Training
Baker Botts is committed to lifelong learning and development for all lawyers at the firm. Starting from the moment they enter the firm, each lawyer has access to a robust in-house professional development curriculum, designed around the Associate Attributes Model, to both improve substantive knowledge in the lawyer's area of practice and build the professional skills required to succeed as a Baker Botts lawyer and provide exceptional service to our clients.
This process begins with summer associates, who are invited to attend a variety of training programs and workshops in order to acquaint them with the firm's practice and lawyers. The summer program includes presentations on basic skills such as legal writing, as well as the substantive areas in which the firm practices. Summer associates also have the opportunity to practice their trial and negotiation skills in workshops, with current Baker Botts lawyers serving as coaches.
New associates starting at the firm participate in a week-long New Associate Orientation designed to integrate them into the culture of the firm and orient them to best practices for success in a logical, consistent, and thoughtful manner. Over the course of this program, new associates receive basic substantive and skills training that accelerates their learning as they prepare for their first work assignments. To help promote another one of our core values, teamwork and collegiality, they also have a number of networking opportunities to get to know colleagues from across offices and departments. We believe these skills and relationships are vital to allow new lawyers to grow and advance within the firm.
The learning and development process continues throughout each lawyer's career with department-specific programming, including our Fundamentals series for junior associates, as well as advanced programming geared towards mid-level and senior associates and partners. Programming focuses on a variety of substantive and skills areas, including the energy and technology sectors, hot topics and emerging legal and market developments, and key ethics issues.
The firm values collaboration and provides training opportunities to bring associates together across offices and departments. The firm offers leadership, legal project management, and business development training to mid-level and senior associates. The firm also offers practice-specific workshops to allow associates to develop their substantive skills. Associates in our Litigation and Intellectual Property Practice groups attend the NITA Deposition Skills Workshop and NITA Trial Advocacy Workshop. Transactional associates participate in the Negotiation and Drafting Skills Workshop. These multi-day programs also include social events to supplement the learning with opportunities to network and develop relationships across the firm.
To supplement this robust internal training, lawyers also have access to a variety of external training resources, including through Practising Law Institute, Attorney's Liability Assurance Society, Lex Mundi, and legal and industry conferences.