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Summer Program |
Offices with a Summer Program | Palo Alto
The current time is 9:26 PM
Overview
At Perkins Coie, summer associates work closely with partners and associates on real legal work for our clients. In Palo Alto, our summer associates participate in various aspects of our Emerging Companies & Venture Capital, Patent & Trademark Procurement, Technology Transactions & Privacy and Litigation practices, working directly with entrepreneurs, inventors, venture capital investors and other technology-based clients.
For more detailed information on our program, please see below and visit our FAQs.
Work Assignments
Our summer associates are encouraged to seek assignments in all our practice areas. Assignments include (but are not limited to) the following:
- Emerging Companies & Venture Capital: drafting formation documents for new companies, employee benefits and executive compensation documents, joint venture agreements and corporate governance documents;
- Licensing & Technology: drafting software and end-user licensing agreements, writing privacy policies and terms of use and drafting support and maintenance agreements;
- Litigation: writing research memoranda, drafting pleadings, motions and briefs, preparing discovery responses and assisting with trial preparation; and
- Patent Prosecution: preparing trademark and patent applications, analyzing patent claims and developing patent portfolio filing strategies.
Attorney "Trackers" coordinate work assignments and monitor the type, quality and amount of work each summer associate receives. Summer associates are also encouraged to seek out assignments directly from senior associates and partners.
Supervising attorneys provide informal feedback to summer associates after each assignment, and they submit written, formal evaluations to the office hiring committee. The formal evaluations become part of each summer associate's midsummer and final evaluations.
Professional Development
Summer associates have the opportunity for both informal and formal training. Formal training includes programs on specific practice area topics (e.g., "How to Write a Patent Application," "How to Form a Company," "An Overview of Primary Licensing Agreements," and "The Ten Easiest Ways to Waive Attorney-Client Privilege") and programs on general professional topics (e.g., "How to Be a Successful Summer Associate"). Summer associates can also accompany attorneys to networking events, court hearings, invention disclosures and client meetings. Finally, summer associates are assigned mentors who ensure their integration to the firm, answer their many questions and generally guide their progress and development throughout the summer.
Pro Bono
Summer associates can work on pro bono matters. At the beginning of every summer, a local legal aid organization presents an in-office training program and then pairs interested summer associates with firm attorneys to work on available pro bono cases.
Diversity
Our Palo Alto attorneys are over 40% diverse and 32% are women. Summer associates are invited to attorney affinity group meetings, including our attorneys of color, women, GLBT and parents groups, as well as to diversity events and dinners sponsored by the firm. For a list of past events sponsored by the firm, please visit our Diversity Sponsorships page.
Sustainability
Our local Green Committee collaborates with the firm wide committee to develop and implement sustainability practices for the office and for individuals. The Palo Alto office is equipped with reusable plates, cups, bowls and silverware as part of waste reduction measures and, in addition to paper, plastic, metal and glass, we also offer battery, cell phone and used office supply recycling. Attorneys in the Palo Alto office also serve as pro bono counsel for the Sustainable Valley Foundation and we actively seek out sustainable initiatives to support.
Accolades and Awards
The Palo Alto office has recently been named a Best Place to Work in the San Francisco Bay Area by the San Francisco Business Journal. For the past ten years, the firm has been named to FORTUNE magazine's list of "The 100 Best Companies to Work For." It was also listed as one of the "Best Law Firms for Women" in 2008, 2009 and 2011 by Working Mother magazine and national consulting firm Flex-Time Lawyers LLC, as well as one of the "2008 Top Ten Family Friendly Firms" by Yale Law Women. The firm has also received a 100% rating on the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index in 2009 - 2013
For additional information, please review our NALP form or visit the NALP Directory of Legal Employers to view our online NALP form and Workplace Questionnaire.
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