Is Cooley a good company to work for?

Cooley has an overall rating of 4.0 out of 5, based on over 411 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has increased by 1% over the last 12 months. 61% of employees would recommend working at Cooley to a friend and 80% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Cooley have been left by employees working as Practice Team Assistant , Legal Secretary and Associate .

Does Cooley pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Cooley employees rate their compensation and benefits as 4.5 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Cooley. This rating has improved by 7% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Cooley?

61% of Cooley employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Cooley 3.9 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.9 for culture and values and 4.0 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Cooley?

Associate (67) , Legal Secretary (21) , Paralegal (11) , Practice Team Assistant (10) , Associate Attorney (8) , Attorney (7) , Marketing Assistant (7) , Patent Agent (7) , Conflicts Analyst (5) , Marketing (4) , Associate Lawyer (3) , Legal Assistant (3) , Legal Assistant/Paralegal (3) , Manager (3) , Marketing Specialist (3)

What are the pros of working at Cooley according to real employee reviews?

"great people to work with" ((in 54 reviews)); "Cool clients and good culture" ((in 31 reviews)); "The provide great benefits and have supportive management" ((in 26 reviews)); "Great pay and good company" ((in 16 reviews)); "Great colleagues and top tier work" ((in 13 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Cooley according to real employee reviews?

"Long hours and long nights" ((in 18 reviews)); "Staff management also just doesn't support the staff at all" ((in 14 reviews)); "Little to no work life balance" ((in 7 reviews)); "Long hours (same for any law firm)." ((in 5 reviews)); "There are too many directors and too many managers." ((in 4 reviews))

What are employees saying about Cooley layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Cooley layoffs and their outlook for job security at Cooley in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Cooley locations?

San Francisco , New York , Palo Alto , Washington , San Diego , Boston , Reston , Los Angeles , Santa Monica , Chicago , Seattle , Buffalo , Gainesville , Coolidge , Dallas , Sunnyvale , Santa Barbara , Clinton , Las Lomas

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Cooley

Cooley reviews

4.0

61% would recommend to a friend

(384 total reviews)

Joe Conroy

87% approve of CEO

80% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.5

Compensation and benefits

4.0

Career opportunities

3.9

Culture & values

3.9

Diversity & inclusion

3.9

Work/Life balance

3.5

Senior management

Cooley has an employee rating of 4.0 out of 5 stars, based on 384 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Cooley employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Legal industry (3.8 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

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Reviews by job title

384 reviews

3.0

Aug 24, 2010

About the Same as Other Big Law

Associate

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Good compensation; Good contacts with client companies for your in-house job after Cooley; some excellent partners, especially the most senior partners in the firm; many smart associates; excellent locations and ability to switch offices if needed; some lawyers in other departments are terrifically helpful

Cons

Partnership chances are minimal; despite supposed emphasis on training, seemed to lack sustained training for associates or partners, with no emphasis on attending outside seminars if no CLE requirement in your state; younger partners in management seem more focused on hanging out with their buddies in the various offices than connecting with other partners or associates; the usual office politics

3.0

Mar 26, 2010

Its probably not better or worse than anywhere of comparable prestige in the area.

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Money, nice office space, some quality colleagues

Cons

Little transparency in decision making on the part of management; indifferent supervisors

3.0

Feb 15, 2010

Typical Biglaw experience

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Standard Biglaw salary, good benefits, and opportunities to learn from talented and accomplished colleagues who are also generally friendly. As one would expect, the salary is the biggest "pro."

Cons

The firm exists to make money, so work-life balance is not a part of the program. Reviews are based largely on quantity of work done (billing billing billing) rather than quality.

Viewing 376 - 378 of 384 Reviews

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About the Same as Other Big Law

Its probably not better or worse than anywhere of comparable prestige in the area.

Typical Biglaw experience

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