Corporate Training
In our corporate training program, summer associates have the opportunity to:

• Learn from leading corporate attorneys about the nature of corporate practice, including topics like the steps in a corporate transaction, securities issues in corporate practice, and the key elements of a purchase agreement;
• Observe a typical negotiation of the terms of a mock purchase agreement;
• Participate in a mock negotiation involving select issues in a purchase agreement.

Litigation Training
In Schiff Hardin’s litigation training program, summer associates:

• Learn from top trial lawyers about strategies for opening and closing statements, as well as direct and cross examinations;
• Participate in a mock trial in which firm attorneys act as witnesses and judges.

Legal Writing Instruction
Schiff Hardin's summer writing program has three parts.

• During the first week of the Summer Program, our in-house legal writing coach conducts a half-day writing workshop called "Introduction to Legal Writing at Law Firms." That workshop builds on the knowledge and skills summer associates have gained through their law school legal writing courses and teaches summer associates about outlining, writing, and revising memos and briefs.
• Second, we host weekly writing roundtables. At each of these sessions, several partners and the firm's legal writing coach meet with the summer associates in pairs to discuss the summer associates’ work and the legal writing process generally. Partners share their best writing practices in an open and informal conversational setting.
• Finally, the firm's legal writing coach works one-on-one throughout the summer with individual summer associates.

We hope that every summer associate ends the summer at Schiff Hardin feeling more confident and skilled at legal writing.