Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner (BCLP) is teaming up with London’s Queen Mary University and Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne to provide summer placement training opportunities for students doing a double degree in English and French law.

Students selected for the scheme will work in BCLP’s London and Paris offices to give them a flavour of how a global firm delivers legal services across multiple jurisdictions. The scheme is open for students completing their second year of study at Queen Mary and will provide a four-week placement at the firm’s London office followed by a potential eight-week secondment in the firm’s Paris office after their third year of study at Paris 1. Applications open in September and close in January next year. The programme is being led by EMEA and Asia head of emerging talent Chloe Muir.

Segun Osuntokun, BCLP’s UK partner in charge, said: “In an increasingly global world the legal experience the students will gain through exposure of working internationally and the breadth of legal practices within BCLP will stand them in good stead for a long and successful career in law.”

He added that the placement offers a pathway to securing a potential training contract in the firm’s London or Paris office. Training contracts run for two years in London or one year in Paris. In London, that involves four six-month seats of work experience with optional client or international secondments. In Paris, the training contract involves six months of work experience in Paris and six months on an international secondment, likely in London or Brussels. In both locations, trainees can apply for a new-qualified position in the final six months of the contract.

Olivier Mesmin, BCLP’s Paris partner in charge, said: “This [summer placement] opportunity also reflects the increasing needs of our clients to have lawyers who, not only advise on legal matters, but understand different business cultures and the exposure to both during their training is a unique opportunity for them.”

Last month, top 30 UK firm Fieldfisher doubled its graduate training programme intake at its Belfast legal support centre. And in April, Stephenson Harwood announced a revamped partner development programme that will give junior lawyers soft-skills training to help them progress to partnership faster.