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Summer Associate Frequently Asked Questions

Your Questions Answered

Here are some frequently asked questions — and answers — about Bodman’s Summer Associate Program:

Why spend a summer at Bodman?

Simply put, summering at Bodman gives you the opportunity to experience life as an associate at one of Michigan’s leading firms. Each year we hire talented individuals from law schools around the country to work with us. During the summer, you will have a chance to do real legal work, not “make-work” and get a chance to know our attorneys and your classmates very well. Bodman highly values its summer associate program, so much so that we continued the program throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, converting to a hybrid in-person/virtual format. Today, our program has returned to a largely in-person format to maximize our summer associates’ exposure to our attorneys and our Firm culture.

How much does Bodman pay its summer associates?

Summer associates are paid at the pro-rated first-year associate salary during Bodman’s 10-week summer associate program. The current first-=year salary is included in Bodman’s NALP Directory profile.

We traditionally conduct on-campus interviews at:

  • Michigan State University College of Law
  • University of Detroit Mercy School of Law
  • University of Michigan Law School
  • University of Notre Dame Law School
  • Wayne State University Law School

We also encourage students to apply directly to us prior to, and outside of, the OCI process. Please submit your resume, cover letter, and law school transcript to recruiting@bodmanlaw.com.

Does Bodman hire first-year law students?

Bodman hires one or more first-year law students as a summer associates each year through its participation in the Wolverine Bar Association’s Summer Clerkship Program.  This program seeks to increase the number of minority attorneys employed as partners, associates, in-house counsel and other well-respected positions within the legal community by placing first-year minority law students at Metro Detroit law firms and corporations. We occasionally hire additional first-year law students as summer associates on an ad hoc basis. If interested, please submit your resume, cover letter, and law school transcript to recruiting@bodmanlaw.com.

What does Bodman expect from summer associates?

We look for people who share our core values of integrity, client service, collaboration, diversity, stewardship, and stability. Our summer associates are smart and hard-working, with strong writing skills and good judgment.

What types of social events are summer associates invited to attend?

We have a variety of formal and informal events during the summer. The highlight of the summer is the Bodman Folly. Each year our summer associates, associates, and younger members, along with their spouses, spend a carefree weekend at Barothy Lodge near Ludington, Michigan enjoying Michigan’s natural beauty, playing volleyball, kickball, swimming, hiking and enjoying each other’s company. The attire is casual and no business meetings are held at the Folly. In addition to the Folly, the summer associates participate in a number of formal and informal events, typically including a behind the scenes tour of Ford Field with our client, The Detroit Lions, a Detroit Tigers baseball game, boat races on the Detroit River, and a number of lunches and receptions.

We also encourage our attorneys to invite summer associates to external social and networking events hosted by bar associations and other professional organizations throughout the summer.

How does Bodman train summer associates?

We work hard to train new lawyers and that training starts during the summer. Summer associates are invited to all regular practice group training sessions, and receive a specialized orientation to the firm along with one-on-one writing instruction. But beyond the formal training, Bodman summer associates begin to learn to practice law. We give summer associates real client work and bill the clients for their time. You will work on projects that would otherwise be handled by associates, and may attend client meetings, depositions and court hearings. We believe that summer associates want practical experience — not to write articles for members or answer esoteric questions unrelated to the practice of law. You will work directly with a member on each case and will not have work filtered to you through a more senior associate. We believe this hands-on approach, augmented by formal training, is the best way to learn to be a lawyer.

Are summer associates hired to work in a specific office?

During the summer, you will spend the majority of your time in our Detroit office. However, each summer associate will spend one to two weeks in our Troy and Ann Arbor offices.

Does Bodman give full-time offers to summer associates?

Yes, Bodman hires every summer associate with the hope and expectation that they will become our colleague upon graduation from law school. The firm makes offer decisions based on the totality of each summer associate’s experience, including the quality of work product, evaluations from assigning attorneys, sustained academic performance and demonstrated work ethic and commitment to the firm.

Does Bodman have a mentoring program?

Summer associates receive both an associate mentor and member mentor during the summer. These mentors, many of whom are members of the firm’s Lawyer Recruiting and Personnel Committee, are valuable resources for the summer associates. They facilitate introductions to other attorneys at the firm, provide feedback on summer associates’ work product, and help ensure that summer associates receive feedback from the attorneys with whom they have worked. The firm also has a robust mentoring program for all attorneys in which mentors are assigned based on each attorney’s specific professional objectives.

Is Bodman involved in pro bono work?

Each month Bodman attorneys spend hundreds of hours on a variety of pro bono projects. Bodman allows attorneys to select pro bono work that is interesting and inspiring to them. We have a Pro Bono Committee that oversees pro bono work, and a full-time attorney who is dedicated to administering Bodman’s pro bono program. Bodman attorneys provide pro bono legal representation to both low-income individuals and organizations that serve low-income individuals, in addition to participating in numerous legal clinics and performing work on behalf of organizations seeking to enforce civil liberties. See our Giving Back page for more information on Bodman’s pro bono commitment.

What are Bodman’s diversity initiatives?

Bodman is an equal opportunity employer and continues to seek outstanding minority candidates. Bodman has an active Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. Each summer, Bodman also participates in the Wolverine Bar Association’s Summer Clerkship Program and hires one or two first-year minority law students as summer associates with the expectation and hope that the students will return for a second summer at Bodman and then join us full-time upon graduation. For more information on Bodman’s diversity initiatives, please visit our Diversity and Inclusion page.

Bodman has for more than a decade maintained a standing DEI Committee and recently hired a full-time Manager of Diversity and Talent to coordinate our diversity initiatives. The firm is currently participating in the Mansfield 6.0 Certification process and we anticipate that we will achieve certification in 2023.

Do most Bodman attorneys start as summer associates?

Many current Bodman attorneys started with the firm as summer associates. This is a reflection of how strongly we value the summer associate program. In recent years, however, the growth of the firm has exceeded that which could be satisfied through the summer associate program, and we have added a number of superior lateral associates and members to the firm.

Where did Bodman attorneys go to law school?

Bodman hires nationally, seeking the best attorneys from top law schools who wish to practice in Michigan. Bodman lawyers have attended 32 different law schools throughout the country, including:

  1. Albany Law School
  2. Chicago-Kent College of Law — Illinois Institute of Technology
  3. Cleveland-Marshall College of Law — Cleveland State University
  4. DePaul University College of Law
  5. Emory University Law School
  6. The George Washington University Law School
  7. Georgetown University Law Center
  8. Harvard Law School
  9. Indiana University Maurer School of Law — Bloomington
  10. Louisiana State University Law Center
  11. Loyola University Chicago School of Law
  12. Michigan State University College of Law
  13. Mitchell Hamline School of Law
  14. New York University School of Law
  15. Northeastern University College of Law
  16. Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law
  17. Ohio State University Moritz College of Law
  18. Seattle University School of Law
  19. St. John’s University Law School
  20. University of Chicago Law School
  21. University of Detroit Mercy School of Law
  22. University of Georgia School of Law
  23. University of Illinois College of Law
  24. University of Michigan Law School
  25. University of Minnesota Law School
  26. University of Notre Dame Law School
  27. University of Pennsylvania Law School
  28. University of Richmond School of Law
  29. University of Toledo College of Law
  30. Wake Forest University School of Law
  31. Wayne State University Law School
  32. Western Michigan University Cooley Law School

We encourage students to apply directly to us. Please submit your resume, cover letter, and law school transcript to recruiting@bodmanlaw.com.