Everyone is very collegiate here and there is a genuine sense of friendship within teams and within cohorts.
The workplace culture is friendly and collegiate. While people obviously prioritise their work, they understand that good relationships with colleagues is important and generally engage in activities and events with their colleagues. Examples of these activities include after-hours drinks, monthly office events to celebrate particular occasions (such as Wear it Purple Day or Lunar New Year), weekly group morning tea and team lunches with interns. While there is a hierarchy based on seniority, in practice many teams often operate very 'horizontally', that is, senior managers will treat junior team members as equals.
The workplace culture is excellent. The firm is committed to the learning and development of its juniors, and senior staff are typically very approachable, supportive and willing to spend time to assist others. The firm regularly hosts social events for staff both in the office and at catered venues. There are a number of committees responsible for sports, social, community and culture events.
Whilst I have heard socialisation has dropped off in recent years after COVID amongst the older cohorts, I have personally found the culture to be fantastic. There are plenty of opportunities to get to know lots of people around the firm and get involved, whilst bringing your true self to work. Our graduate cohort gets along extremely well, as does each of the teams that I rotate through which makes cooperation and teamwork seamless. Whilst the structure and hierarchy was initially intimidating, it quickly became clear that many partners and senior lawyers are down to earth, approachable and eager to be involved like everyone else. I feel like my point of view is valued by senior members of staff, and they will often seek it out, despite having a lot more experience and knowledge in comparison to myself.
My team's hierarchy is relatively flat insofar as juniors will often query partners thinking on matters. Team members also seem comfortable raising questions with the partners that relate to the firms gender equity policies etc. I would say the culture is a positive one. The team is also close-knit and enjoys socialising.