joining our team
Welcome to Wiley Rein LLP, a quintessentially Washington, DC law firm. Since opening our doors in 1983 with 38 lawyers, we have continually sought out the best and brightest lawyers from the nation’s top law schools to join our diverse, dynamic practice. As we celebrate our 25th anniversary, Wiley Rein is home to more than 270 attorneys specializing in almost two dozen areas of law.
At Wiley Rein, we believe who we are as a firm truly reflects who we are as individuals. We seek to recruit and retain attorneys who share our passion for our work and our commitment to our clients, community and families. In return, we encourage each attorney to find his or her path to professional excellence, providing unparalleled mentorship, professional development and opportunity.
With this brochure, we are delighted to share some of the many ways in which Wiley Rein stands apart from other law firms and hope that when embarking on your legal career, you consider the Wiley way.
Richard E. Wiley
Bert W. Rein
who we are‌ A young, dynamic law firm. Wiley Rein has been advocating our clients’ interests in the nation’s capital since 1983. We know Washington, DC like no other law firm, possessing unparalleled insidethe-beltway expertise, a deep bench of aggressive smarts and experienced, well-trained lawyers. Wiley Rein attracts attorneys who have excelled throughout their legal education, in government service and in industry and private practice. Practitioners include dozens of former clerks to the U.S. Supreme Court and various Courts of Appeal, District and other courts. Our ranks also include many who have served as U.S. prosecutors, federal agency general counsels or other members of the executive or legislative branches. The go-to firm for regulatory work in any industry. Wiley Rein lives at the center of the political, legal and technical worlds. We leverage deep regulatory and subject matter knowledge along with a singular understanding of the nuances of Washington to get results for clients who have critical business challenges. The firm is home to numerous attorneys and consultants who have held important
government posts in the legislative and executive branches, including high-level alumni of many regulatory agencies. Our vaunted network of Wiley Rein alumni who have returned to government service is one of our great strengths. Players on the national stage. Wiley Rein is a dynamic and accomplished legal resource offering superior transactional and litigation counsel as well as the highly specialized advice that comes from decades of aggressive advocacy. Our major practice groups are among the top three in their fields. Firm attorneys are regularly recognized by legal, industry and general publications as leading practitioners for their involvement in high-profile cases such as the BlackBerry patent dispute, Lowrys copyright case and Coors class actions, as well as their discretion in matters deliberately kept out of the spotlight. A powerful choice for a wide array of client needs. Our practice is as broad as it is focused. We provide a full range of business law services to clients large and small, public and private, domestic and international.
practice areas Advertising Antitrust Appellate Aviation Bankruptcy & Financial Restructuring Business & Finance Chemicals, Safety & Environment Communications Election Law & Government Ethics Employment & Labor Food & Drug and Product Safety Franchise Government Contracts Health Care Insurance Intellectual Property International Trade Litigation Postal Privacy Public Policy Tax White Collar Defense
our summer associate program… Wiley Rein’s summer associate program is the foundation of our recruiting efforts. We ensure that summer associates experience the excellence and diversity of our firm, and we provide opportunities for each student to handle responsibilities typically assumed by first-year associates. Assignments allow summer associates to develop legal skills as well as their creativity in crafting arguments, providing advice and solving problems. Our summer program stands apart in several key areas: Flexibility The defining feature of our program is the flexibility of work assignments. We assist students in tailoring their assignments so that they gain significant exposure to a wide variety of practice areas. A work-assignment database provides access to projects submitted by our attorneys. Summer associates also are encouraged to seek additional projects directly from the attorneys with whom they would like to work.
Feedback Supervising attorneys evaluate a summer associate’s work at the end of each project. In addition, summer associates receive formal mid-summer
and final performance reviews. These sessions provide summer associates with the opportunity to receive valuable feedback on their performance and provide feedback to the firm on our summer program and their overall experience at Wiley Rein.
Mentoring To help summer associates learn more about the firm and life as an attorney at Wiley Rein, each summer associate is assigned a team of mentors. Teams consist of one partner advisor, a mid-level associate and a junior associate. Mentors often review initial projects and advise about firm practice areas and the firm’s culture.
Social Events As a Washington, DC firm, our social events take advantage of all the city has to offer while providing summer associates the opportunity to get to know each other and our attorneys. Past events have included: • White House tour • Nationals games • Picnic for attorneys, staff and families • An evening at the Kennedy Center • Dinner parties hosted by partners • Golf outing • Our much-imitated but neverreplicated scavenger hunt
“Wiley Rein is a great place to spend the summer. Partners and associates alike make an effort to ensure that each summer associate is integrated into the firm, both socially and professionally.� — christina eberhart, former Summer Associate
“Wiley Rein’s free-market system empowers associates to self determine their work assignments and practice area interests, while also providing the opportunity for each associate to be responsible for managing their own workload.” — megan brown, Associate
associate life and professional development… Not only do we recruit the best and the brightest associates, but we remain committed to helping associates build their careers. From day one, associates serve as an important part of our teams, and leanly staffed matters allow us to provide our new attorneys with early client contact and meaningful responsibility. We believe that the best form of professional development comes as a result of the dayto-day interactions with more senior attorneys. We also pride ourselves on our multifaceted approach to developing associates. Our programs include: Integration Program
Training
We provide a variety of educational and social events to help our new associates learn about the firm and our attorneys. Our “New Associates U” program is a two-day training program designed to give new attorneys the tools and support they need to succeed at the firm. In addition, our largest practices conduct a series of workshops that introduce the practical concepts of each area of law.
We offer a full curriculum of training and CLE programs designed to help associates learn and build their skills. Programs include advanced legal writing, oral communications for lawyers, litigation nuts and bolts, business development and CLE programs on cutting-edge issues.
Project Assignments Assignments are handled through our “free-market” assignment system. While each associate identifies a primary practice area of interest, we also encourage associates to explore other practice areas. We operate without rigid departments, providing associates the opportunity to manage their own levels of work and to take on assignments that allow them to develop skills while meeting our clients’ needs. An Assignment Subcommittee monitors workloads and checks in regularly with new attorneys to help coordinate assignments as needed.
Mentoring Our mentor program provides each associate with a team of mentors, all of whom are committed to helping the new lawyer succeed. Mentors answer questions, provide assignment and career guidance and make introductions as associates acclimate to the firm.
Associates Committee The firm’s Associates Committee serves as a resource for associates to communicate with firm management and manages several aspects of the firm’s associate life experience and professional development. The committee includes partners and associates who are elected by their peers. From training programs to quarterly community service events, members of the Associates Committee work together to ensure that our firm remains a great place to work.
Compensation Our associate salaries are competitive with other major Washington, DC law firms. We are committed to the goal of maintaining a healthy and balanced work environment by allowing our associates to make decisions in the office that have a positive impact on their lives outside the firm, including the opportunity to choose their levels of work and compensation. In keeping with those goals, we offer two tiers of salaries based on billable-hours levels: one level
at 1,800 billable-hours and another level at 1,950 billable-hours. For those associates who choose the 1,800 level and reach either 1,875 billable-hours or 1,950 billable-hours, we offer deferred compensation at year-end. This allows our associates flexibility in their choices and lifestyle.
Feedback Recognizing that frequent and detailed feedback is critical to an associate’s development, senior attorneys meet with junior associates on a regular basis to discuss their progress. Associates initially receive an informal six-month review, followed by an annual performance evaluation. In addition, we encourage associates to provide firm management with feedback regarding their supervisors and firm programs through annual “upstream reviews.”
Work/Life Balance The firm is committed to fostering an environment that enables our attorneys to seek a suitable and comfortable balance between their professional and personal lives. In an effort to help our attorneys meet their goals both inside and outside of the office, we offer alternative work schedules and emergency backup child care. In short, at Wiley Rein we provide associates the flexibility to customize careers to suit their lifestyles.
committed to diversity… Wiley Rein is committed to a professional workforce that reflects the rich diversity of our client base and our community. We believe our clients are enriched by working with a diverse group of exceptional attorneys who, through different perspectives and experiences, allow us to undertake more creative thinking and to produce more innovative solutions. Our Diversity Committee continues to advance our efforts by identifying innovative programs and initiatives and by developing and maintaining policies and practices that promote a diverse attorney population. Our efforts include: Law School Outreach Programs We regularly participate in activities hosted by minority law school organizations. Recently, such organizations have included Harvard Law School Black Law Students Association, Harvard Law School Asian Pacific American Law Students Association, University of Pennsylvania Law School Muslim Law Students Association and University of Pennsylvania Law School Latin American Law Students Association. We also participate in Road Shows offered at several law schools, including: Yale Law School, Harvard Law School, Columbia Law School, New York University School of Law, The George Washington University Law School, Georgetown University Law Center, Howard University School of Law, The Catholic University of America Columbus School
of Law, Duke University School of Law and University of Virginia School of Law. In addition, our attorneys conduct panels on a variety of career-related topics at local law schools and we have hosted members of American University’s Black Law Students Association at Wiley Rein for a half day program on private practice and life as an associate.
Bar Associations Wiley Rein supports our attorneys’ participation in minority and women’s bar association activities. We are proud that several of our attorneys have held leadership roles in such organizations. We have sponsored our attorneys’ participation in the National Bar Association, the Asian Pacific American Bar Association, the Women’s Bar Association and Hispanic Bar Association, among others.
FCBA Foundation Scholarship Through the Federal Communications Bar Association Foundation, Wiley Rein provides an annual $20,000 scholarship to a graduating high school senior in the District of Columbia who is interested in pursuing a career in communications.
Informal Mentoring and Support In addition to the many professional development programs offered by the firm, our minority associates are provided with informal mentoring and support from peers and more senior attorneys. The firm proudly sponsors the DC Minority Networking Series, which provides networking and professional development opportunities to minority attorneys in the Washington, DC area.
“Wiley Rein actively encourages attorneys to become involved with activities and initiatives outside of the firm. I’ve enjoyed having the opportunity to be involved in events that create networking relationships beyond my own daily routine.” — LINA SONI, ASSOCIATE
“The opportunity to be involved in pro bono and community service programs and initiatives has been a very rewarding aspect of my time here at the firm. We take pride in our strong tradition of community service.� — Scott Woodworth, Associate
pro bono and community outreach… Wiley Rein prides itself on its strong tradition of pro bono representation and service to the local community. The firm encourages its lawyers to participate in pro bono activities. Not only do such activities fulfill our obligation to give back to our community, they also contribute to a heightened sensitivity to client needs, increased depth of experience, sharpened legal abilities and the development of a well-rounded lawyer. Simply put, participation in pro bono makes Wiley Rein attorneys better lawyers. The firm is frequently recognized for its activities in this area and has been selected as the Volunteer Organization of the Year by Calvary Women’s Services, a non-profit organization that provides shelter and services to homeless women in DC. In addition, one of our partners was selected by the Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia’s 17th Annual Servant of Justice Award, in recognition of his superior dedication and achievement in ensuring equal and meaningful access to justice in the District of Columbia. Associates are encouraged to pursue pro bono matters in areas of interest to them. Some of the firm’s recent pro bono projects include: Working with the Disability Rights Council and the Washington Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs, Wiley Rein secured a multi-million dollar settlement of a class action lawsuit brought against
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) to remedy the substandard service of MetroAccess, the curb-to-curb “paratransit” service for those with disabilities. Working with the Legal Aid Society of DC, the firm secured a settlement in a class action case involving alleged predatory practices by one of DC’s largest managers of low-income rental housing. Our attorneys regularly represent individuals in domestic violence cases, Social Security benefit disputes and child custody matters. We also represent veterans in efforts to obtain benefits. Through our Associates Committee, we coordinate several community service projects for all attorneys and employees. These include:
Sandwiches for the Needy During the summer, Wiley Rein attorneys, summer associates and staff
gather to make sandwiches for DC Central Kitchens to distribute to underprivileged children. Each year, enthusiastic volunteers make more than 2,500 sandwiches and raise funds for this worthy organization.
Giving Thanks and Sharing At Thanksgiving, attorneys and support staff “adopt” several families and ensure that they receive a bountiful Thanksgiving dinner. In addition to these events, the firm’s attorneys and staff support a variety of other community service activities, including the donation of holiday toys and gifts to underprivileged children, as well as warm clothes and blankets to local shelters. Wiley Rein attorneys and staff also regularly participate by running and walking to raise funds in such annual races as Lawyers Have Heart.
“Having initially joined the firm as an associate, I know firsthand the tremendous opportunities the firm provides associates. I am proud of Wiley Rein and its reputation as a premier law firm.� — Scott McCaleb, hiring partner
Wiley Rein LLP is a workplace committed to the letter and spirit of equal employment opportunity without regard to race, color, sex, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, source of income, family status and all other conditions protected by applicable state and federal law.
Cert no. XXX-XXX-XXX
Attorneys appearing in this brochure: Page 2, Peter Shields; Page 3, Dan Graham; Page 5: Christina Eberhart and Ted Howard; Page 6, Megan Brown; Page 9, Lina Soni; Page 10, Scott Woodworth and Nicole Wishart; Page 12, Scott McCaleb.
Washington, DC 1776 K Street NW Washington, DC 20006 202.719.7000 202.719.7049 (fax)
Northern Virginia 7925 Jones Branch Drive McLean, VA 22102 703.905.2800 703.905.2820 (fax)
www.wileyrein.com/careers recruiting@wileyrein.com