Your Journey Starts Here
Where and how you spend your law school summers can have a big impact on your legal career. If you are looking for a firm that values academic excellence, leadership, curiosity, and innovation consider DWT. As a summer associate, you’ll experience diversity in your work and engage in stimulating assignments. Your mentors will be industry leaders who are invested in your growth and success. The Summer Associates Program is rich with activities and trainings designed to integrate you into the fabric of the firm.
Apply- 1L Diversity Scholarships
- 1L Patent Prosecution Summer Associate
- 2L OPPORTUNITIES/ON-CAMPUS INTERVIEWS
1L Diversity Scholarships
Our 1L Diversity Scholarship Program is one significant way to help us advance diversity in the legal profession. We are offering four scholarships in the following offices in 2023: Los Angeles (1), Portland (1), Seattle (1), and Washington, D.C. (1). As a 1L Diversity Scholarship recipient, you will receive a paid position in our Summer Associate Program and $15,000 for your second year tuition and expenses.
Criteria
Our Diversity Scholarships are open to first-year law students who are:
- Committed to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive legal profession; and
- Committed to practicing law after graduating law school in the location in which they are applying.
Students with backgrounds traditionally underrepresented in the practice of law are highly encouraged to apply.
To Apply
Our online application site for the 1L Diversity Scholarships opens in early December, and your application must be received by 11:59 pm PST on January 8, 2023 to be considered. We will review and interview candidates on a rolling basis. To apply, you must submit your documents online via our application site (we will not accept applications via email). Please make sure your contact information is current and that your voicemail can receive messages. You will need the following documents ready to upload for your application:
- Current Resume*
- Cover letter (please indicate your connection to Seattle in the letter and address to Sandra Morriss, Manager, Law Student Talent Acquisition)
- Personal Statement**
- Legal writing sample, not heavily edited by a third party (generally 5-10 pages)
- List of three references (one of whom is qualified to comment on your law school work)
- Complete undergraduate transcripts (unofficial copies are acceptable)
- Law school transcript for fall term (unofficial copy is acceptable)***
* Please upload your resume in Word format so our application system may extract your information accurately when creating your submission. On the following page, you edit any information extracted and add additional documents before finally submitting your application.
**Your personal statement should help us learn more about you. Topics can vary widely and may include: how diversity is a driving factor for you, how you currently contribute to a diverse community and how you hope to do so in the future, what you would like us to know about you that is not in your resume and cover letter, or how your personal experience shaped your perspective on diversity. Your personal statement should be no more than one page, single-spaced, and 12-point font. Please include your name in the header but do not address your personal statement to anyone.
***If your transcript is not currently available, please submit your application without it. You will receive a follow-up email by mid-January with a link and instructions for submitting it online.
1L Patent Prosecution Summer Associate
Davis Wright Tremaine LLP is accepting applications for a 1L Patent Prosecution Summer Associate in our Seattle office. The first year student selected to fill this role will join the Summer Associate Program and work closely with DWT’s Patent Prosecution team.
Criteria
Our 1L Patent Prosecution Summer Associate position is open to first-year law students who:
- Have a technical background and an interest in patent prosecution;
- Are patent bar eligible with an electrical engineering, mathematics, or computer science background;
- Are committed to practicing in Seattle after law school; and
- Have work experience with electrical and/or software engineering in the software industry (a plus)
Students with backgrounds traditionally underrepresented in the practice of law are highly encouraged to apply.
To Apply
Our online application site for the 1L Patent Prosecution Summer Associate position in the Seattle office opens in early December, and your application must be received by 11:59 pm PST on January 8, 2023 to be considered. We will review and interview candidates on a rolling basis. To apply, you must submit your documents online via our application site (we will not accept applications via email). Please make sure your contact information is current and that your voicemail can receive messages. You will need the following documents ready to upload for your application:
- Current Resume*
- Cover letter (please indicate your connection to Seattle in the letter and address to Sandra Morriss, Manager, Law Student Talent Acquisition)
- Personal Statement**
- Legal writing sample, not heavily edited by a third party (generally 5-10 pages)
- List of three references (one of whom is qualified to comment on your law school work)
- Complete undergraduate transcripts (unofficial copies are acceptable)
- Law school transcript for fall term (unofficial copy is acceptable)***
* Please upload your resume in Word format so our application system may extract your information accurately when creating your submission. On the following page, you edit any information extracted and add additional documents before finally submitting your application.
** If your transcript is not currently available, please submit your application without it. You will receive a follow-up email by mid-January with a link and instructions for submitting it online.
2L Opportunities/On-Campus Interviews
DWT accepts applications for 2L Summer Associate opportunities during the summer between 1L and 2L year. Exact application window dates and applicant criteria will be announced in spring 2023.
OCI & JOB FAIR SCHEDULE
We are excited to participate in On-Campus Interviews and Job Fairs in 2023. The full list schools and fair programs we will join will be available in spring 2023.
In recent years we have participated in the Lavender Law Career Fair, Northwest Minority Job Fair, NYU Global Virtual Event, Patent Law Interview Program, and Southern Region of the Black Law Students Association (SRBLSA) Career Fair. We have also interviewed students through OCIs at Howard University School of Law, Lewis & Clark Law School, Seattle University School of Law, University of California – Hastings College of Law, University of Oregon School of Law, University of Washington School of Law, and Willamette University College of Law.
Summer Associate FAQ
2Ls: We accept applications for 2L Summer Associate positions during June and July 1L summer through our website or via On-Campus Interview programs. We are not able to visit every law school for OCI so, if DWT seems to be a good fit for you, we encourage you to apply online (please do not email us your application). Typically half of our summer class is made up of students who have sought us out directly.
- Initial: A candidate will meet with one or two people via video and the meeting will take up to an hour.
- Callbacks/Second round: Pre-COVID, these took place in our office and usually involved meeting 6-8 people. Currently, we will conduct second round interviews by video and they may last up to 3 hours with a few breaks in between.
Senior Manager, Talent Acquisition & Inclusion
hirokoperaza@dwt.com
Sandra Morriss
Manager, Law Student Talent Acquisition
sandramorriss@dwt.com
Valerie Close
Recruiting Coordinator, Lawyer Talent Acquisition
valerieclose@dwt.com