Sidley Austin: What Law Students Should Know

Sidley Austin is the broadest firm in BigLaw. That is not a backhanded compliment, it is a genuine differentiator. While some elite firms concentrate on M&A and litigation and call it a day, Sidley has built nationally recognized practices in areas that most Vault firms ignore: healthcare regulatory, FDA life sciences, insurance, global finance, and intellectual property, alongside the standard-issue corporate and litigation practices that every top firm offers.

The Basics

• Vault Rank: #12
• Headquarters: Chicago
• US Offices: Chicago, New York, Washington DC, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Palo Alto, Houston, Dallas, Boston, Miami, Century City
• Size: ~2,000 attorneys worldwide
• Starting Salary: $225,000

What They Are Known For

M&A and corporate are strong and have grown significantly, particularly out of New York. Sidley handles major deals for both strategic and financial buyers.

Litigation spans the full spectrum, securities, commercial, IP, product liability, and appellate. The Supreme Court and appellate practice is one of the best in the country, with former Solicitors General and Supreme Court clerks populating the group.

But where Sidley truly differentiates itself is in its regulatory and specialty practices. The healthcare regulatory practice is the undisputed market leader. If a hospital system, pharmaceutical company, or health insurer needs counsel on FDA approval, Medicare reimbursement, or healthcare compliance, Sidley is the default choice. The life sciences practice is similarly dominant.

Insurance regulatory work is another specialty where Sidley leads the market nationally. The firm represents the largest insurance companies in the world on transactional, regulatory, and contentious matters.

Intellectual property, both litigation and prosecution, is a major practice, particularly in the technology and life sciences sectors. The firm has one of the largest IP practices of any full-service firm.

Global finance, including fund formation, banking and financial services regulatory, and investment management, rounds out the platform. Sidley advises some of the largest asset managers and financial institutions in the world.

Culture and Assignment

Sidley uses a department-based assignment system. Associates join a practice group and receive work through a coordinator and organic relationships. The system is structured enough that new associates are not left to fend for themselves, but flexible enough to allow you to gravitate toward the work you find most interesting.

The culture is Midwestern professional, polished, collegial, and not pretentious. Sidley does not have the swaggering confidence of some New York V5 firms. Instead, the firm's personality is more understated, competent, and workmanlike. People are pleasant. The work is excellent. Nobody is going to yell at you.

This can be a selling point or a drawback depending on what you are looking for. If you want the electric intensity of a firm where every associate is trying to out-credential everyone else, Sidley may feel too low-key. If you want a place where you can do elite work without the performative ego, it is ideal.

Summer Program

Sidley's summer class is large, typically 150-200 summers across all offices. Chicago and New York are the biggest classes.

The program is well-organized and gives summers exposure to the firm's full breadth of practices. If you are interested in healthcare regulatory or IP, areas that most summer programs do not let you try, Sidley is one of the few firms where you can actually touch that work during your summer.

Offer rates are consistently high. Sidley runs an efficient and well-resourced summer program.

Offices

The multi-office footprint is a genuine asset. Chicago is the headquarters and has a full-service practice. New York has grown enormously and rivals Chicago in headcount. DC is a regulatory powerhouse. LA, San Francisco, Palo Alto, Houston, Dallas, and Boston all have meaningful practices.

If you want geographic flexibility within the US, Sidley competes with Latham and Gibson Dunn as one of the best options. You can build a career in almost any major American city without feeling like you are in a satellite office.

Compensation

Sidley matches the Cravath scale. $225,000 base for first-years with a $21,000 bonus. Total first-year comp: approximately $246,000.

All major offices pay at full market. The firm's profitability supports market compensation across its footprint.

Who Should Apply

Sidley is the right firm for students who want optionality. If you are interested in healthcare, life sciences, insurance, IP, or other regulatory practices that most top firms do not do well, Sidley is the obvious choice. If you want a broad platform across multiple offices and a culture that does not take itself too seriously, Sidley delivers.

If you want a firm that is synonymous with one thing, PE deals, hostile takeovers, Supreme Court arguments, Sidley may feel too diffuse. But if you value breadth, geographic flexibility, and the ability to build a career in a specialty practice that most firms cannot offer, Sidley is hard to beat.