Remember to cite LawCareers.Net on your application form if you apply to Clarion Solicitors .
More info
Each year, Clarion looks to appoint a number of driven trainee solicitors to commence their training contract the following September.
If you’re a clear communicator with a mind for commerciality and integrity, then you’re exactly who we’re looking for.
To find out more about why our colleagues choose us and why we are never ordinary, read our reviews on Glassdoor.
Trainee solicitors at Clarion do more than just gain qualification. Our training contracts open doors to opportunities. Because as a firm, we’ve collectively created an environment that’s built around people. 100% of our partner promotions in 2023, 2024 and 2025 were colleagues who gained their qualifications with us and whose careers have flourished with the development opportunities and support we have offered them.
We select our future trainees through a two-step application process:
- Online applications submitted through the grad.allhires.com portal.
- A summer placement scheme for successful short-listed candidates. In 2026, these weeks will be held in mid-June.
Our summer placement scheme is part of the graduate recruitment process and plays an important role in selecting candidates for training contracts. If you are selected for one of these placements you will be given the opportunity to work in a selection of our practice areas; corporate, commercial, business restructuring and insolvency, property litigation, construction, commercial property, commercial dispute resolution, banking and finance, intellectual property, employment, family, contentious private client, private wealth or Court of Protection.
You will get to see first-hand how our talented lawyers work with clients to unearth opportunities and drive change for them. In addition, where appropriate, you will have the opportunity to meet with clients and attend court hearings, and you will be given a number of tasks to complete. To gain an insight as to what it is really like to be a trainee at Clarion, you will have lunch and attend a social event one evening with some of our current trainees. On the final day of the placement, you will undertake a series of assessment tests and have an interview.
Trainees get to be involved in client matters from the very beginning. They receive the right support and guidance from their dedicated supervisor in each team throughout the entire process. And, with our active culture of social and sporting events, charitable work and colleague-led groups, there is always something to get involved in.
Formal end of seat reviews, together with informal mid-seat appraisals, mean you gain valuable feedback on your performance, together with direction on future seat allocation and personal and professional development.
We expect our trainees to have a minimum of a 2:1 degree and their LPC or SQE1 and 2 by the time their training contract commences, together with good school academics.
Importantly, we have high retention rates and are proud to say a high percentage of our trainees go on to have successful, long-term careers with the firm.
How to apply
www.clarionsolicitors.comFollow us on
Applications to
Ms Nicola Moyes
Method of application
Online application formMethod of assessment
- Assessment centre
We’re a firm that puts you in control, giving you more client contact, more autonomy, and more development. We help you to create your own influence and shape your own fate. Because we’re not like everybody else. We are bold, creative and curious. And this is what makes the difference to our clients. These are the reasons they choose us.
Our open, transparent and collegiate style of management drives exceptionally high levels of employee engagement year on year. That’s what happens when you put people first. At Clarion, our values and characteristics underpin everything we do. They’re the foundation of #BeingClarion, defining who we are and our approach. At their heart, they’re our beliefs. The beliefs that make us successful as individuals, as a team, and to clients. We’re proud to live these values every day, and to see the success of them borne out in the way we do business.
And it’s not just us who think we’re something special. In 2025, for the second year running, we were recognised by the Sunday Times as a top 10 Big Organisation to Work For. In 2024, The Sunday Times also awarded us the Best Place to Work for Young People, and we won Best Employer at the Yorkshire Business Desk Awards. In 2023, The Lawyer named Clarion Independent Law Firm of the Year and at the close of 2022, recognised us as the third Fastest Growing Law Firm in Europe.
We are extremely proud of our reputation and standing in the marketplace. Over the years, Clarion has established itself as one of the foremost players in Yorkshire’s highly competitive legal community, providing legal support to both business and individuals across the region, the UK and internationally. Many of our talented lawyers are also ranked in the Legal 500 and we have our fair share of individual award winners too!
We have a long term ‘forward investment’ approach to our client relationships. We give our people the time to develop strong relationships, both internally and externally. And that’s what allows us to deliver a first-class service for our clients. The success of our approach is clear. Not only by the loyalty of our clients, but also by our outstanding reputation. Everyone at Clarion is encouraged to develop and build client relationships, whether this be through our junior lawyer network, attending internal or external events or Business Development training with our dedicated team.
Sector experience
With noted legal experts working within sectors from healthcare to IT, energy, manufacturing, sport, food and drink, media and the built environment; when it comes to understanding the market in which our clients operate throughout the UK and around the world, we have the strength to support, protect and advise them.
Work with businesses
At Clarion, we're proud to be different from other law firms. We believe in building long term relationships with all our clients, asking curious questions and getting under the skin of our clients’ businesses to help them achieve their ambitions. You see, as well as excellent lawyers, we're business people too. We take the time to understand our clients rather than just serving their immediate legal needs.
Many of our clients already enjoy added value services like strategic advice, network introductions, access to events and seminars, and use of Clarion facilities – whenever they need them.
Work with individuals
Enjoying our lives and making the most of what we have, and wish to pass on to family and friends, plays a key role in protecting our peace of mind and lifestyles. We’re here to help individual clients successfully negotiate life’s potholes and always ensure their best interests are served.
Through the preparations we can help clients and take much of the worry and emotional heartache attached to wealth protection, making a will, probate, cohabitation agreements and heading off potential disputes.
Protection
Listening is a big part of what we do and with good reason. Being able to ‘stand in clients' shoes’ and understand their needs and those of their families and loved ones means we’ll be able to help protect them for the future.
Peace of mind
Sympathetic and straightforward, experienced and friendly, nothing is too much trouble; no issue is insurmountable and no question left unanswered. Leaving the legal jargon behind, we’ll take care of the hard stuff while the client gets on with their life.
Our strategy has supported us to achieve double digit growth year on year and the firm continues to secure significant brands as clients from FTSE 100 and major in-bounds through to some of the leading entrepreneurial OMBs in the region and nationally.
Career prospects
At Clarion, we have a structured career path for lawyers. Because your development is as important to us as it is to you. We consider promotions on a yearly basis and at every step in your career, you will know what is expected of you, and how to make the next leap. Many of our juniors enjoy long-term successful careers within the firm, including many of our partners joining as trainees or paralegals themselves!
You’ll be supported by our dedicated Business Services teams, Clarion Academy and HIVE team, who curate development, resources and research, to help you do your job in the most efficient and effective way possible. Because when we work together, we succeed together.
As part of our role in the industry, and as a firm that takes its social responsibility seriously, we created a work experience scheme with social mobility in mind. We believe that early careers is the best place to make an impact and improve the future of the legal profession. We actively encourage participation from individuals who would otherwise experience additional challenges and barriers to accessing ‘traditional’ legal work experience schemes.
Twice a year, for a week in spring and a week in summer, we give ambitious people like you the opportunity to complete a work experience placement right here at Clarion. Throughout your placement, you’ll sit alongside fee-earners at all levels and hear from colleagues in our central teams, as well as employability advice to help you get ahead. You’ll get invaluable hands-on experience, unearthing more about what it’s like to work in an award-winning law firm.
Our work experience opportunities are open to university students and graduates over the age of 18. Applications close on 18 January 2026.
A vacation scheme also comprises part of our training contract application process, for which you can also apply. Applications close on 6 April 2026, details provided in the above section.
At Clarion, trainees are part of the team from the very outset.
We believe that to be involved in Clarion is to be at the heart of one of the most exciting firms the legal profession can offer. We are looking for trainee solicitors who will share that belief and work with us over the long term to realise the potential of the firm.
Many of our departments – corporate, commercial, business restructuring and insolvency, real estate, commercial dispute resolution, banking and finance, intellectual property, employment, family, contentious private client and private wealth – offer seats, and you will sit in four over the course of your training contract. Driven by an ethos of openness, enthusiasm, commerciality and support, we believe in giving trainees quality work and exposure to clients from the get-go, setting you up for success when you qualify.
In addition to a full training programme in all the disciplines necessary for the legal side of your work, Clarion creates an environment for our trainees to become the best, most well-rounded lawyers they can be. Encouraged to acquire experience of the marketing and self-development activities that take place in the firm through our learning and development Academy, you will have a wealth of resources at your disposal to help you research, work and navigate the world of AI within work. Trainees are encouraged to join the firm's networking group, ClarioNet, attend the firm's frequent social events, assist in representing the firm at law fairs and marketing events, and to participate in mentoring schemes at law colleges, universities and schools.
We expect all those commencing a training contract to have completed and passed their SQE1 and 2 exams prior to September 2027.
Our costs team take on a number of paralegal apprentices every year. Applications usually open in February. Please visit our website for more information.
At Clarion, equality, diversity and inclusion is fundamental to our core values. Because we believe that everyone should feel comfortable to bring their whole selves to work. BeingOne, one of our colleague-led groups, is about how we at Clarion foster an environment in which each and every colleague, with their unique experiences and perspectives, thrives. The group provides us with a strategic framework for raising awareness, fostering togetherness and giving back to the community. The impact should be seen as well as felt as we enhance what we do, and how we do it, on a day-to-day basis.
If you want to find out more about our colleagues’ experience of inclusion at Clarion, follow this link to read BeingOne stories from our team. Diversity and inclusion is integral to our success as a firm and is always on our agenda.
As part of this commitment, we are passionate about doing our part to improve social mobility. It is so important to us that we give opportunities to, and support the careers of, those who were less privileged growing up. At Clarion, we never want social background to be a barrier to a fantastic career in a law firm. Through our work experience placement scheme and our partnership with a local school with which we regularly volunteer and support with their internal events, and our own internal processes supporting career development, we are determined to support our community and colleagues who have not had the opportunities others enjoyed.
In addition, our BeingOne forum raises awareness through the celebration and education of religious festivals and diversity events, such as Black History Month, International Women’s Day, Ramadan, Diwali, Pride, South Asian History Month, Interfaith Harmony Week and Deaf Awareness Week.
We recognise, though, that this work is never done and strive to continuously adapt and improve our strategy for creating an environment where everyone, from any background, can do their best work. BeingOne helps maintain our focus on, and commitment to, this crucial aspect of our firm.
We do not currently provide sponsorship for the LPC, GDL or SQE courses.
- Commercial
- Corporate
- Banking & finance
- Commercial dispute resolution
- Business restructuring & insolvency
- Commercial property
- Property litigation
- Construction
- Intellectual property
- Employment
- Private wealth
- Family
- Contentious private client
- Court of Protection
- Corporate & Commercial
- General Commercial
- General Practice
Practice Areas
Extra info
Phone: 0113 246 0622
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.clarionsolicitors.com
Work placement: | Yes |
Number of vacation schemes: | 20 |
Minimum qualification: | 2:1 degree |
First-year trainee salary: | £35,000 |
Second-year trainee salary: | Competitive |
NQ salary: | Competitive |
Turnover: | £31,000,000 (2023) |
Training programme applications: | 178 (2025) |
Retention rate: | 70% (2025) |
Partner diversity: |
|
Lawyer diversity: |
|
- Leeds
- Leeds
- BPP Legal Advice Clinic
- Ahead Partnership
- BPP Legal Access Scheme
- Disability Confident Leader
- Legal Apprenticeships
- Mindful Business Charter