Global firm
Dentons
One of the world's largest law firms by lawyer numbers, Dentons runs a Hong Kong office that is back in exclusive association with Beijing Dacheng and hands out a small number of training contracts a year through a December application window.
- Category
- Global firm
- Scale
- 5,600+ lawyers, 160+ offices, 80+ countries
- HK presence
- Office joined Dentons 2013; exclusive association with Dacheng (Dec 2025)
- HK strengths
- Disputes, construction, capital markets, arbitration, employment
The Hong Kong practice
What does Dentons' Hong Kong office actually do?
Dentons is one of the world's largest law firms by number of lawyers, with more than 5,600 lawyers across 160-plus offices in over 80 countries. In Hong Kong that global weight shows up as a broad, full-service practice: it is ranked across construction, dispute resolution litigation, capital markets, international arbitration, employment and structured finance, and its equity capital markets team, led by Gordon Ng and Norman Hui, pairs Hong Kong and US securities capability for cross-border listings.
Disputes are a clear strength. Chambers Greater China 2026 ranks the office Band 2 for dispute resolution litigation and securitisation, with 13 ranked individuals, and the disputes practice is led by Richard Keady. (Chambers; Legal 500.) Source ↗ Source ↗
The office's recent story is a corporate one. Dentons had combined with Beijing Dacheng (大成) under a Swiss-verein structure, but in August 2023 it ended that combination: the mainland practice left and became an independent "preferred firm", a move linked to China's tightening counter-espionage and data laws. The Hong Kong office was not part of that exit — it had joined Dentons in 2013 and stayed inside the global firm. (CNN; Wikipedia.) Source ↗ Source ↗
Two years on, the relationship was rekindled. In December 2025 Dentons Hong Kong and Dacheng entered a formal exclusive association, registered as association firms with the Law Society of Hong Kong, with Dacheng opening its first Hong Kong office in the same building. This is an association, not a re-merger. As managing partner Keith Brandt put it, "This marks a new chapter in our partnership with Dacheng." (Global Legal Post; Asia Law Portal.) Source ↗ Source ↗
Trainee & internship programme
How do you get into Dentons Hong Kong?
Dentons recruits directly rather than through a portal: you apply by email to graduaterecruitment.hk@dentons.com. The firm offers a small number of training contracts each year and asks for a minimum 2:1 in a law degree. There is also a three-week summer internship that feeds the pipeline.
- Route inApply by email to graduaterecruitment.hk@dentons.com for the training contract or the summer internship. Both open in the same December-to-February window.
- Intake sizeSmall and competitive. The firm offers a small number of training contracts each year.
- Who can applyCandidates with a minimum 2:1 in a law degree.
- The internshipA three-week summer internship: you shadow trainees on live client matters and get training in legal writing, research and presentation.
- TimingFor the 2025-26 cycle the training contract (commencing September 2028) and the June/July 2026 summer internship both opened 1 December 2025 and closed 27 February 2026. The window is a recurring December to late February.
Watch out
As of mid-2026 both the training contract and the internship are closed. The window is December to late February, so plan your application for the recurring December opening. Check the current dates on the Elite Pathfinder deadline tracker before you plan anything.
Recent matters worth knowing
Which recent deals has Dentons' Hong Kong office run?
These are matters and hires the Hong Kong office has publicly led or announced. They cluster where the firm is strongest: cross-border capital markets and a growing disputes bench.
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Xiamen Jihong A+H dual-primary listingMay 2025
Dentons advised on the HK$521.5m global offering (SEHK 02603), billed as the first cross-border e-commerce company and the first packaging company to achieve an A+H dual-primary listing, with the retail tranche around 49x oversubscribed. (Legal One Global; In-House Community.) Source ↗ Source ↗
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Disputes trio hired from Norton Rose FulbrightSeptember 2024
Dentons expanded its Hong Kong disputes team with a trio from Norton Rose Fulbright: Alfred Wu as a partner, Philip Nunn as senior consultant and Muriel Cheng. (Legal Business; Global Arbitration Review.) Source ↗ Source ↗
Insider tip
A cross-border A+H listing is a gift of an interview answer, but only if you can explain why a company dual-lists and what it means for investors. Learn the framework in our commercial awareness guide, and the Weekly News Digest breaks down one Hong Kong deal a week and tells you what to actually say about it.
Interview & selection intel
What does the Dentons Hong Kong selection process look like?
Dentons publishes a clear three-stage process. After you email your application, it runs a phone interview with HR, then an interview with the Graduate Recruitment Partner, then a written test. Because the intake is small, each stage carries weight, and the written test rewards candidates who can reason clearly on paper rather than just talk a good game.
For internship candidates, the three-week scheme itself doubles as an extended assessment: you shadow trainees on live client matters and are judged on how you handle real legal writing, research and presentation tasks. Treat it as a working interview, not a spectator week.
At this level, Hong Kong interviews tend to test the same things whatever the exact format: commercial awareness (why this deal, why Hong Kong, why Dentons over the firm next door), genuine motivation, and clear technical reasoning. The China-facing, cross-border nature of the work means language ability, Mandarin especially, is often an advantage. Our guide to the Hong Kong vacation scheme interview walks through how these conversations actually run.
How to stand out
How do you stand out for Dentons Hong Kong?
With a small intake and a written test built into the process, your edge comes from a sharp application, rehearsed commercial thinking and treating the internship as the extended interview it is. Here is where to put your preparation.
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1You apply by email, so the email and CV have to do the persuading with no portal to hide behind. Write a commercial case for Dentons, not a passion essay, and run every achievement through the "So What" test so it reads as evidence. Our guide to the top mistakes on HK applications shows the fixes, and the Law Firm Application Academy drills the written craft.
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2Dentons screens with a written test and, on the internship, live legal-writing and research tasks. Rehearse commercial, case-style thinking under pressure rather than winging it; it helps to know how firms mark case studies first. Practise on real problems in the Online Case Study Centre and pressure-test yourself in the Mock Assessment Centre.
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3The three-week internship is a working interview: you are assessed on how you handle real matters, how you think out loud and how you take feedback. That is a rehearsable skill, and one-to-one coaching is the fastest way to fix the habits that lose offers.
Quick answers
Dentons Hong Kong, in five questions
How do you get a training contract at Dentons Hong Kong?
You apply by email to graduaterecruitment.hk@dentons.com. Dentons offers a small number of training contracts each year and asks for a minimum 2:1 in a law degree. The application window runs from early December to late February.
Does Dentons Hong Kong run a summer internship?
Yes. Dentons runs a three-week summer internship where you shadow trainees on live client matters and get training in legal writing, research and presentation. It opens in the same December-to-February window as the training contract.
When can you apply to Dentons Hong Kong?
Applications open in early December and close in late February. For the 2025-26 cycle both the training contract and the summer internship opened on 1 December 2025 and closed on 27 February 2026. As of mid-2026 both are closed, so watch the recurring December window.
What does the Dentons Hong Kong selection process look like?
A phone interview with HR, then an interview with the Graduate Recruitment Partner, then a written test.
What is Dentons' relationship with Beijing Dacheng?
Dentons ended its Swiss-verein combination with Beijing Dacheng in August 2023. In December 2025 Dentons Hong Kong and Dacheng entered a formal exclusive association, registered with the Law Society of Hong Kong. It is an association, not a re-merger.