Salaries at Clifford Chance follow a set lock-step schedule, and as yet, there has not been a pay freeze at the firm.  Bonuses in 2008 were slashed to less than half of 2006 levels, but 2006 levels were so high that the comparatively meager 2008 bonus amount still matched market levels this year. 

Clifford Chance emphasizes on-the-job training, but the firm also offers regular, formal training sessions and a unique global business skills curriculum that one Lateral Link Member calls "great training."  Rotations are mandatory for junior associates.  One Lateral Link Member complains that "associates have little say in the work they do."  The firm is not known as a particularly social place, but some Lateral Link Members say that this can be a good thing:  Once they finish their work, they are free to pursue other life interests.  Associates report that they "work long hours, but that is to be expected from any firm with this caliber of work."  In January 2009, Clifford Chance laid off 20 New York litigators and 70-80 London lawyers.

Although there is no official minimum billable hour requirement, according to one Lateral Link Member, the firm implemented an undisclosed minimum hours cut-off for bonus eligibility in 2008.  Generally, billable hours are expected to be in the range of 1,850 to 2,100, and the consequence of not meeting that expectation is a reduced bonus.

The firm offers four weeks of vacation time, but Lateral Link Members say that most attorneys do not take advantage of their full vacation allotment.  Associates often finding themselves working on weekends and holidays, with one Lateral Link Member going so far to say that weekends are "just another workday."  The importance of face time varies by practice area and partner, but the consensus is that attorneys are expected to be in the office during normal working hours; one Lateral Link Member notes that unless a certain amount of face time is put in, "partners forget that you exist."

Clifford Chance recommends that its attorneys perform 50 hours of pro bono work, but there is no mandatory requirement.  Pro bono work is given the same consideration as other client work in determining billable hours and bonus.

The firm has a two-tier partnership system.  Attorneys often spend two to three years as a non-equity partner, and they are then eligible for equity partner after an average of eight to ten years.

The firm provides a $10,000 relocation stipend to new associates.  All associates enjoy a subsidized on-site cafeteria, subsidized gym membership, car service after 8:30 p.m., museum membership, and access to firm-owned vacation properties.  The firm also provides a "voucher for dinner for two (up to $400) if [an] associate bills over 250 hours to client matters in any calendar month," but finding the time to actually use the voucher is left up to the associate.

Summer associates at Clifford Chance are assigned work in various practice areas by a coordinating attorney and are expected to complete 10 to 15 assignments during the 10-week summer program.  Lateral Link Members in the summer program say that attorneys are "approachable" and "usually take the time to explain the assignments in a bigger context."  The firm holds training events for summers once or twice a week, and summer associates are provided with BlackBerrys, which they are expected to check regularly, since weekend work is not unheard of.  The firm allows summer associates interested in its transactional practices to spend part of the summer in its offices in Amsterdam, Beijing, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, Milan, Moscow, Paris, São Paulo, and Shanghai.  The firm encourages summer associates to attend an unlimited number of attorney lunches and evening social events such as cruises, concerts, and baseball games.  Lateral Link Members praise the "great mixture of formal [and] informal" events and report that "associates and partners widely participate" in them, with the only complaint being that there are "almost too many" social activities.