Why Work Here
Our People
Our attorneys and professional staff make the firm a truly special place. We value the contribution that each person makes as an individual. Therefore, we enable our colleagues to be comfortable being themselves and encourage every person to achieve their potential. This approach fosters a rich, diverse, collegial firm culture that inspires innovation and creativity.
Our Dedication to Excellence in the Practice of Law
At Arnold & Porter, we are client-driven and industry-focused. Our lawyers practice in more than 40 integrated practice areas across the litigation, regulatory and transactional spectrum to help clients with complex needs stay ahead of the global market, anticipate opportunities, and address issues that impact the very value of their businesses.
Our Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion
The firm is committed to cultivating a positive and supportive work environment where all our colleagues are accorded dignity and respect. We value each person’s contributions, empower our colleagues to be comfortable being themselves, and encourage every person to realize their potential.
Arnold & Porter regularly provides opportunities to engage and learn through formal and informal educational programming that deepen our community’s understanding of a variety of topics. The following are highlights of some of our recent programs:
- Peaceful Protest Q&A with Arnold & Porter Partners
- Change the World: Ten Rules for Allyship and Justice with Michelle Silverthorn
- In the Balance: The Promise of Title VII and the LGBTQ Community with Lambda Legal
- To the Stars: A Conversation with Pioneering Actor and Social Justice Activist George Takei
To foster community, provide mentoring, and promote career advancement, the firm supports affinity/resource groups, including:
- ACCORD (Attorney Community Championing Our Racial Diversity)
- BLAC (Black Lawyers of ACCORD Caucus)
- APCares (Parents and Caregivers)
- FirstGen
- Pride (LGBTQ Attorneys)
- VALOR (Veterans and Affiliates Leadership Organization)
- WISE (Women’s Initiative for Success and Empowerment)
Our Commitment to Pro Bono and Public Service
Arnold & Porter has one of the world’s leading law firm pro bono programs. Our pro bono commitment is part of the fabric of the firm and is one reason why many of our attorneys have made the firm their professional home. We encourage all attorneys to work on at least one pro bono matter every year and to devote up to 15% of their total hours to pro bono legal work.
Recent cases include:
- Representing Black Lives Matter DC in a lawsuit against the federal government on behalf of protesters tear-gassed in Washington, DC’s Lafayette Square, and Black Lives Matter 5280 in a lawsuit against the City and County of Denver for police violence in the wake of social justice protests.
- Partnering with national gun safety organizations, including Brady United, Giffords Law Center, Everytown for Gun Safety, and March for Our Lives, in litigation, policy, and legislative work to address gun violence in this country.
- Protecting reproductive freedom by obtaining an injunction on behalf of the City of Baltimore to allow family planning providers that permit abortion referrals as part of pregnancy counseling to continue receiving Title X funds and by obtaining a jury verdict in favor of Planned Parenthood against anti-abortion activists who engaged in a years-long campaign of fraud and deception to “destroy” the organization.
- Extensive housing work, including advocating for affordable housing; protecting clients from eviction and homelessness; and representing 150 low-income senior citizens who lost their homes and possessions in a fire that decimated their public housing building in Washington, DC.
Our Summer Program
Our summer program provides summer associates with exposure to the substantive skills they will use in practice, the firm’s core values, the meaningful work we do for our commercial and pro bono clients, and the opportunity to engage and connect with attorneys and summer associates across the firm.
We hire summer associates with the expectation that they will receive an offer to join us as associates after law school. Summer associates at Arnold & Porter experience the firm’s strong commitment to excellence, diversity and inclusion, pro bono, mentoring, and professional development. Our summer associates choose us because of:
- The depth and breadth of the practice areas we offer and the ability to receive assignments in a variety of practice areas throughout the summer.
- The firm’s unwavering commitment to pro bono and diversity and inclusion.
- The small size of our summer associate class in comparison to similarly-sized firms.
- Our attorneys and professional staff, who are committed to the success of the summer associate program.
2023 Summer Associate Testimonials
“Arnold & Porter has afforded me a plethora of meaningful opportunities to grow personally and professionally. The firm invests in the professional development and growth of junior associates by enabling them to take charge of substantive work. I learned some of the best practices of lawyering through my own assignments and under the mentorship of senior attorneys who deeply cared about my growth to provide thoughtful feedback and guidance. In this encouraging setting, I was able to take ownership of my work. Outside the work context, I was able to build important relationships with many attorneys at the firm, even across practice groups. The people at A&P have truly been the centerpiece of my summer experience, and I found mentors, role models, and friends in this network of people. From my summer at A&P, I developed relationships that I hope to take with me for the rest of my legal career.”
“This summer provided me the opportunity to meet some of the most kind, caring, and compassionate people.”
“The summer associate program at A&P is a well-structured and comprehensive program which allows junior professionals to explore different practice areas and network with attorneys at the firm. This was an invaluable opportunity in the long road of my professional development and I appreciate having been part of it.”
“The summer program at Arnold & Porter has been an amazing opportunity to gain working experience in the highest echelons of the legal profession. Not only has the work been interesting and mentally stimulating, but the people have also stood out as being kind, passionate, and truly caring about my personal and professional development. I cannot speak highly enough of my time at Arnold & Porter, and I would recommend the firm to any one of my friends.”
“Everyone here at Arnold & Porter genuinely cares about helping you become a better lawyer.”
“I am confident that I made the right decision in choosing Arnold & Porter as the firm to spend my 2L summer. The work was complex, challenging, and rewarding. Equally as important, the connections I made with my fellow summers and attorneys at the firm were fulfilling and meaningful. Students who are interested in working in Big Law should strongly consider Arnold & Porter both for its expertise as well as its professional and friendly work culture.”
“Arnold & Porter's legal and recruiting teams will do everything they can do to help you accomplish your professional goals--whether those goals involve individual development, learning about new areas of the law, looking for a clerkship, or long-term career strategy.”