Lex 100 - Vinson & Elkins

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Vinson & Elkins

CityPoint, 33rd Floor, One Ropemaker Street, London EC2Y 9UE

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The trainee verdict

The lowdown (in their own words...)

Why did you choose this firm over any others? 'Small trainee intake'; 'high quality of deals'; 'strong focus on the oil and gas industry'; 'good salary'; 'in London there is more opportunity to get better experience while also having the quality of work available at such an established global firm'; 'ambience of the firm'; 'the international nature of the work'; 'I enjoyed the vac scheme'; 'small office/good work balance'; 'liked the small size'

How does your training compare with peers' at other firms? 'I definitely have more responsibility than my friends at other firms'; 'level of client contact is much higher'; 'I genuinely love my job and the office I work in'; 'I believe we have longer hours'; 'get to do far more exciting work'; 'a lot more client contact'; 'can take on a greater variety of work'; 'the quality of the work trainees are given is good'

Best thing about the firm? 'The office is incredibly friendly'; 'very relaxed'; 'very flexible, for example, no application forms or interviews are needed for international seats'; 'you just need to let them know where you would like to do a seat abroad and they work really hard to make it happen'; 'the non-rotational seat structure is great - it means you get to experience working with different people'; 'culture is friendly and supportive and ego-free'

Worst thing about the firm? 'Hours can be long and the pressure can be intense at times'; 'the unpredictability of the hours'

Best moment? 'My secondment to the Hong Kong office'; 'closing a deal that had been all-consuming and then reading about it in the press'; 'completing two deals in the space of about three weeks: it was intense but satisfying'; 'the arbitration in Stockholm': 'drafting an expert report'

Worst moment? 'Long nights of bundling and disclosure'; 'preparation of standard disclosure'

The Lex 100 verdict

The firm

Texas firm Vinson & Elkins entered London in 1971 (and as such was one of the first US firms to establish an office in the UK). It has a global network of offices, and is widely admired for its expertise in energy and project finance, maintaining a strong flow of work on the back of the global activity in the sector.

The star performers

Arbitration; Electricity, nuclear and renewables; Mergers and acquisitions: lower mid-market, £50-250m; Private equity.

The deals

Advising Statoil on the $3.1bn sale of companies holding a 40% interest in the Peregrino oilfield; V&E Represents CONSOL Energy in Its Joint Venture with Noble Energy for Marcellus Shale Acreage; advisor to Energy Corporation of America (ECA) in the completion of the initial public offering of 8,802,500 of ECA's common units.

The clients

CONSOL Energy; ECA; Hg Renewable Power Partners; TPG Capital; TVM Capital MENA.

The Verdict

A relatively recent entrant to this book, Vinson & Elkins continues to draw great praise from its trainees. With one trainee declaring 'I genuinely love my job and the office I work in' and another describing it as an 'incredibly friendly, relaxed and very flexible' place to work, it isn't hard to see why the firm scores so well. Although the London office of this Texan giant is relatively modest, there are plenty of 'high-quality' deals to work on and with the firm's focus on the oil and gas industry they are often high value and international. Staff at the firm, from support to partners, are 'incredibly friendly, genuine and down-to-earth' so at least there is always someone to ask for help if you get stuck. If you are itching to get away and do a seat abroad then HR will work 'really hard to make it happen' and you could find yourself on secondment in the Hong Kong office. The non-rotational seat structure is also a popular feature meaning that 'you can choose to some extent the type of work you want to do and seek it out, even if your supervisor does not focus on it'. As with many US firms hours, often because of the time differences on international transactions, can be long and it can be 'intense', however the 'interesting work and good people helps you deal with it'. If the idea of working in a 'more meritocratic' firm where using your initiative pays dividends, then Vinson & Elkins is definitely one to consider.