Overview
Introduction
With more than 1,800 lawyers across 16 offices, Goodwin has established itself as a global legal name. The firm boasts particular strength in corporate law and real estate, among other areas. Candidates seeking a highly transparent firm that prioritizes associate development will likely feel at home at Goodwin.
Firm Stats
Total No. Attorneys (2024)
No. of Partners Named (2023)
Featured Rankings
No. of 1st Year Associates Hired (2024)
No. of Summer Associates (2024)
Base Salary
Vault Verdict
For compensation and pro bono work, Goodwin is at the forefront. Hiring focuses on academically accomplished students with experience (i.e., journal, work, or clerkship) from T14 schools in geographic proximity to the hiring office. Coworkers are collaborative and supportive, both personally and professionally, including approachable partners who are invested in associates’ development. Partners and senior associates provide fruitful feedback and hands-on learning opportunities, which are augmented by firmwide and practice area training programs. Lateral hires, unfortunately, are largely on their own for onboarding and integration. Work assignments become more substantive with experience, and associates are encouraged to push to take greater responsibilities. Central staffing trie...
Firm's Response
Success in today’s high-tech economy means addressing increasingly complex issues faster and more efficiently amid rapid change. Making the right decisions in this environment requires strategic counsel from a legal advisor who not only knows how laws are evolving around the world, but also has a deep understanding of their client’s partic...
About the Firm
Founded more than a century ago, Goodwin has grown to more than 1,800 lawyers in 16 offices throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. The firm operates on what it calls a “capital-meets-innovation platform,” through which the firm advises both innovators and investors in the financial, private equity, real estate, technology, and life sciences industries.
Ethics First
In 1912, Harvard classmates Robert Goodwin and Joseph Procter ran into each other in the street and decided to start a law practice together, opening Goodwin & Procter later that year. Two years later, the founders helped a sardine packing company issue preferred stock but later discovered the company financials had been fabricated. They took out a $30,000 loan to buy back all the outstanding shares at face ...
Associate Reviews
- “The day-to-day atmosphere is very collegial, and there is a sense that the attorneys here genuinely want to see their peers succeed. It is not at all uncommon for a senior attorney to take time out of their busy day to mentor a junior attorney or simply to offer advice and perspective on career development.”
- “The culture of the firm is incredibly collaborative and supportive. Supervising attorneys are conscientious of the workload and capacity of more-junior associates and ensure that more-junior associates are free to share their opinions and feel involved in the firm. Lawyers socialize together both organically and when sponsored by the firm.”
- “People are generally pleasant to work with and generally try to work with opposing counsel rather than be hostile or difficult. People don't socialize often but do try to make an effort to be friendly and try to organize small informal outings. Larger, more organized gatherings do occur but tend not to have high turnout. Most of my colleagues say that the atmosphere here is more collegial than at other firms they have worked at.”
- “The firm's culture is collaborative and friendly, though still driven by the bottom line like most/all of BigLaw. Socialization is mostly firm-sponsored.”
Why Work Here
At Goodwin, our purpose is and always has been to help our clients achieve great things. To do this, nearly 2,000 Goodwin lawyers across the United States, Europe, and Asia focus on building authentic, long-term relationships with some of the world’s most successful and innovative investors, entrepreneurs and disruptors at the convergence of and within the life sciences, private equity, real estate, technology, and financial industries.
Diversity at Goodwin
Getting Hired Here
- “Goodwin recruits from a variety of schools, but there is a clear emphasis on hiring from the T14. Grades, journal experience, clerkship, prior work experience, personality, diversity, etc., are all taken into consideration. Yes, the firm offers training to help with the recruiting process.”
- “The firm values the prestige of the law school attended, grades, and prior work experience. The firm likes laterals from upper-tier firms.”
- “The firm is very geographically influenced in hiring. In SoCal, most associates went to school in SoCal. In Boston, most associates are from BU, BC, or another Boston area school. The T14 is mixed in with these local schools.”
- “It seems that the typical factors are considered for the initial filtering of candidates (GPA, school, clerkship, etc.). Following that, there are multiple rounds of interviews where the firm seems to mostly be looking for compatibility, creativeness, and communication skills. The firm really values those who think outside the box and those who can improvise. Feeder schools likely depend on the office, but I'd say most are from tier 1 schools.”
Perks & Benefits