Annie Wan is a trainee lawyer in Hong Kong. She tells us about her experience so far and why White & Case is a great place to start your career.

So what were Annie's first impressions? "My first impression of the Firm was how lovely the people are. This is a Firm that cares about the people who work here, including at an intern level." 

International and diverse

For Annie, the prospect of working at a truly global firm was a definite plus. "If you are someone who is interested in starting at a firm, with true international prospects (one that does not just say that they are 'international' because they have an office somewhere else) and challenges people to be diverse, then I think this is the best place for you to start your career."

That goes for working in Hong Kong too: "This location not only allows for us to deal with different types of clients from various parts of the world, but also lets us meet a diverse group of people from different types of backgrounds, all finding new ways of working together. As a trainee, you also get exposure to senior lawyers who were trained under different systems."

Rotating between seats and learning new skills

Tell us a bit about the work you do. "For my first seat, I was in Bank Finance. This was a very fast-paced transactional seat, where I learned a lot about project management and the importance of keeping my inbox well managed, as I would receive more than 100 emails a day. Now I have rotated into a seat in Disputes. Here the pace is much slower, but one task might take you a whole day to do properly. There is a lot of research involved, so my university research skills have really come in handy."

Annie reflects on how White & Case is different from other law firms. "I think our difference lies in the people. We spend a lot of time making sure that we are hiring the right people, people who are not only good at their jobs, but also can get along well with others and have a sense of team spirit."

Hard work and team spirit

One highlight of Annie's time so far was celebrating the close of a deal with her team: "After many long hours working together towards a closing, finally being able to get there and then celebrate—that was a great feeling."

What's next for Annie at White & Case? She's keen to keep developing her skills. "I am most looking forward to just learning and improving my everyday skillsets at work. It's a fast-paced learning environment, so people expect you to be agile and adapt quickly to the working environment."

Finally, how would Annie sum up working at White & Case so far? Her answers: "Forward-thinking, team-building and "One Firm."