Magic Circle, Silver Circle, and Top 50 law firm training contract deadlines for 2026 and 2027 entry — all in one place.
⚠️ TC deadlines are 2 years ahead
Training contracts starting in 2027 have deadlines in 2025. If you're a second-year student applying for 2027 entry, many deadlines have already passed — you need to apply for vacation schemes now to get a TC offer.
| Firm | Tier | TC Deadline | ATS | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freshfields | Magic Circle | July 2025 (2027 TC) | iCIMS | Also offer March & July vacation scheme deadlines |
| Allen & Overy | Magic Circle | July 2025 (2027 TC) | iCIMS | Unified A&O Shearman application process |
| Clifford Chance | Magic Circle | July 2025 (2027 TC) | Workday | Separate winter and summer vacation scheme |
| Linklaters | Magic Circle | July 2025 (2027 TC) | Workday | Also open day applications |
| Slaughter and May | Magic Circle | April 2026 (2028 TC) | Proprietary | Notoriously early application window |
| Herbert Smith Freehills | Silver Circle | July 2025 (2027 TC) | Workday | Vacation schemes run Jan & June |
| Hogan Lovells | Silver Circle | October 2025 | Workday | Rolling applications — apply early |
| DLA Piper | Top 10 | November 2025 | Workday | Multiple UK offices |
| CMS | Top 10 | November 2025 | Workday | Large intake, good callback rate |
| Bird & Bird | Top 20 | January 2026 | Greenhouse | Tech & IP focus |
| Taylor Wessing | Top 20 | January 2026 | Workday | Technology sector specialism |
| Mishcon de Reya | Top 20 | November 2025 | Workday | High street to magic circle bridge |
Most Magic Circle and Silver Circle training contracts are offered exclusively to vacation scheme candidates. Direct TC applications are rare. If you want a TC at Freshfields or Clifford Chance, your first step is securing a vacation scheme — not applying for the TC directly. The vacation scheme deadline is typically 6 months before the TC deadline.
Most Magic Circle and many Silver Circle firms require a Watson Glaser test as part of the application. It tests inference, recognition of assumptions, deduction, interpretation, and evaluation of arguments. Practice using official SHL resources — the format is highly learnable. Most candidates improve significantly with 3–5 practice tests.
Track all TC deadlines in one place
Sign up to Autoply free. Track your status per firm (Not Applied → Vacation Scheme → TC Applied → AC → Offer). Get deadline reminders.
Track my applications →