Gibson Dunn
London·Los Angeles
Litigation·Appellate·Crisis response
The American Lawyer coined the nickname for Gibson Dunn's litigators: when other firms' strategies come up short, clients in serious trouble turn to Gibson Dunn for aggressive, fresh thinking.
Why this firm
Known in the industry as the 'Rescue Squad'
Ranked #4 in the 2026 Am Law 100 by revenue ($4.2bn), with 130 top-tier and 425 total practice rankings in Chambers USA 2025
A full-service US firm with genuine strength in appellate and crisis work
Trainees share a room with a partner or senior associate under a deliberately low-leverage model, not a trainee pool
What this firm looks for
Drawn from Gibson Dunn's own recruitment materials
Based on the firm's published recruitment materials, graduate recruitment commentary and stated values.
Intellectual curiosity, entrepreneurial spirit
Gibson Dunn's own official London Graduate Recruitment FAQ states plainly the key characteristics it looks for in a trainee: intellectual curiosity, entrepreneurial spirit, maturity, and sociability.
Comfortable in small, partner-facing teams
Training principal Mark Sperotto describes wanting people with a self-driven, willing-to-learn, entrepreneurial character; the firm's own materials tout a low-leverage model where trainees share a room with a partner or senior associate and get early client exposure.
Drawn to high-stakes, bet-the-company work
The firm's own FAQ frames itself as the go-to firm for global high-end legal work where the financial and reputational risks are at their highest, and Sperotto says candidates need an intrinsic interest in international commerce and the City.
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