Ashurst in its previous form has pretty much been around as long as any other law firm in Australia and though the name “Blake Dawson” will now have faded from many minds, this was a firm that was prominent during Australia’s colonial days. In 2012, it merged fully with Ashurst, a silver circle UK firm and rebranded to what we now know it as today. 

The firm maintains a strong banking practice and that is typically what it is known for these days. As fitting for a firm that sits firmly in the middle section of the “Big 6”, its many other practices still deliver high-quality work to its clients. Whilst we think Ashurst is probably not as strong as they were a couple of decades ago, with a weaker focus on their more specialist offerings, they still have a suite of blue-chip clients that would be the envy of any law firm in the market. 

There have been some stories of gruelling hours at some teams at Ashurst, but like most other high performing law firms, it’s really up to you to do your due diligence before you land yourself in one of these teams. Overall, however, we have heard that people are generally fun and down to earth, with social events often being organised by the firm.

Remuneration is on par with its other competitors, and due to its full integration with its UK headquarters, any benefits that the London office dishes out can make its way down under. For example, Ashurst lawyers would remember receiving the random GBP1000 bonus that the entire Ashurst network received for all the hard work doled out last year. Going the other way, one of the selling points of Ashurst is also the (ease of) opportunity for you to pop over to the London office for a stint if that is something that interests you.

Ashurst lawyers are generally recognised as being well trained and we would expect nothing less from a firm of this calibre. Given its history in Australia and decades of experience, you can be sure that there are enough templates and precedents to tackle a majority of the tasks that a client might throw your way.

Ultimately, Ashurst is a premium offering for any aspiring or accomplished lawyer, and ticks many boxes. Top tier, global, blue-chip clients and with a sociable culture, you can’t really go wrong. The only caveat here would be for the ambitious, as the lion’s share of the megadeals do generally end up going to the “Big 3”.