Professional Development

Arnold & Porter LLP invests significant resources in the development of our attorneys to ensure that they are and continue to be leading legal and business minds.

A full-time Director of Professional Development and a team of professional staff oversee the training and development of all of our attorneys. With their help, the firm strives to provide a comprehensive approach to associate career development and advancement through: (1) formal training in legal and core skills with in-house programs and external continuing legal education (CLE) options; (2) on-the-job training through a variety of work assignments, pro bono cases, and observation opportunities of experienced attorneys; and (3) career development through retreats, a three-stage mentoring program, and guidance from two highly-skilled career development counselors.

Learn more about our programs:

Formal Training. Excellent training begins by providing associates with an opportunity to learn a broad range of skills, and by working closely with experienced attorneys who have varying styles and approaches to the practice of law. In addition, our Professional Development Department provides in excess of 200 training programs each year that address both specialized legal skills and more general skills. Topics include public speaking, client communications, persuasive writing, marketing, and business development skills. The firm maintains a current video and print library of CLE materials and electronic research services. Attorneys also have unlimited access to over 6,000 external online and live programs offered through CLE vendors such as Practising Law Center (PLI) and Westlegal Ed Center.

Retreats. The firm hosts a firmwide annual New & Lateral Associate Retreat for all incoming associates. The retreat and other seminars introduce new associates to the firm's operations and provide training on basic skills such as research, oral advocacy, deposition practice, contract drafting, and negotiations. We also host a Mid-Level Associate Leadership Forum for third-year and more senior associates to teach management, leadership, client relations, business development, and career planning skills. Newly promoted partners and counsel are offered a year-long series of orientation sessions to assist in their acclimation to their new roles at the firm. Additionally, many of the practice groups conduct retreats for their attorneys to provide opportunities for knowledge sharing, social interaction, and strategic planning purposes.

Business Development Training. We are committed to providing the full breadth of professional development opportunities to our associates, including exposure to and participation in firmwide and practice group business development initiatives. Through a series of informal and formal workshops and speaker events on wide-ranging business development topics, associates become part of the long-term strategic business goals of the firm, as well as the short-term aims to procure ongoing legal work. Associates periodically participate in drafting client pitches, developing practice collateral, preparing and presenting at local and national conferences and symposiums, and writing articles for industry publications.

Trial Training Program. One of the firm's goals is to enhance the trial advocacy skills of our attorneys through real-world courtroom experience. Through this program, we provide our attorneys the opportunity to obtain counseling and trial experience in the courtroom while being supervised by experienced litigation counsel. We are one of few firms in the country with a full-time Trial Training Counsel. The Trial Training Counsel, Mary Kennedy, is responsible for providing direct support and supervision to attorneys interested in enhancing their trial skills through criminal cases from the DC Superior Court. The current Trial Training Counsel has over 20 years of litigation and training experience, including handling over 50 jury trials and numerous bench trials. A similar program is offered in offices outside of Washington, DC and is overseen in each office by a partner or counsel.

Fourth Circuit Appellate Training Program. Arnold & Porter has a proud tradition of appellate advocacy in state and federal courts across the country and, in recent years, has done a great deal of work before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. The court now frequently appoints Arnold & Porter to represent, on a pro bono basis, indigent defendants with appeals pending in the Fourth Circuit. Most often, one of the firm’s associates—often a junior or midlevel associate—serves as lead appellate counsel. With support from the partner in charge of the program and a number of other partners, the associate will brief the appeal and conduct oral argument before the court. Over the last several years, dozens of Arnold & Porter associates at all levels have accomplished their first appellate argument through the Fourth Circuit Appellate Training Program and the firm has developed a deep bench of experienced appellate lawyers.

Career Development Management. We have two Career Development Counselors responsible for providing individualized career development assistance and guidance to our attorneys. Both counselors are former lawyers and have a combined total of over 10 years working with Arnold & Porter lawyers. One of the counselors is also a former Director of Career Services and has counseled hundreds of students and alumni on their careers trajectories. Attorneys have the opportunity to work confidentially with the Career Development Counselors to design career plans, monitor progress, and chart advancement.

Mentoring. Mentors are a critical asset to an associate's career. We have a formal three-stage mentoring program that pairs associates with more senior attorneys as they progress and advance in their careers. New associates are paired with mid-level associates when they join the firm. Junior associates are paired with senior associates, and mid-level associates are paired with partners and counsel. Mentors and mentees at the firm are offered training on goal setting and career action plans in order to help them work together to achieve the mentee's goals for the stated year. In addition, individual and group events are planned throughout the year to encourage opportunities for social interaction and networking. Affinity groups at our firm also promote and provide informal and formal mentoring relationships.

Work Assignments. Associates are assigned to individual cases or matters and often work on several matters at one time. Many associates quickly develop significant, direct relationships with the firm's clients. The firm expects all attorneys—including new associates—to assume responsibility quickly and to grow rapidly in professional competence. It is customary at Arnold & Porter for junior attorneys to have significant responsibilities on matters to which they are assigned. Junior associates can prepare and examine witnesses; take depositions; draft agreements; prepare disclosure statements; draft statements for submission to federal agencies and congressional committees; prepare pleadings, motions, and briefs in litigation; attend meetings with clients; participate in negotiations and settlement conferences; and contribute actively to the development of overall transaction strategy and major litigation decisions. To ensure associates have an opportunity to work on a variety of matters and with a myriad of more experienced attorneys, each practice group and office has one or more work assignment partners to coordinate projects.

Real World Training Program. Associates are provided with up to 50 billable-equivalent hours to participate in our Real World Training (RWT) program. RWT encourages associates to shadow or observe more experienced attorneys during activities such as hearings, trials, or client meetings. The purpose of the program is to provide associates with opportunities for hands-on legal experiences, under circumstances when it is not appropriate to charge a client for the associate's time, particularly when the associate is an observer.

Evaluations. Associates are given informal professional guidance and evaluation on a day-to-day basis by the partners with whom they work. Once each year, every associate receives a formal evaluation and has an opportunity to discuss the evaluation with a member of the firm's Associate Evaluation Committee. Additionally, new associates, and lateral associates participate in informal mid-year reviews to assist in their successful transition to the firm.

Professional Development Feedback Meetings. Following the evaluation process each year, associates meet individually with their practice group professional development partners and other designees from the group to discuss their ongoing development needs, including training, mentoring, and work assignments. For more senior associates, growth and advancement opportunities are also discussed.

Associate Participation in Firm Management. Associates sit with partners on the Hiring, Pro Bono, Ethics and Practice, Professional Development, and Summer Associates Committees of the firm. In addition, our firm is unusual in that we have an associate serve on our Management Committee. The Managing Partner of the firm shares the firm's financial results and business plans with all associates in periodic meetings.