IE Talent and Careers Hosts Top Legal Firms at Annual Legal Talent Fair

IE Talent and Careers hosted Magic Circle firms and top-tier Spanish and international law firms at its annual Legal Talent Fair in the IE Tower. Some 200 IE Law School students networked with the firms’ HR heads, representatives, and lawyers at a morning and an afternoon cocktail.

The fair featured around 100 representatives from 32 top national and international firms recruiting for the Spanish market, including Clifford Chance, Linklaters, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Cuatrecasas, Garrigues, and Uría Menéndez.

The event offered students direct access to recruiters.

“This is one of the key events we organize for the legal sector, as all attending firms begin their internship recruitment processes in September and close around December,” said Silvia Martínez, Head of the Legal Sector at Talent and Careers, “Before the Fair, we work closely with students with our Career Success program to ensure they are ready, as successful internships usually lead to Junior positions at the firms.”

Martínez highlighted the importance of speaking face-to-face with HR heads, creating closer ties with them, and understanding their needs to make selecting IE students as easy and comfortable as possible.

Every year, around 65-70% of students in the Master Programs at IE Law School are recruited at one of the attending firms of the Legal Talent Fair, with 40% recruited from September to December.

Many recruiters across the firms praised IE students’ proactivity in conducting prior research and applying precociously to available positions and internship programs.

“IE students are already well acquainted with the company, they know the programs already, so we usually dedicate time to meeting students to look for, and find, specific profiles that match our needs,” said Natalia Guijo, Recruitment Specialist at Cuatrecasas.

Sonsoles García, Recruitment Executive at Clifford Chance, expressed the firm’s interest in meeting international and qualified talent and talking to students who are already involved in recruitment processes.

“We already know a good part of the talent at IE as many students have already applied to various processes,” she said, “this is a good opportunity for them to meet our lawyers who were in the same position as they are now and can give them advice.”

Several IE Alumni represented their firms and counseled current students on nailing recruitment processes and following in their footsteps.

Javier Bustillo, M&A partner at Andersen and president of the IE Alumni Legal Club, attended representing Andersen at the Fair.

“I am a great champion of IE students,” he said, “I think hiring IE talent is a guarantee of knowledge, commitment, and work ethic under pressure.”

Caridad Senderos, who graduated last July from the Doble Master en Abogacía y Procura + Asesoría Jurídica de Empresas Bilingüe represented Ontier and expressed her delight in being able to provide the information she also sought as a student at last year’s fair.

A focal point of many conversations was the tendency for recruitment processes to be less technical and more personal, equally seeking a cultural and technical fit.

María Ramos and Eugenia San Segundo, students of the Doble Master en Abogacía y Procura + Asesoría en Derecho Digital y de la Tecnología underscored the usefulness of networking with HR heads at the Fair.

“Building a brand regarding the process is key, as well as obtaining insights into what the firm is truly like and what types of profiles they are looking for,” said Ramos

San Segundo agreed and emphasized the importance of knowing in depth why you are applying to that specific department to obtain an edge in the selection process.

IE Talent and Careers remains committed to providing students with direct access to key industry players to improve their employability prospects. Next week, top firms in the Sustainability sector will be hosted at the IE Tower at the IE Sustainability Day.

A complete list of the 32 firms present at the event follows: A&O Shearman, Addleshaw Goddard, Andersen, Ashurst, Baker McKenzie, Bird & Bird, Cases & Lacambra, Ceca Magán, Clifford Chance, CMS Albiñana & Suárez de Lezo, Cuatrecasas, Deloitte Legal, Dentons, DLA Piper, Ernst & Young (EY), Eversheds Sutherland, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Garrigues, Gómez-Acebo & Pombo, Herbert Smith Freehills, Hogan Lovells, KPMG Abogados, Latham & Watkins, Linklaters, Ontier, Pérez-Llorca, Pinsent Masons, PwC, Squire Patton Boggs, Uría Menéndez, Watson Farley & Williams, White & Case.