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Bird & Bird

Unique selling points

  • Renowned for its expertise in technology and communications, the firm leverages years of sector experience in perhaps the world’s fastest growing and most influential industry.
  • Chambers and Partners have awarded the firm Band 1 rankings for its Data Protection & Information Law, Franchising, Sport and Telecommunications departments. 
  • Recognised for its innovative legal services and technological expertise including its Legal Project Delivery department and solutions like twoBirds Access and Smartsheets.
  • Actively promotes a diverse and inclusive workforce and its initiatives include its Global Women’s Development programme and various D&I employee networks. 
  • Consistently advises on complex, high-profile legal matters across cutting-edge areas of law, showcasing its ability to handle large, international cases and transactions for clients in various sectors.
  • Throughout the training contract, trainees take part in a business development programme to set the building blocks for their future careers.

We cover these selling points in more detail below, alongside other relevant firm facts and characteristics.

Practice areas / services

Bird & Bird a full-service law firm, with a broad range of practice areas including:

  • Commercial
  • Competition and EU Law
  • Corporate
  • Digital Rights and Assets
  • Finance and Financial Regulation
  • Franchising
  • Infrastructure
  • Intellectual Property
  • International Dispute Resolution
  • International HR Services
  • Investigations
  • Outsourcing
  • Privacy and Data Protection
  • Product Compliance and Liability
  • Regulatory and Public Affairs
  • Public Projects and Procurement
  • Real Estate
  • Regulatory and Administrative
  • Restructuring and Insolvency
  • Tax
  • Tech Transactions
  • Trade and Customs

Chambers and Partners, a leading analyst of the legal market, has awarded Bird & Bird its highest ‘Band 1’ ranking for the following departments: Data Protection & Information Law, Franchising, Sport and Telecommunications. See here for more information

Key sectors / industries

Bird & Bird services a broad range of industries, with some of its highest-value clients operating in the following sectors:

In addition, Bird & Bird services the following industries: automotive; aviation and aerospace; defence and security; energy and utilities; hotels, hospitality and leisure; and media, entertainment and sport.

Work

Bird & Bird consistently works on high profile, cross border work. Some examples of its work include: 

  • Mothercare: The firm advised Mothercare on the sale of 51% of its shares in a new joint venture JVCO 2024 Limited to Reliance Brands UK Limited. 
  • Sizewell C: Bird & Bird created the legal blueprint for the first transaction of its kind where existing nuclear licensed land has been transferred for new nuclear development on a freehold basis. 
  • Pret A Manger: The firm advised Pret A Manger on a strategic joint venture partnership with an existing franchisee, Dallas International, helping to accelerate the company’s growth in the US.

Older examples

  • Sojitz: Bird & Bird advised Sojitz Corporation in its investment in Twinner GmbH (A German car autoscanner developer), digitalizing vehicle interior and exterior data.
  • Flex: The firm advised the Hungarian subsidiary of the multinational electronics manufacturer in connection with the placement of bonds with the National Bank of Hungary. 
  • Azolver Holding: Bird & Bird represented Azolver Holding GmbH, a market leading distributor of franking machines and provider of asset tracking and parcel shipping, in its sale of subsidiaries in several countries. 

Offices / global footprint / expansion

Headquarters: London, 12 New Fetter Lane

Offices: Bird & Bird has a total of 30 offices in cities across the globe, including Dusseldorf, Casablanca, San Francisco, and Abu Dhabi.

Insights, internships and other opportunities

Bird & Bird offers several opportunities for students to gain direct experience of working life at the firm. Students in any year of their degree can apply to become a Bird & Bird Campus Ambassador, which involves representing the firm at their university at law events and in focus groups, whilst gaining a deeper understanding of a global law firm. For more hands-on experience, Bird & Bird runs a Spring and Summer Vacation Scheme each year, during which attendees get to work on client projects and network with the firm’s lawyers.

Training contract

Bird & Bird offers a four-seat training contract, with each seat lasting six months. Trainees are given the opportunity to state their preferred practice areas, with the firm recognising and supporting each individual’s unique interests. Throughout the two years, trainees take part in a business development programme to set the building blocks for their future careers. Alongside professional development, the firm encourages trainees to get involved in responsible initiatives and join some of the many social groups enjoyed by employees. 

Note that Bird & Bird has an employment hub called The Nest with lots of tips and a list of the key competencies the firm looks for.

Secondments

Bird & Bird offer trainees the opportunity to apply for a client secondment.

Technology and innovation

Bird & Bird has long been considered a uniquely tech-savvy firm, and has built on this reputation in recent years through its award-winning Client Solutions initiatives. These solutions include: 

  • Smartsheets: Bird & Bird has developed Smartsheets which are used internally to track tasks as well as externally to give gaming studios an overview of all current and historical requests. The firm shares a weekly Smartsheet report with clients to improve visibility. 
  • twoBirds Access: The firm’s Legal Project Delivery team created a solution for clients where all of the clients' locations had an individual dashboard that enabled requests to be submitted.
  • Legal Project Delivery: Bird & Bird has developed a specialised Legal Project Delivery Team, that works seamlessly with the firm’s lawyers to ensure that the delivery of legal matters and projects is as efficient as possible. The team provides project management, process optimisation, and data analysis to clients throughout each step of the project.
Corporate social responsibility

Bird & Bird is “passionate about making a positive difference to people’s lives”. To this end, the firm commits its “time, consideration, and full expertise” to helping those who need support. Pro bono projects include:

  • South Westminster Legal Advice Centre (SWLAC): The firm provides solicitors and trainees to volunteer at the centre one evening each week. It is located near Victoria Station and provides free legal advice on a drop-in basis relating to areas such as housing, employment and consumer rights. 
  • OwnIt: Members of Bird & Bird attend clinics every six weeks to advise on issues graduates from the University of Arts face to avoid being taken advantage of as they venture into exploiting their intellectual property for commercial purposes. 
  • Oxfam International: The firm has worked with Oxfam’s in-house legal team to provide advice on a wide range of IP issues. 

Diversity and inclusion

Bird & Bird believes upholding an inclusive culture and diverse workforce makes the firm “more innovative and agile”. To maintain such a culture and workforce, the firm has embedded a number of diversity and inclusion goals in its firm-wide strategy. Initiatives include: 

  • Global Women’s Development Programme: In 2016, the firm introduced a Global Women’s Development Programme which is a firm-wide programme to support more women on the path to partnership. 
  • Embrace Network: This is Bird & Bird’s multicultural employee-led network, which aims to support the advancement of racial and cultural diversity across the firm. It focuses on perspective, policy, awareness and events. 
  • Beyond Backgrounds: This is the firm’s internal social mobility network which aims to foster an inclusive and supportive workplace culture for individuals from less privileged and more diverse social backgrounds.