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Mentoring & Training
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When law school ends, the next phase of legal education begins.

Regardless of which department an associate selects—Corporate, Litigation, Tax, Executive Compensation and Benefits or Trusts and Estates—Cravath lawyers are supported from their first days at the Firm by comprehensive training programs that combine with our hands-on mentoring to provide our lawyers with practical insights, continuing guidance and sophisticated tools to shape their practice.

MENTORING

The relationships our associates develop with partners and the informal mentoring they receive are integral to their development as lawyers. Our rotation system establishes a framework in which partners help guide the careers of associates. The rotation system allows associates to form close working relationships with several partners and a mix of associates in different stages of their careers. Practice groups are leanly staffed to provide ample opportunities for the associates to collaborate with their partners on each matter to which they are assigned. For partners, their associates represent the future of the Firm, and that is the most compelling reason for each partner to invest time and knowledge in each member of his or her group.

In parallel with the mentoring that is part of the rotation system, our associates receive mentoring through our formal mentoring program. The goal of this program is to provide associates with a continuing partner relationship that will offer additional insight, guidance and support throughout the associate’s time at the Firm.

CONTINUING LEGAL EDUCATION (CLE)

Throughout the year, we hold a schedule of classes that enables lawyers to earn their required New York State Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credits. Some sessions cover basic topics important to new lawyers, while others provide detailed instruction in specific areas for lawyers at all levels. Classes are conducted by partners, senior associates and outside experts on a wide range of topics. A great majority of the training materials are prepared internally by partners, providing associates with an invaluable resource in their day-to-day practice. All our departments offer training programs for their associates, and all lawyers are welcome to attend sessions in practice areas outside their own. Additionally, we are a Privileged Member of the Practising Law Institute (“PLI”). PLI is a longstanding and recognized provider of CLE to attorneys throughout the country. With this membership, every lawyer in the Firm is eligible to attend/watch the PLI sessions free of charge.

Online CLE Center

In addition to classroom-based learning, Cravath’s Online CLE Center offers access to prerecorded streaming video of all the Firm’s current CLE sessions for viewing over the Internet, either from within or outside of Cravath’s offices. Each session is presented in high-quality video and audio and, depending on the topic, includes synchronized slide decks, speaker biographies, links to PDF versions of course materials and access to current, individual CLE credit summaries. Many CLE-eligible sessions are also available in VHS or DVD formats for viewing at any time.

Training Facilities

Our training rooms are equipped with state-of-the-art technology and offer a comfortable learning environment for large groups of lawyers. We are particularly proud of our permanent, 1,500 square-foot courtroom, complete with jury box, witness stand, counsel tables, video cameras and gallery. The space is used by our litigators for continuing education courses, pre-trial rehearsals and real-life arbitration and mediation.

Our Courtroom

Our Courtroom

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Corporate Training
The Corporate Department conducts an extensive classroom training program. Courses are taught by partners, experienced associates and outside experts in disciplines such as accounting and economics. Instructors prepare detailed materials, which are used both in the training program and for later reference. Some classes cover basic subjects that are important to new corporate lawyers, while other classes provide detailed instruction in specific areas of the Firm’s corporate practice that are helpful for lawyers at all levels.

The Corporate Department training program typically consists of approximately 40 sessions that are held throughout the year and include training on:


  • Bankruptcy
  • Comfort Letters
  • Corporate Governance
  • Derivatives
  • Drafting Acquisition Agreements
  • Due Diligence
  • Ethics
  • Federal Securities Law
  • Financial Reporting
  • High-Yield Covenants
  • Internal Controls
  • International Securities Offerings
  • Joint Venture Structures
  • Mergers & Acquisitions
  • Negotiating Acquisitions
  • Opinions
  • Practical Skills for New Lawyers
  • Public Company Reporting Obligations
  • Public Offerings
  • Syndicated Lending
  • Underwriting Documents
Litigation Training
Throughout the year, the Litigation Department holds an extensive variety of formal training programs in which partners and experienced attorneys of the Litigation Department speak on topics ranging from brief writing to how to prepare outlines and materials for direct and cross-examination, as well as substantive legal topics, such as antitrust, securities fraud and intellectual property law. Each session is devoted to teaching specific “how to’s” for various aspects of Cravath’s litigation practice. This year, a series of programs on electronic discovery has been added to the curriculum. In addition, the Department sponsors an annual Deposition Workshop to provide hands-on experience for the lawyers.

The Litigation Department training program typically consists of approximately 35 sessions that are held throughout the year and include training on:


  • Pleadings
  • Discovery
  • Depositions
  • Examination Technique
  • Trial Preparation
  • Ethics
  • Antitrust Law
  • Securities Litigation Developments
  • Patent Law
  • Legal Writing
  • Document Review and Production
  • Electronic Discovery
  • Legal Research
Tax Training
The Tax Department runs a formal 35-hour training program covering areas of tax law that are more easily learned in a classroom setting than by working on a deal. The program also covers issues of practice and “lore” that are often as important as knowledge of the technical provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. In addition, in order to train tax lawyers to be practical business lawyers, we encourage tax associates to attend the 40-session Corporate Department training program.

The Tax Department training program typically consists of approximately 25 sessions that are held throughout the year and include training on:


  • How To Be an Effective Tax Lawyer
  • Private Equity Funds
  • International Tax Issues
  • Mergers & Acquisitions
  • Partnership Taxation
  • Securities Offerings
  • Financial Products
  • Consolidated Returns
  • Credit Agreements
  • Research Skills
  • Basic Tax Principles
  • Compensation
  • Spinoffs
  • Tax Issues in Bankruptcy
  • Tax-Free Reorganizations
Executive Compensation and Benefits Training
The Executive Compensation and Benefits Department each year presents a series of up to 10 training seminars covering basic concepts such as employment agreements, deferred compensation and an ERISA roadmap, as well as timely overviews of developing areas, such as updates on the new IRS regulations governing the taxation of compensation. The seminars are designed to be useful not only to lawyers working in the Executive Compensation and Benefits Department, but also to corporate, tax and trusts and estates lawyers.

The Executive Compensation and Benefits Department training program typically consists of approximately 10 sessions that are held throughout the year and include training on:


  • Employment Agreements
  • Equity-Based Compensation
  • The New Tax Rules on Deferred Compensation
  • Executive Compensation in M&A Transactions
  • ERISA
  • Securities Law Considerations
Trusts and Estates Training
Matters in the Trusts and Estates Department are typically staffed with one associate and one partner, which directly fosters an associate’s training and professional development. Each associate works on a wide range of matters, which ensures that an associate is exposed to all aspects of our trusts and estates practice. In addition, our trusts and estates attorneys customarily attend lectures and other programs conducted by bar associations, trust companies and other organizations in the estate planning field. The Department schedules a monthly luncheon to allow discussion of current developments in the field and issues of particular interest within the Department.
 
 
© 2013 Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP