Why did you choose to work at DLA Piper?

I was attracted by the firm’s international focus. DLA Piper has given me the opportunity to work on multi-jurisdictional matters and to collaborate with lawyers from across its offices such as Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, the USA, and Sweden. I found the opportunity to work at a firm focused on providing strategic, commercial advice to clients looking for a streamlined approach across its regions to be very attractive. 

I was impressed by DLA Piper’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion internationally and the approachable nature of colleagues. The best thing about DLA Piper is the people and there is a real sense of community amongst the global firm irrespective of which office you sit in. 

Is there anything you would like to highlight about your experiences at DLA Piper?

My experience at the firm has been that senior lawyers are committed to supporting juniors’ development. I’ve been grateful for the firm’s investment in my development including by providing me, as an employment lawyer, with a full range of litigious, advisory, and transactional work. This has given me the chance to grow my technical skills across all areas of employment law. 

The firm provides a range of formal and informal seminars to develop technical and professional skills. For example, I’ve participated in the firm’s career academy which is a programme available to lawyers at different stages of their careers. The programme helped me to develop my professional skills such as negotiating, client networking and presentation skills through a series of mock exercises with colleagues around the Asia Pacific region.

How would you describe the culture at DLA Piper?

DLA Piper is a values-based firm focused on collaboration, innovation, and it has a strong sense of community across its offices. The firm cares about its people, and this is seen by numerous initiatives for employees such as:

1.  Zone, a committee comprised of junior lawyers dedicated to running educational and social events designed to expand junior lawyers’ networks outside the firm and build business development skills;

2.  The “employment champions group”, which is a committee led by DLA Piper’s head of employment globally, focused on aligning DLA Piper’s international employment practices and ensuring employees feel connected with their colleagues overseas and remain happy at the firm; and 

3.  Iris, DLA Piper's LGBTQ+ and allies people network promoting an inclusive work environment for all colleagues.