Application for an Associate position with Jones Day’s Tokyo office

Re: Application for an Associate position with Jones Day’s Tokyo office

Dear Sir/Madam

I am seeking an entry-level associate position with the firm’s Tokyo office.

I have chosen to apply to the Jones Day’s Tokyo office because it will present me with quality work from Japan and the neighbouring countries. This will expose me to complex and interesting problems and allow me to operate against the backdrop of the opportunities and threats presented by emerging market economies. Likewise, I am very keen to meet new people from different cultures and backgrounds as this will broaden my perspective and also enable me to develop into a well-rounded international lawyer.

I find the firm’s international presence and offices in major financial centres to be of a particular appeal as it will allow me to work in diverse international teams and present me with complex and interesting work that does not have precedent solutions. I feel that my language skills and knowledge of different cultures will allow me to forge successful relationships with the firm’s international teams, clients and other stakeholders. Jones Day’s one firm approach will enable me to work in highly-integrated teams from different jurisdictions, which will present me with new ideas and perspectives and enable me to understand how different elements of a case come together to produce a solution.

The firm’s friendly and entrepreneurial culture will empower me to apply my initiative and creativity to add value to my work as well as provide a perfect forum that will enable me to develop into a successful lawyer. 

During my employment at some of the leading international and US law firms, I have received direct exposure on some of the most high-profile legal matters. This experience helped to develop my entire set of skills which will enable me to operate successfully as a newly qualified lawyer. I was vested with high levels of responsibility and have demonstrated an outstanding ability to manage my workload and prioritise competing deadlines.

I possess very good teamwork and communication skills, which will allow me to work successfully with lawyers and clients from different countries and jurisdictions. During my employment, I have received quality exposure to multiple industries and legal practice areas. This has developed my commercial awareness which, in turn, allows me to align all of my work with the requirements of clients and their respective businesses. I have received a lot of direct contact with very high-profile clients and their associates, which has developed my client-facing skills. I always undertake my work with utmost attention to details. My language skills will allow me to add value to international cases and forge effective relationships with overseas lawyers and clients. I possess very good problem-solving skills and enjoy working on complex cases to devise cutting-edge solutions to problems without any precedents.

I am very motivated and enjoy new challenges. In my spare time, I regularly do [sport] and help to coach others. [sport] has helped to hone my discipline and resilience to pressure and new challenges.

I thank you for your consideration and look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully