AZA summer associates can expect to get a substantial taste of what it is like to work with our team of trial lawyers. We strive to make this summer clerkship as close to a working lawyer experience as possible. Just as our new lawyers can expect a meaningful role in at least one bona fide trial in their first year with us, our summer associates can expect to witness at least one courtroom session or deposition. Summer associates will work on real motions and briefs. And they will participate in mock arguments before former judges who will decide a winner. We want our summer associates to get real exposure to our legal work to see if our kind of trial-ready practice is one where you will excel. AZA seeks summer associates who know they want to be real trial lawyers, exhibit initiative and yearn for a jury trial within their first 12 months in practice.
AZA is ranked by the go-to career guide Vault for 2026 among the nation’s top 20 midsize law firms to work for and among the top 10 midsize firms in Texas, based on surveys of law firm associates. The trial firm ranked top 10 for career outlook, inclusion and compensation and in the top 20 for: best to work for, quality of work, satisfaction, training, firm culture, selectivity and litigation specialty. Vault noted that AZA associates are thrilled to receive “top NY market salaries” and that they describe the work as “top notch, with a satisfying variety of cases and significant early experience and responsibility.”
“The firm’s culture is a big selling point for associates, who describe it as very social and filled with different personality types. In fact, the firm emphasizes the importance of personal style in effective advocacy, and partners are supportive of associates in helping them to develop their styles along with their skills,” Vault noted.
Here are some of the associates’ comments on specific characteristics of the firm:
- On quality of work – “There is nowhere to get more ownership or front-line experience than this firm.”
- On firm culture – “There are virtually no firm politics at AZA. The culture is all about finding the most practical, cost-efficient way to deliver a win for the client. There are virtually never fights over ‘turf’ or who gets credit for a big win.”
- On satisfaction – “Plenty of responsibility at all levels for high-stakes litigation.”
- On associate/partner relations – “The mentality is that if you work the case up and know the case, you’ve earned the opportunity to do the fun things that made you be a lawyer.”
