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Graduate recruitment

Training at a top London law firm

Why train with Russell-Cooke?

Many of the outstanding lawyers you’ll meet here trained with Russell-Cooke

At Russell-Cooke you will get an unrivalled breadth of work; every trainee is recruited in the hope they will be a future partner; you will be a wheel not just a cog; you’ll get lots of client contact, training and support.

Gareth Roy, solicitor, working at desk

Explore your legal career journey with Russell-Cooke

Discover our training contract and vacation scheme

Discover the pathways to your legal career with Russell-Cooke through our dynamic training contract and immersive vacation scheme experiences.

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Our training contract

It is our aim that your training will have a lasting influence over your legal career. Our training contract will ensure you gain practical experience of widely differing types of legal practice. Find out more and how to apply via our training contract page.

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Our vacation scheme

The vacation scheme at Russell-Cooke is a great way to experience what it's really like to work at a leading law firm.

We believe that our vacation scheme offers the right balance of support and autonomy, and really demonstrates what life is like as a Russell-Cooke trainee. Find out more and how to apply via our vacation scheme page.

Photo Careers Ash Wadwa, Susannah Foden, Heena Rehman RCJ (4)

Graduate recruitment FAQs

Thinking of applying for graduate recruitment programme? Here you can find the answers to our most frequently asked questions.

Blogs from Russell-Cooke trainees

Read the latest blogs written by our trainees on life at Russell-Cooke

News

14.02.2024

Split seats and double learning opportunity for Russell-Cooke trainee

First-seat trainee Louisa Bonnici shares her experience in both the private client and trusts and estate disputes teams at...
Louise Bonnici, Trainee in the Russell-Cooke Solicitors, private client team.
Louise Bonnici
2 min Read
News

09.02.2024

From lecturer to lawyer—why I swapped lecturing for learning

First-seat trainee James Underwood reflects on his transition from lecturer to lawyer, exploring the unique strengths and...
James Underwood, Trainee in the Russell-Cooke Solicitors, property litigation team.
James Underwood
2 min Read
News

26.01.2024

My decade long journey to qualifying as a solicitor

Third-seat trainee Emma Reade shares her journey to Russell-Cooke, transitioning from eight years in commercial arbitration to embarking...
Emma Reade, Trainee in the Russell-Cooke Solicitors, family and children team.
Emma Reade
3 min Read
View all News & Insights

By numbers

Our graduate recruitment insights

With a total staff of 342, Russell-Cooke brings together a diverse and collaborative community to support your growth. For our 2026 intake, we're excited to offer 10 training contract vacancies, each representing a chance to embark on a transformative journey with us. Our current first-year trainee salary is £46k increasing to £48.5k for second year trainees.

  • Contract
    10
    Training contracts vacancies for 2026
  • Users
    342
    Total number of staff
  • Salary
    £46k
    First year trainee base starting salary (as at 2023)
  • Salary
    £48.5k
    Second year trainee salary (as at 2023)
“I had a lot of involvement from the beginning of a client’s sale of a commercial property, and felt a real sense of achievement when the sale completed”
Ellie Miles, Associate in the Russell-Cooke Solicitors, personal injury and medical negligence team.
Ellie Miles • Associate
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Get in touch

If you have any questions that have not been answered on the site, or if you want a confidential chat about whether Russell-Cooke might be right for you, do get in touch.

Russell-Cooke ranked in the Best Law Firms to Work At 2024 by Roll on Friday

Over eight thousand people working in private practice rated their firm's pay, career development, management, culture, work/life balance and office, and their labour has provided a grateful nation with the definitive guide to where’s pleasant to work in UK law.

Roll On Friday logo on an orange background. Russell-Cooke ranked in the top 10 law firms to work for