A professional, team-oriented and supportive workplace to achieve your personal and professional goals
Unique Professional Opportunities
For lawyers at all stages of their careers, we offer unique professional opportunities; exposure to sophisticated national and international legal matters, both contentious and transactional; a team approach to practice; a careful introductory training at your new workplace, comprehensive internal and external training; the option of working in either our Zurich or Geneva offices; and, for qualified candidates, assistance in gaining practical experience abroad. Here you will find a professional, team-oriented and supportive workplace conducive to achieving your personal and professional goals.
Our people are our competitive advantage. We consider our lawyers to be the key for the present and future success of our firm. Therefore, at Schellenberg Wittmer, each lawyer gets careful and responsive Career Planning and Development.
Career Planning and Development
We achieve that through a combination of
- continuous internal and external education,
- “management by objectives”, and a
- comprehensive annual evaluation and qualification process.
As our Alumni have shown, what you learn at Schellenberg Wittmer you take with you, no matter where you go or what you do.
Continuous Internal and External Education
Each associate is continuously educated on the job as well as in specially designed internal training programs and workshops of the relevant practice area. Furthermore, the firm identifies the useful external education such as seminars and courses, sends the associate lawyer and pays for the cost.
Practice Group Trainings
Each year, the practice groups design internal training programs to educate their practice group members in their specific field of law. Internal trainings are often held over lunch. Such training sessions may be dedicated to more basic subjects for first-year associates (e.g., in the M&A practice group, incorporation of a business, capital increases, shareholders’ agreements, due diligence, etc.), or, in other sessions, to lessons learned from a current transaction or case for more advanced attendants. This training is periodically complemented with specialized half- or full-day work-shops dedicated to the in-depth analysis of a specific subject.
Schellenberg Wittmer Academy
In response to a need for further training and development to excellence the Schellenberg Wittmer Academy Program has been created. While the practice groups concentrate on the education of the associates in their respective field of law, the Schellenberg Wittmer Academy focuses on the firmwide consistent training of our associate lawyers in developing their advocacy and future partner skills. The program is designed and adapted to our internal career development and planning system and runs from the first year to the 7th year with specially designed courses for each level of experience. The courses encompass topics such as the firm’s understanding of top quality of services, English legal writing, individual presentations techniques, marketing tools, handling of complex international matters, etc.
Management by Objectives
For each year, our lawyers set themselves career objectives in individually selected areas such as know how development, scholarly research and publications, client relationship management, business development or other internal projects. The objectives are coordinated, discussed and agreed with the practice group partners. The quality and the degree of achievement of those objectives are assessed and appreciated at the end of the year in the evaluation and qualification process and form part of the annual overall assessment.
Evaluation and Qualification Process
After a careful assessment process in which all partners of the respective site are involved, each associate lawyer receives annually a detailed feedback and qualification with respect to her or his performance during the past calendar year. The qualification is discussed with the relevant associate in a full and frank way and shall build the basis for the further individual development of the associate.
Introductory Training Program
Each new associate lawyer receives in the first weeks intensive training on our software tools and is familiarized with our various processes, such as legal research, know-how database, internal training, billing, etc.
Part-time Work
The firm, as a matter of policy and practice, recognizes the value of and supports part-time work schedules for lawyers in appropriate circumstances. Especially in cases of childcare, Schellenberg Wittmer is committed to seeking to balance the clients’ and the firm’s interest with the special needs of the concerned lawyers.
Schellenberg Wittmer considers that part-time work does not exclude the possibility to be eligible as a partner. Schellenberg Wittmer accepts that the time to partnership may be extended in order to take into account part-time work.
Female Careers with Schellenberg Wittmer
The firm is committed to improving gender balance at the partner level. Our part-time work options aim at helping our female lawyers in achieving their individual balance between their professional and family life. We also consider that promoting gender equality is a goal that includes other aspects such as recruiting, training, mentoring, and networking.
Permanent Recruiting
We permanently recruit promising associate lawyers to expand our practice teams in Zurich and Geneva. Successful candidates must be ambitious, principled, and possess an excellent academic record, sound judgment and innate business sense. They must also exhibit personal initiative and a desire to excel combined with dedication both to client service and our team approach.
If you seek an exciting career in a premier Swiss business law practice, one that offers the opportunity to gain global experience, to work on cutting-edge deals and complex dispute resolution matters, and to develop from an outstanding law student into an outstanding lawyer as you collaborate with colleagues who are leaders in their field of practice, then Schellenberg Wittmer represents the ideal environment for realizing your ambitions.
Please contact: