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Jones Day
A global US law firm offering a non-rotational London training contract, with experience across international transactions and disputes.
About Jones Day
Jones Day is a global US law firm with 40 offices across five continents. Its London practice advises on international transactions and disputes, including corporate acquisitions, finance, litigation, arbitration, real estate and restructuring. The breadth of the practice is particularly relevant to its training model: trainees can explore different disciplines alongside one another through a non-rotational contract. For applicants, this offers an opportunity to compare contentious and transactional work while developing relationships across several teams. Its international network also supports matters involving clients, assets and legal issues in multiple jurisdiction.
Jones Day’s two-year training contract operates without fixed departmental seats. Trainees approach partners and associates for assignments and can work across several practices simultaneously. This provides flexibility to explore different interests and continue working on matters as they develop. It also requires active workload management: trainees must communicate their capacity, manage competing deadlines and seek sufficiently broad experience. Support includes partner and trainee mentors, regular feedback, six-monthly appraisals and practice-area checklists.
Future trainees attend The University of Law, completing the PGDL where required, followed by the LLM Legal Practice incorporating SQE1 and SQE2, and an additional SQE Plus programme. The firm pays course fees and provides maintenance grants of £15,000 for the PGDL and £20,000 for the SQE academic year.
Practice areas & rankings
Jones Day received 17 practice rankings and 38 lawyer rankings in Chambers UK 2026. Ranked departments span corporate M&A, commercial litigation, civil fraud, derivatives, international arbitration, investment funds, real estate finance and restructuring. Its Band 1 individual recognitions included lawyers in corporate M&A, civil fraud and product liability; these are separate from departmental rankings.
Ranked departmentsChambers UK
Explore the practice areas
Ranked Band 2 for Fraud: Civil, UK-wide, in Chambers UK 2027, Jones Day represents claimants and defendants in complex fraud disputes. Its work includes tracing assets across jurisdictions, obtaining and resisting injunctions, and handling claims connected with insolvency. Institutional investors, funds and private equity businesses feature among its clients.
Ranked Band 3 for Commercial and Corporate Litigation, London, in Chambers UK 2027, the team handles shareholder disputes, contractual claims and joint venture disagreements. Cross-border proceedings are a significant part of its practice, with clients operating in financial services, technology and aviation. Chambers highlights its representation of Mastercard in interchange fee litigation and related collective proceedings.
Ranked Band 3 for Capital Markets: Derivatives, UK-wide, in Chambers UK 2026, Jones Day advises financial institutions on complex derivatives transactions. Its work includes documenting interest-rate hedging arrangements linked to financing transactions. Chambers highlights advice to Bank of America concerning hedging associated with a loan refinancing for Nakilat.
Jones Day received Chambers UK 2026 recognition in both London corporate M&A categories: £100–800 million and £800 million and above. Three of its corporate lawyers also received Band 1 individual rankings in the £100–800 million category. Corporate work provides a transactional counterpart to the firm’s disputes practices for trainees exploring different disciplines.
The application process
Click on each stage to find out more.
Apply through AllHires, completing an application form and 300-word Candidate Statement. The 2026–27 schemes recruit for September 2029 training contracts, with no direct training contract application route. Recruitment is rolling.
Applicants need a predicted or achieved strong 2:1; there is no minimum school-grade requirement. Eligible applicants include final-year students and graduates from any discipline, career changers and penultimate-year qualifying law students.
The statement gives you limited space to explain your motivation and suitability. Make your interest in Jones Day specific: explain why you would thrive in a system where trainees seek assignments and build relationships across different teams. Support this with a concise example of taking initiative, managing competing commitments or working effectively with others.
Avoid spending most of the statement describing the firm. Connect its training approach and practice strengths to your own experiences and interests. Choose evidence that shows what you contributed, how you approached a challenge and what the experience taught you.
Jones Day: quick answers
How much does Jones Day pay trainees?
Jones Day pays first-year trainees £60,000, rising to £70,000 in the second year. Newly qualified solicitors at Jones Day earn £170,000.
When is the Jones Day vacation scheme deadline?
Jones Day's vacation scheme applications close on 27 Nov for the 2026/27 cycle. Deadlines can change and popular schemes may close early, so check the live application deadlines tracker.
How many trainees does Jones Day take on?
Jones Day takes on around 20 trainees in each intake, so places are competitive and strong applications matter.
What grades do you need to apply to Jones Day?
To apply to Jones Day you will generally need a 2:1 degree. Requirements can flex where there are mitigating circumstances, so always check the firm's own criteria if your grades differ.
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