Gabriel Merga

Overall highlight of working at the firm so far

I am currently a second-seat law graduate. I chose this path for the unparalleled training and world-class mentoring from leading lawyers, the international secondment opportunity within the graduate programme, and the ability to use my language skills. What makes me stay here are the incredible people and the personal growth I am experiencing in a multi-lingual and multi-cultural environment.

I am proud to work alongside sincere and extremely intelligent people. At Clifford Chance, we value reliability, brilliance, candour, and hard work — a perfect foundation to build a fulfilling career and enjoying the journey.

Clifford Chance is a perfect firm for an enthusiastic and bright person looking to start their career as a lawyer in Australia and those who want a truly global career.

International & domestic secondment opportunities

Clifford Chance offers the opportunity to embark on a six-month secondment to one of their international offices during your graduate programme. This usually occurs within your third or fourth rotation. Currently, I am excited about my upcoming secondment to Hong Kong, which will be in my next rotation.

We also have practice group "offsites", where each of the firm's practice groups across regions travel to another country for a few days of meetings, networking and socialising. Nine months into my contract, I have already had the chance to bond with my global financial markets (GFM) team during a trip to Bangkok, where we networked and shared experiences. There are also various opportunities for domestic secondment.

Opportunity to work across multiple partners and areas of law

The graduate programme is a two-year programme, split into four rotations lasting six months each. At CC Australia, you will rotate through three main practice areas — litigation and disputes, GFM, and corporate — each with specialised sub-teams. During my first rotation, I focused on investor-state international arbitration disputes under the disputes umbrella, working with experts in this niche field. I was involved in complex headline-making international disputes and there was also the opportunity to get involved in some very large restructuring and insolvency litigation processes, where I got to take ownership of dealing with minor disputes and drafting affidavits.

In my current GFM rotation, I love the fast-paced and top-of-the-market deals and the exposure to major international project financings and finance deals. I also had the pleasure of working on exciting cross-border derivatives transactions, and regulatory matters for financial institutions operating in Australia. With the supportive team, my impact has grown tremendously.

Advice for prospective applicants

Be sincere and confident in the application process: Demonstrate how you will be an asset - we want to hear it. Feel free to ask questions and learn more about us.
Once you have the offer, congratulations! You will embark on a journey of continuous learning, making an impact in a dynamic environment, alongside great people in a truly global law firm.