Brown Rudnick LLP - The Inside View

Writing off smaller firms like Brown Rudnick? You may be in for a Rud awakening. Brown Rudnick might be leanly staffed, and on the smaller end of the BigLaw scale, but don’t let its size fool you; the firm is consistently breaking into the legal spaces that larger firms once controlled. In particular, for those aspiring associates who fancy themselves to have a real knack for bankruptcy and restructuring, or for environmental law, Brown Rudnick is definitely not a firm to ignore, as the Chambers USA guide gives its departments in these areas tip top marks. As one associate made clear, “The firm is a good size. It’s not intimidating, but it’s big enough to have a national and international presence.” Indeed, the firm’s lawyers are spread across seven US locations, as well as an office in London, although its largest cohort of associates continue to be found in New York.

"...at Brown Rudnick everyone was friendly and it’s stayed that way..."

In keeping with the firm’s efficient ethos, Brown Rudnick associates wasted no time in recounting the responsibility and opportunities given to them right from the word go. “Ifyou’re trying to go to a firm and just repay your loan, this isn’t the place,” we were told, as “this is a firm for someone who wants to be challenged.” Confirming this, another associate highlighted that there “isn’t 2-3 years of hand holding at this firm. This also isn’t a place where you get given make-busy work.”  Nonetheless, whilst Brown Rudnick is certainly a firm that will allow you to reap the benefits of your own efforts, its commitment to being a supportive environment was also apparent from the earliest stages. “My other interviews were very intense, but at Brown Rudnick everyone was friendly and it’s stayed that way,” one associate recalled, adding that this “totally swayed my decision.”

Brown Rudnick is recognized as a Strong Performer for Junior Satisfaction and a Strong Performer for Mid to Senior Satisfaction in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Strategy & Future

When we speak to Brown Rudnick’s CEO, Vince Guglielmotti, he is quick to confirm that the firm’s small, elite teams are at the center of its pitch to associates. He is confident that, relative to many rivals, “we're leaner and more efficient, which allows associates to work directly with partners and to be given legal work that challenges themselves.” He’s also happy to buck the trend towards large mergers consolidating parts of the legal market. “Brown Rudnick's size and approach to client service is an advantage,” he tells us, since “it allows us to be more nimble, to have fewer conflicts, and to deliver a more personalized client service.”

Nonetheless, this doesn’t mean that Brown Rudnick isn’t interested in growth. Indeed, it’s just followed up its recent expansion to Houston with another new office in LA, and Guglielmotti notes that the firm will continue to use lateral hires to strengthen its presence there and elsewhere. The key to balancing all this growth with retaining Brown Rudnick’s boutique-style atmosphere is being “highly disciplined,” he tells us, and ensuring that new projects stay focused on the firm’s key pillars: crisis management (including bankruptcy), technology, life sciences, global litigation, and brand and reputation management. Its emphasis on these areas brings additional advantages for associates. “We also live and breathe technology and entrepreneurship,” Guglielmotti says; “Our clients include many creative investors who take smart risks, and the associates are exposed to those types of clients very early on.”

Read more from Vince Guglielmotti under the 'Get Hired' tab.

Brown Rudnick is recognized as a Strong Performer for AI Integration in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Summer Program

Associates highlighted that the work they undertook during their summer program was substantive and varied; for example, one associate recalled working on establishing an LLC, a patent case, and also on pro bono matters. Candidates can list primary and secondary practice area preferences when applying, although in any case, they will get the chance to rotate amongst different practice groups over the course of the program. According to associates, the summer is a great time to be at Brown Rudnick; over the course of the program, the frequency of social events at the firm notably increases.

The Work

Work at Brown Rudnick can be dished out in two ways: either through the firm’s centralized allocation system, or through partners directly. At the beginning of each week, associates fill out a form that indicates their availability to partners and work coordinators.  We’ve heard that these partners and coordinators are very receptive to what is said via the forms, and that if you indicate you are busy, they generally won’t ask you to take on any more work.  The centralized system is primarily used in associates’ first two years at the firm, after whichthere is a transition away from working on one-off assignments. Thereafter, “if there’s someone at the firm working on something you’re interested in, you can reach out,” as one associate put it, noting that “people are open to adding you to the team.”

Given the importance of partners for most work allocation, the relationship you foster with them naturally has a large impact on the matters you undertake.Being in the office and talking to partners helps associates propel themselves into the work that interests them; “This is a firm where you get work from being in and seeing what’s going on,” we were told. The firm’s smaller size also allows associates to work intimately with partners in ways that associates at larger firms may not be able to. “My friends at other firms find it crazy that I work so much with partners,” another interviewee told us. “I work on some cases where it is just me and a partner,” they explained further, adding that “I feel very involved with the case, and it feels like I’m just going to the partner for the major decisions.”

Of course, the extent to which partners are involved in dishing out work won’t be for everyone. One insider warned that “if you’re someone who really likes structure and guidelines, you won’t necessarily get that here.” CEOVince Guglielmottiagrees that “the associates who succeed at Brown Rudnick are the ones that are excited by the opportunity to learn quickly, take ownership, and understand how they can improve.”

Brown Rudnick is recognized as a Strong Performer for Work Allocation & Autonomy in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Associates are largely concentrated in the firm’s New York and Boston offices, and the largest practice groups are commercial litigation and bankruptcy and restructuring.  One commercial litigation associate described their typical tasks as spanning “everything from doc reviews to organizing case files, meeting and conferring with opposing council, writing research for issues that have come up on cases, and responding to transactional clients who may not have a case active but have a question.” They continued, “my favorite cases are breach of contract cases,” although “every case has its own unique factual background!”  In In terms of the industries and areas that commercial litigation juniors get to work on, associates are reportedly not siloed into narrow specialisms; one source told us that they were seen as a “utility player to a number of practice groups.”

General commercial litigation clients: AT&T, Fairfax Financial Holdings, Allied Partners. Represented over 200 victims, including around 50 minors who were victims of child pornography, rape, and trafficking, in a lawsuit against Pornhub’s parent company Aylo (formerly MindGeek).

The firm’s bankruptcy and restructuring department works to aid large, distressed companies and those in Chapter 11 proceedings. One associate told us that being in this practice group “allows you to engage in some really creative legal work.” Bankruptcy and restructuring associates often receive work from a number of offices across the country, which is something they particularly enjoyed. “I like seeing how different circuits apply law,” one told us. As well as working for the distressed firms, Brown Rudnick also often acts for the creditors committee.This is “incredibly rewarding,” we heard from one junior, as “I feel like I’m fighting for the underdog.”

Bankruptcy and restructuring clients: 23 and Me’s official equity committee, Stoli Group’s official committee of unsecured creditors, Red River Talc’s official committee of talc claimants. Successfully negotiated a settlement agreement on behalf of Tupperware’s official committee of unsecured creditors (UCC) creating the conditions for sale.

Culture

“You’ll do well here if you’re somebody who can carefully delineate professionalism whilst also being able to laugh.”

Brown Rudnick associates were quick to quash the idea of there being a sense of cutthroat competition amongst peers. “Everyone in my practice group and other practice group has been awesome,” one told us. “They’ve reached out and checked in.” Associates instead observed that Brown Rudnick is a firm where your personality can really shine through. “Your character is really important,” remarked one associate. “It’s a small firm; you’re working with a smaller group of people all of the time, so it’s a real relationship-based experience.” Another told us that “you’ll do well here if you’re somebody who can carefully delineate professionalism whilst also being able to laugh,” as “it’s important to know what’s appropriate for a 7pm dinner and an 11am meeting.”

The firm’s close-knit culture also extends beyond peer-to-peer collaboration to newbies’ interactions with more senior colleagues. “I’ve never been shaking in my boots speaking to anyone,” one associate laughed, and another relayed that “I feel very comfortable calling up a senior associate if I have a question; I never feel like I’m bothering them.” The senior partners will also make sure that you take time off; after a hearing, teams will go out for drinks, while practice groups often have their own socials and there are catered events around the holidays. For example, Vince Guglielmotti highlighted the retreat held in New York for mid-level associates, which has a focus on developing their business development knowledge and other skills.

The number of days you are expected to be in office varies by practice group, but it will normally be around three days a week. Associates gave us the impression that Brown Rudnick are keen on their associates being in office, and we did hear some associates say that they would like an increased level of flexibility regarding their remote hours.  By the same token, however, we spoke to many associates who actively exceed the office-hours quota. We heard that when people are in the office, “Tuesday through Thursday is lively.” And, at the very least, you’ll certainly feel hydrated while you’re there; according to one associate, “Nespresso is flowing, sodas are flowing, and there’s always snacks available.”

Brown Rudnick is recognized as an Excellent Performer for Culture in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Career Development

According to our sources, the firm is “willing to invest significantly into the associates it expects to excel.” There is a formal curriculum of training sessions and seminars for associates, which helps to integrate newcomers from across the firm (as training is mixed between offices). Lunch is often provided at these training sessions, and additional resources are on offer if associates need to brush up on any legal knowledge related to their practice area. Nonetheless, the general verdict of the associates we spoke to was that the formal program wasn’t the strongest part of the firm’s offering. It “would benefit from more structure,” one told us, while others pointed towards the informal teaching and on-the-job learning opportunities which was praised for being particularly helpful.

Fortunately, there’s plenty of both available. Upon joining the firm, every associate is partnered with a senior associate mentor. Vince Guglielmotti emphasizes that “this is a valuable resource for new associates who may have questions early on about how to handle certain work situations, but may feel uncomfortable going to a senior business professional or partner.” Associates clearly agree, and when we surveyed the market, Brown Rudnick scored well above its competitors’ average for the quality of its mentoring.We’d have to concur with the words of one interviewee, who said of the senior associate mentors that “not utilizing them would be foolish.” 

Many juniors we spoke to also seemed to think that Brown Rudnick was a good place to base themselves in the long run, and several fancied their chances at making partner. The path to partnership appears to be well laid out, although the consensus seemed to be that it’s more about knowing how to build strong relationships than about hitting specific quantitative metrics. One insider admitted that at “other firms it feels like a numbers game,” but noted that at Brown Rudnick, the key thing you need is “lots of soft skills.”

Brown Rudnick is recognized as a Strong Performer for Career Development in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Pro Bono

"I was surprised to see how many corporate pro bono opportunities there are!"

There was a real positive view around pro bono amongst our sources, with lots of matters seemingly on offer.One newbie reflected that, “I was surprised to see how many corporate pro bono opportunities there are! Whatever practice group you’re in, there will be pro bono opportunities.” Specifically, associates discussed working on pro bono matters that ranged from addressing changes to Roe vs Wade and providing small businesses with legal aid to helping out with fundraisers and aiding in immigration-related initiatives. If you can’t see a matter that you are interested in undertaking, the firm is also reportedly “open to pitches.”  We also heard that pro bono really helps to fill slower times at the firm and imparts valuable skills for juniors to leverage in other areas. "My pro-bono work is very useful,” one associate beamed, “I find it really helps to inform my practice.”

Pro bono hours 

• For all US attorneys: 8,849
• Average per US attorney: 31

Brown Rudnick is recognized as a Strong Performer for Pro Bono in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Hours & Compensation

Billable hours: 1,950 target

Base salaries increase on a lockstep basis and a base bonus is subject to meeting your target of 1,950 hours per annum. This target includes 1,800 billable hours, and 150 hours of firm investment time and pro bono. For those looking to stand out as a high performer (and bring home a larger bonus), there are enhanced bonuses based on additional tiers. Sources seemed happy with how bonuses are structured, particularly as they have access to a dedicated portal on the firm’s intranet which provides a clear indication of their progress towards the billable hour target.

Brown Rudnick is recognized as a Strong Performer for Benefits & Quality of Life in our 2026 associate satisfaction survey.

Inclusion

There are a number of dedicated affinity groups at Brown Rudnick – all of which are open to everyone within the firm – including DAWN, BR & Proud, Family Forum, and the Women’s Initiative. One associate gave Brown Rudnick “high marks” for inclusion, and another felt that firm had a “high level of natural inclusivity.” Insiders particularly enjoyed the spectrum of programmes and discussions the firm gave attention to, such as a workshop on balancing parenthood with being an attorney, which they felt to be a subject that is not talked about often.

Get Hired

The first stage: recruitment on and off campus 

Brown Rudnick recruits  summer associates for their 2L summers through the firm’s website and by working collaboratively with law schools nationwide, with applications opening during the winter of the first year of law school. Summer associates will have the opportunity to work within one of the firm’s practice groups, working directly with partners and receiving meaningful, hands-on experience.

In addition to the 2L program, , Brown Rudnick established the 1L First Generation Professional Fellowship in 2018. This fellowship is designed for first year law students who are the first in their families to graduate from a baccalaureate college to spend their 1L summers with Brown Rudnick.  Applications for the fellowship open each December.

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 partners and associates from the practice group and firm leadership. The panel interview includes the use of behavioral questions targeting specific competencies. Candidates may be asked questions related to motivation and resilience or questions related to the firm’s core values.  

Summer program 

Offers: 5 (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 Vincent Guglielmotti, CEO

How would you define your firm's current position and identity in the legal market? What would you say differentiates your firm from your peer firms in the market?

We find ourselves uniquely positioned. We have a market-leading practice across our pillars: technology, life sciences, global litigation, brand and reputation management, and crisis management. Crisis management encompasses bankruptcy and restructuring, white collar, and special situations. Everything we do is focused on those pillars.

How we work, and how we present ourselves to clients, is grounded in our five core values: we strive to be enterprising, respectful, inclusive, insightful, and tenacious. We established these core values a few years ago to enhance consistency within the firm. They set expectations for how we interact with each other, and how we represent our clients, and how we present ourselves to the market.

We are extremely proud of our culture, and guard it vigorously. We expect that people  who join us are collaborative and inclusive lawyers who want to be a part of our culture, and understand what we're offering. Our identity is founded on the pillars and these core values.

What differentiates us is more than just the values and key pillars. I can say with confidence that we offer more and better opportunities at an earlier stage of associates’ careers. We're leaner and more efficient, which allows associates to work directly with partners and to be given legal work that challenges themselves. We also live and breathe technology and entrepreneurship. Our clients include many creative investors who take smart risks, and associates are exposed to those types of clients very early on, which helps them develop an entrepreneurial mindset.

And our trial litigators regularly compete across the table from Am Law 50 firms - and win.

When you take a firm that has established its vision strategically, set out its core values, and offers tremendous learning opportunities to associates, we're confident that the associates will come to work happy and ready to be productive. They're learning, working with great clients, and being given the opportunity to grow very quickly in their careers.

Have there been any developments at the firm over the past year that you'd like to highlight to law students? 

The last few years have been very exciting for the firm. We had another record-setting year financially this past year. This success allows us to continue to focus on recruiting exceptional lawyers, while developing our current lawyers and highly talented business professionals who provide our lawyers with the support they need to deliver outstanding client service.

Last year, we have opened a new Los Angeles office. We've long had a deep client bench in LA, and client demand made this a natural expansion. We welcomed four new partners there who focus on brand and reputation management. The team that joined us to open the LA office fits in very well with our culture. It’s been an exciting  development.

Would you say that there are any domestic or international events or trends that are affecting any of the firm's practices at the moment? These might be legal, economic, political or social.

Absolutely. The markets are stressed at the moment, and as a result, our world-class restructuring department is extremely busy, and we expect that to continue. Recently, we have handled many significant restructuring matters, including 23andMe, Stoli, First Brands, Exactech, Valves and Controls, and Pat McGrath Cosmetics. The stress on the markets is likely to continue to generate sustained activity for our restructuring group.

Beyond restructuring, we're on the cutting edge of representing a lot of high-tech companies on matters involving AI, data breaches, cybersecurity, and digital commerce. High tech continues to be a major driver of revenue in the economy, and we expect continued demand for our technology lawyers. Recently, we advised on the sale by Virtual Staging AI of generative AI renderings to Zillow. There’s a lot of fun work there, and that's the type of client work that our associates get to cut their teeth on.

As AI and technology advance, we’ve seen an uptick in clients needing help with deepfakes and other name, image, and likeness issues. Our brand and reputation management team represents many well-known athletes, celebrities, and other high net worth people who turn to us for assistance in solving these problems for them, often on a highly confidential and urgent basis.

What is your firm's commercial strategy focusing on? How do you expect the next year to unfold?

We take a highly disciplined approach to growth. We're looking to expand and develop our bench strength across our pillars. Over the past year, we've continued to hire lateral partners in our core pillars, and we'll continue to invest appropriately and intentionally in a way that makes sense for our clients.

Over the last two years we opened a new Houston office, in addition to our new Los Angeles office. Over the coming year, we'll continue to focus on supporting these newer offices and helping them grow and succeed. Those lawyers are already very well integrated across our firm, and have worked on many matters involving lawyers from our other offices in both the U.S. and London.

When speaking to Brown Rudnick associates, many talked about how much they enjoyed working closely with your partners. Do you think that the relationships associates are able to build with partners at the firm is something that distinguishes Brown Rudnick from some of the larger BigLaw firms?

100%. Our structure allows associates to work one-on-one with partners more frequently than they would at a much larger firm. It’s challenging work that allows the associate to grow. Associates have more responsibility earlier in their career, with regular feedback from partners. The associates who succeed at Brown Rudnick are the ones that are excited by the opportunity to learn quickly, take ownership, and understand how they can improve. I think that associates find that they're further along in their career by their third or fifth year than they may have been at a larger firm because they are given more meaningful work opportunities.

Again, when I was speaking to associates, they told me that this is a place where creative legal arguments are made. In the words of your colleague Jeffrey Jonas, ‘Brown Rudnick summer associates are those who think outside of the box and bring new ideas to the firm’. How do you ensure both your associates and partners continue to think outside of the box whilst at your company?

"Thinking outside the box" is a phrase that gets used often, but it’s applicable here. It's all about ensuring that people's different perspectives are heard, which ties directly to our core values of being inclusive and respectful. When partners are willing to take the time not only to teach how something should be done, but listen and take on board things from someone who could be potentially younger or just learning things in a different way, that allows for the development of different legal strategies. That’s how we like to encourage “thinking outside the box.”

Associates may come from different backgrounds than the partners they are working with, which gives them the benefit of different points of view. At Brown Rudnick, our associates are confident enough to speak up and share their ideas, and our partners are willing to listen and adopt those ideas. That productive dynamic is rooted in being inclusive and respectful of each other.

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

The most important thing a firm can do is listen to its people; which is our approach. We want our people to be productive and engaged. We want to make sure everyone feels welcome, equipped and supported in their practices. When we think about evolving, listening is the first step: What do people need to succeed? We take that very seriously.

In addition to opening two new offices, we've also renovated nearly all of our offices over the last two years. This allows us to provide high-quality, modern working environments to our associates, which they have told us is important to them.

We've kept our three days in office policy in place. We found this balance to be extremely successful. It allows us to provide great service to our clients and allows associates to get the necessary in-person training, while remaining flexible. We're deeply invested in formal and informal training. For example, we host a mid-level associate retreat in New York where we focus on skill building and business development.

We also have a great ambassador program that matches every new associate with a high-performing, more senior level associate. This is a valuable resource for new associates who may have questions early on about how to handle certain work situations, but may feel uncomfortable going to a senior business professional or partner. We want to make sure that we facilitate supportive relationships early in the associate's career.

How do you predict the legal profession will change in the next five years? Do you think there are any particular challenges which the industry is facing?

There's a couple of things happening at once. There are a lot of mergers, creating so-called mega-firms. We honestly don't have an interest in becoming yet another mega firm. We  provide boutique level service to our clients, which means a more bespoke and higher-level service with smaller teams that the client understands are personally invested in their success. Brown Rudnick's size and approach to client service is an advantage. It allows us to be more nimble, to have fewer conflicts, and to deliver more personalized client service.

Additionally, of course, AI and technology will be influential in the coming years. We don't shy away from that and we understand that we need to be innovative. We want to make sure that we're doing it intentionally, ethically, and in a way that allows our associates and partners to get value out of the technology, with a lot of training. At some larger firms, AI may cut out some of the middle steps in the process, but we've always done that. We already have associates working directly with partners, with a very lean partner-to-associate ratio. It's not as big of a change for us as it may be for other firms with large teams of junior lawyers on every matter.

Thinking about the ways in which the legal profession is developing, what is the one skill you have learnt in your career that you think is key for young attorneys to learn?

Try to put yourself in a client's shoes and understand what it is the client is looking for.  What type of advice will allow the client to be able to make an informed business decision? I think that sometimes when associates come out of school, they can get very bogged down in analyzing the law and try to give every detail to the client.

Putting yourself in the client’s position helps associates learn how to distill complex legal analysis into actionable guidance. Clients come to us for legal expertise, but that expertise must be delivered in a way that supports the client’s decision-making. The easiest way to do that is to remind associates to flip the table: If you were getting this advice, do you think you could make a good business decision? I think once associates develop that skill, they become better lawyers.

When you were back in law school, did you have an easy go to meal that you'd always turn to after a long day of studying?

No, but I'll tell you I cooked a lot more when I was in law school than I do now.

What was the first concert that you attended?

The Steve Miller Band.

Anything else you’d like to highlight to law students?

I think your questions really captured the core of who we are. At Brown Rudnick, you get better opportunities earlier in your career. You work directly with partners on exciting matters, often across the table from Am Law 50 firms. It is a unique experience to be at a mid-sized firm that is having record financial years working with excellent clients and competing effectively with some of the top firms in the country. The value to our associates is clear.