and corporate restructuring, as well as more general transactional work. Interviewees relayed that they “started off doing a lot of smaller jobs like fixing signature pages and stuff like that,” which then led to “summarizing and incorporating partners’ comments and getting into the double-training-wheels-style drafting.” As well as being involved in due diligence and assisting in deal negotiations, a source told us that they appreciated the challenge of some harder tasks: “I’ve been lucky to get really deep into the certain documents and drafting from scratch. The type of work and support has been quite amazing.” A junior did note that it’s important to stay on top of the more basic tasks in the group due to the size of the firm and its small associate intake. “The baby tasks don’t go away because no one’s coming in to do that,” they stated, “Just because you’ve mastered signature pages doesn’t mean you’re doing those. It stacks on top, brick by brick, until someone comes in behind you.”

Corporate clients: QT Imaging, Gunston Ventures, Thunder Power Holdings. Advising Alliance Investments Management in connection with the acquisition of multiple subsidiaries in the health and life sciences field.

Career Development

Associates felt that the firm did a good job helping them get involved, as “the partners are especially hands-on. Many of them take associates to whatever events or meetings they’re going to and fill us in on matters too.” Word on the street was that a lot of the firm’s partners are former summers, and our interviewees found this encouraging: “Since it’s a smaller firm, the path to partnership is a little shorter than at other firms which is really nice to know.” Juniors explained that the firm offers “a lot of opportunities to develop yourself, and I think the firm is very thoughtful and wants to see all their attorneys develop in their careers.” One added, “The firm is always giving us the opportunity to be a sponge and absorb knowledge,” and rookies found their partner and associate mentors to be particularly helpful tools when it comes to career development.

“The firm is always giving us the opportunity to be a sponge and absorb knowledge.”

Hours & Compensation

Billable hours: 1,950 target

Survey respondents at the firm reported working an average of around 49 hours per week. Naturally, we heard that this is dependent on the time of year and the stage of a matter, with a corporate rookie telling us that “January and the fourth quarter are pretty busy, but the summer months are a little slower.” For context, another added, “I’ve had days where it’s been close to zero billable hours and days when it’s been 14 or 15.” During busy periods, “it can be an all-nighter,” warned a second-year associate, “but I’ve probably only pulled three of them.”

Juniors felt that their target of 1,950 was achievable, appreciating that 150 hours can be attributed to pro bono work, inclusion leadership, and business development. Although the firm’s associate base salary sits slightly below market, an interviewee told us, “Sometimes I think I’d want to get compensated at market if I’m really busy, but when things are slower or more normal, I feel like I’m fairly compensated.” The firm’s bonus structure is transparent, we heard, with a market-level bonus available at 1,950 hours and further bonus opportunities at 2,250 and 2,450 hours.

Culture & Inclusion

When we asked insiders what stood out about Brown Rudnick’s culture, they told us that “we all really like each other and try to spend time together to get to know each other.” We heard that the firm’s Boston office has a bi-weekly social, while those in DC have a bi-monthly happy hour where “everybody meets in the conference room for an hour to hang out and have a little drink.” The words “dynamic” and “collaborative” were also thrown around, and interviewees shared that “a lot of people at the firm have personal relationships with each other. There are plenty of people who have been here since they were summer associates,” which juniors noticed and appreciated.

“There are plenty of people who have been here since they were summer associates.”

The firm has a few different affinity groups; sources told us that these groups “provide opportunities for associates to have leadership roles and mentor other incoming associates to engage them in the group.” They also told us that “there’s a big effort to get people involved” in the different groups, and “they send out information about them to make sure people are aware of them and can join.”

Pro Bono

Brown Rudnick’s most junior attorneys were pleased to share that the firm has a lot of pro bono work for them to get involved in, with one explaining that “I did a lot of pro bono work during my first year. It was definitely encouraged and supported, which is a great thing.” They continued, “I think as a whole, Brown Rudnick really encourages their lawyers to get involved in pro bono work.” Associates felt that pro bono gives them a good chance to take on more senior roles and responsibilities within a matter. We heard of interviewees working on various matters, including representing tenants in housing courts, doing corporate work for non-profits, taking on work to seal criminal records for individuals, and KIND cases – “working with juveniles who came over the border and guiding them through the immigration process.”

Pro bono hours

• For all (US) attorneys: 8,792.6
• Average per (US) attorney: 37

Get Hired

The first stage: recruitment on and off campus 

Brown Rudnick hires 2L summer associates directly through the firm’s website when applications open in the spring each year. Summer associates will have the opportunity to work directly in a practice group, receiving maximum exposure and experience on the team.

In 2018, Brown Rudnick established the 1L First Generation Professional Fellowship, aimed at first year law students who are the first in their family to graduate from baccalaureate college and/or the first in their family to join a professional school.  The application process opens in December of each year. 

Top tips: “Brown Rudnick summer associates are those who think outside of the box and bring new ideas to the firm. We are looking for game-changers who demonstrate a true commitment to community service. Applicants who can speak to their personal experience in driving change will be successful.” - Chair of Strategic Growth, Jeffrey Jonas 

Callbacks 

At this stage, applicants meet with a panel of interviewers that include firm leadership, partners from the practice group and associates. The panel interview includes the use of behavioral questions targeting specific competencies; partners may ask questions related to motivation and resilience, whilst associates may ask about the value of inclusion.  

Summer program 

Offers: 3 (2Ls), 1 (1Ls) 

During the ten-week summer program, the recruitment team in conjunction with the partner mentors oversee work allocation to ensure summers are exposed to a broad mix of interesting and top-quality assignments as possible. The pro bono team also assigns pro bono matters and organizes community events. 

Along with skills, project management and competency trainings, practice group leaders host “Strategic Pillar Overview” sessions, where summer associates learn how the firm serves clients in key practices areas and industries. The program is focused on preparing summer associates as they transition from law student to lawyer.  The class is brought together for orientation in New York, and a midsummer retreat in Washington D.C., to help build their cross-office and cross-practice networks within the firm. 

Several summer associates return as junior associates. The firm describes successful summers as those who are self-motivated, proactive, communicative and client-service oriented. Summers are encouraged to meet as many people as possible, whether through an assignment, coffee break or a social event: “Not only is this a great way to build their network, but they will be able to make a more informed decision on their practice preferences and career trajectory.” 

Top tips: "It’s almost impossible to be overly communicative as a summer associate. Take notes, ask questions, keep your assigning attorney up to date on progress, and follow-up as necessary. While some assignments may seem small, they could very well be an important piece in the larger picture.” - Chair of Strategic Growth, Jeffrey Jonas 

Interview with Vince Guglielmotti, CEO

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?

Vince Guglielmotti: Over the last three years we’ve taken a critical deep dive into what we do well. We’ve identified our pillars – our core strengths. – and we’ve been very diligent in maintaining our market share both through retention and bringing laterals into those spaces. Those pillars are global litigation, crisis management (which includes bankruptcy & restructuring, white collar and special situations), brand & reputation management, life sciences, and technology.  We understand and have great clients and market share in those practice areas and industries.  We’ve been very diligent in maintaining our market share both through retention and bringing laterals into those core areas.  That’s where our continued focus is going to be.

CA: Have there been any developments at the firm over the past year that you’d like law students to know about?

Guglielmotti: Yes, there have been a number of great developments! Over the last couple of years, we’ve really focused on our core values.  We identify them as being enterprising, respectful, inclusive, insightful and tenacious. That emphasizes that we’re not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ type of firm, and we give a level of attention to our clients that is more often found at boutiques; that’s led to some great results. We’re very proud of our culture.

We’ve seen record-setting growth for the third year in a row, and that’s because of our teamwork, and our focus on our culture and our clients. Additionally, we’ve opened a new Houston office, where we’re firing on all cylinders with litigation and IP litigation, with a particular focus on oil and gas litigation. We also completely refurbished our New York space, and just moved our DC office to the Dupont Circle neighborhood into a brand-new beautiful space. We’ve really seen how important being in the office is, and we’re building vibrant places to work.  We are also about to open our new office in Los Angeles.

We’ve made significant investments in technology. We’re trying to make life easier for everyone and focus more on the practice of law. We’ve introduced a mobile time app, upgraded to a cloud-based document management system, and brought in an AI-powered e-discovery platform. We’ve increased our state-of-the-art conference rooms, because we’re focused on making our offices great places to work and providing associates with all the necessary tech to provide top-level client service.

CA: Are there any domestic or international events/trendsthat are affecting any of the firm’s practices at the moment? Are there any trends that you think are affecting the business of law firms more generally, and how is that playing out with your firm?

Guglielmotti: We’ve seen a real surge in our restructuring work. We’re doing some of the biggest cases in restructuring, with big brand names like Tupperware and Johnson & Johnson. We’re on the cutting edge of advising on AI, data breaches and other cybersecurity. Our brand & reputation team is working with people like Shaquille O’Neal and Luka Dončić, and our litigation team is representing 100 victims of child pornography and trafficking in the case against Mindgeek/Pornhub and Visa. There’s lots going on across practice groups, and that means there’s great opportunities for associates to get engaged earlier and on smaller staffed teams; to understand clients and make a difference across everything from global litigation, crisis management, brand & reputation management, life sciences, and technology.

CA: What is your firm’s commercial strategy focusing on, and how do you expect the next year to unfold?

Guglielmotti: We are very confident in our strategy. We’ve identified our core pillars, and if you look at what we’ve done by expanding into Houston and Los Angeles, it’s an extension of that focus. We’re growing strategically, bringing in great lawyers that fit our practice areas and culture, and we’ll continue to do that in key practices areas and geographies. 

CA: You told us last year about the firm building out its life sciences offering with BR Bio Advisory Services, how is that going and are there any updates you’d particularly like to note?

Guglielmotti: We’ve doubled the size of our life sciences team over the last year, which has been a great boost. We represented Kate Therapeutics in IP matters in its $1.1 billion sale to Novartis, and we see great engagement in the industry from startups in the life sciences space. BR BioAdvisory Services is doing really well, which is a great service for our clients. It shows our industry knowledge beyond just the law and fits seamlessly with our legal practice in life sciences, so we’re seeing great returns. We advise on every stage of the life cycle for our clients, which is what our clients are looking for.

Inside the Firm

CA: How is the firm evolving to accommodate the needs/expectations of the next generation of lawyers?

Guglielmotti: We’re making sure the tech is moving in line with the expectations of the associates. Associates are getting exposed to some technology in law school, , so we’re working closely with them to ensure that when they hit the ground running at Brown Rudnick, we have everything they’re used to and then some. We’re also making sure our physical spaces are top-notch.

Beyond that, we have a big focus on training and a culture of feedback that’s regular and contemporaneous, which is important for the development of our associates. We are deeply invested in training and development in more formal ways. We have a mid-level retreat every other year, a hugely popular business development series, and business development coaching for associates. It’s a 360 approach to make sure associates feel welcome and comfortable, have the right tools, and are provided with necessary training at all levels of their career.

CA: What’s the firm’s approach to bolstering inclusion?

Guglielmotti: We have a few ways that we’re focused on developing an inclusive community and empowering all our people. We have an ambassador program that matches every associate we hire with an associate ambassador.  The ambassadors are high performing associates who show the junior lawyers the ropes. We have numerous affinity groups too. We’re just launched a family forum, understanding that associates, attorneys, and business professionals have many family-related challenges outside of work, such as caring for an ill relative or an elderly parent.  All the forums are open to everyone, and they allow associates and business professionals to rely on each other for challenges outside of the law.

The Legal Profession

CA: How do you predict the legal profession will change in the next five years? Are there any particular challenges the industry is facing?

Guglielmotti: We’re all grappling with how we deploy tech in a way that is both responsible and ethical.  We’re working diligently every day to ensure that we’re providing the right tools to our lawyers while safeguarding our clients’ confidentiality and their data. We’ve been approaching the tech with an open mind, but at the same time making sure that we’re doing everything appropriately for our clients.

The Fun Bit

CA: What was the first car you owned?

Guglielmotti: A Jeep Wrangler!

CA: What memory/moment has stuck with you from law school?

Guglielmotti: You know Arnold Palmer? He’s a famous golfer.  He spoke at my graduation!