Summer Associate Program

Hancock Estabrook’s program for summer associates introduces law students to our Firm by allowing them to experience the practical aspects of private practice. The expectations of summer associates are the same of those as a new associate at the Firm and summer associates will receive assignments from all the Firm’s practice areas.  This experience helps them concentrate on their major areas of interest. Each summer associate is assigned a supervising attorney and an associate mentor to help regulate the flow of assignments, facilitate exposure to different practice areas, provide guidance and feedback and generally act as a sounding board. Rather than confine our students to a formal rotation program, we expose our summer associates to multiple practice areas throughout the summer. While research and writing are important parts of the summer program, we provide our summer associates with numerous opportunities to attend client meetings, trials, depositions and motions.

Feedback and communication are an integral part of our summer program. We strongly encourage our attorneys to provide guidance and suggestions to summer associates on a project-by-project basis. Each summer associate also has a formal midsummer review and an exit interview with the Hiring Committee at the end of the program.

The social aspects of the Summer Associate Program are eagerly anticipated by summer associates and Firm attorneys alike, and are considered integral to the hiring process. These gatherings, which have recently included a dinner cruise on Skaneateles Lake, a wine tour in the Finger Lakes, a charter fishing trip on Lake Ontario and impromptu get-togethers, provide unique opportunities for summer associates to interact with and get to know our attorneys in fun and informal settings.

Hancock Estabrook conducts on-campus interviews at a variety of law schools and actively seeks applications from law students throughout the country. Our attorneys are graduates of more than 20 different law schools. After the initial on-campus interviews, we invite a number of students to our offices for a second round of interviews.

To request an on-campus interview with a member of Hancock Estabrook’s Hiring Committee, please submit your résumé through your law school’s placement office.