Summer Associates

The firm offers a ten-week Summer Associate Program that provides students who have completed their second year of law school with a broad range of experiences and opportunities. An experienced partner oversees the program, and each summer associate is provided a mentor to assist him or her during the Summer Associate Program.

How to Apply

Preti Flaherty is now accepting applications for its 2023 Summer Associate Program.  To apply, please send your resume, writing sample, cover letter, list of references, and your law school transcript to:

Mary Johnston
Recruitment Coordinator
One City Center, PO Box 9546
Portland, ME 04112

Or by email to [email protected].

The Program

The Summer Associate Program is typically based in our Portland office, with the opportunity to work and gain experience in the firm's Augusta, Concord and Boston offices during the course of the summer. From time to time, however, the Summer Associate Program may hire students who are based primarily in the Augusta, Concord or Boston offices, with similar office rotation opportunities available. Throughout the summer, the partner in charge of the program solicits assignments from all attorneys within the firm, regardless of office location, but work is also assigned directly from attorneys once the summer associates arrive. The firm does not have a strict rotation program among various practice groups, but work distribution is carefully monitored to make sure that each person is given as broad an experience as possible. Summer associates with an interest in a particular area of law are encouraged to express their interests to their mentor and we work hard to make sure to find opportunities for them to gain experience in that area.

Real Work Experience

Summer associates at Preti Flaherty work on actual matters for real clients. In addition to research and writing opportunities, as part of their work assignments, summer associates are frequently given the opportunity to attend client meetings, court appearances, regulatory hearings, transactional closings, and legislative proceedings. The firm also hosts a number of social activities throughout the summer, including dinners at partners' homes, lobster bakes, sailboat rides, and baseball games in order to enhance the experience and become better acquainted with our attorneys in a more informal setting.

Summer associates are provided feedback on assignments they undertake throughout the summer. At the end of the Summer Associate Program, all attorneys within the firm are asked to provide written feedback on any summer associate with whom they worked, and these evaluations are reviewed by the firm's Recruitment Committee, which makes the final hiring decisions.

The Summer Associate Program is Preti Flaherty's primary hiring tool for new associates. The Summer Associate Program gives both the participants and us the best opportunity to learn about each other. Therefore, it is Preti Flaherty's goal to offer positions to as many of its summer associates as possible.