Sherman & Howard Summer Associate Program

The Summer Associate Program is our primary source for new Associate hires and is designed to expose law students to all aspects of our practice. Our goal is to give law students an opportunity to get to know a number of the Firm's attorneys and to gain exposure to our full service practice so that each Summer Associate may make an informed decision about joining the Firm. We also want to get acquainted with each Summer Associate well enough to evaluate his or her potential as an Associate attorney with the Firm. We strive to accomplish this by assigning real world projects to Summer Associates, which allow them to demonstrate their skills and abilities. We also try to offer a wide variety of spectator events, such as participating in closings and conferences with clients, and attending depositions, negotiations, hearings, and trials.

The Summer Associate Program has been and continues to be successful due, in part, to our mentoring program. Each Summer Associate is assigned a Member mentor and an Associate mentor to provide guidance and support throughout the summer. To ensure the mentors' objectivity, we do not permit mentors to assign work to their Summer Associates or to participate in the hiring decision process.

The Summer Associate Committee hosts two standing meetings for our Summer Associates on a weekly basis. Monday Morning Meetings provide Summer Associates with an opportunity to discuss their current "caseload" with the other Summer Associates and to express any comments, concerns or feedback they may have regarding the Summer Associate Program. The Weekly Training Lunches offer Summer Associates unique learning opportunities and an opportunity to meet as a class on a weekly basis.

The Firm is committed to providing meaningful feedback to our Summer Associates. There are two formal evaluations for Summer Associates. The first evaluation occurs midway through their stay, and the second serves as an exit evaluation at the end of the summer. In addition, individual attorneys are required to provide a written and oral evaluation of each project completed by a Summer Associate.

Each summer, the Firm appoints a Member and an Associate to act as Summer Shepherds and supervise the Summer Associate Program. Projects are distributed by the Summer Shepherds, and Summer Associates are encouraged to take an active role in designing their portfolio to fit their individual needs.

Through feedback and identification of primary areas of interest, Summer Associates are able to manage their workload levels and explore different practice areas to create an experience that will provide them with the necessary information to make future employment decisions.

Benefits for Summer Associates include: (1) all expenses associated with travel to and from Denver; (2) assistance in finding temporary housing; and (3) matching contributions to contributions made by our Summer Associate's student funded fellowships.

Finally, a variety of social activities are offered during the summer so that our Summer Associates and attorneys can get to know each other in informal settings.