Cravath, Swaine & Moore · Superday
Cravath, Swaine & Moore's superday is the final round. An intensive half-day, typically 3-4 hours. of back-to-back interviews, case work and exercises with senior staff. Below: what the day looks like, what each exercise tests, and how to rehearse the full sequence before you walk in.
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The day
The full callback day is the definitive clearinghouse for entry-level hiring, after the screener.
An intensive half-day, typically 3-4 hours.
Run one candidate at a time, not a cohort superday.
Roughly 30-40% callback-to-offer (some cycles 30-50%).
Format. An individualized deep-dive interview matrix at Two Manhattan West (or a formal virtual equivalent): four to six 30-45 minute interviews plus an evaluative associates' lunch. No superday-style multi-candidate exercises, brainteasers or case studies.
Decision timing. Offers via partner phone call within 1-4 business days, sometimes 24-48 hours.
The schedule
What you do, when you do it. Built from past attendee accounts so you know what is coming and can pace yourself.
A 15-minute recruiting greeting to orient you, confirm your schedule and your preferred practice focus, and handle logistics.
The associate baseline: a mid-to-senior associate validates your resume and tests task-execution capability and attention to detail.
The junior partner deep-dive: sharp, rapid-fire testing of analytical agility, intellectual humility and alignment with the rotation system.
The practice leader / senior partner anchor: high-level market awareness, professional maturity and your strategic career vision.
The cross-department evaluation: an attorney outside your stated track tests generalist breadth and adaptability.
A fully evaluative lunch with two junior associates on the real mechanics of the Cravath System, followed by a wrap-up with recruiting.
The exercises
Each exercise has its own scorecard. Consistency across all of them, not heroics in any single one, is what produces offers.
Format. One-to-one, mid-to-senior associate
Duration. 30-45 minutes
Assessed on. Task execution, attention to detail, operational resilience
Common failure modes. Cannot explain the granular mechanics of a resume line item; unaware of what first-years actually do
Tactical advice. Frame answers with clear execution detail; prove you can manage complex workloads, not just describe them abstractly.
Format. One-to-one, junior partner
Duration. 30-45 minutes
Assessed on. Analytical agility, intellectual humility, Cravath System alignment
Common failure modes. Sounding defensive when challenged; an inflexible preference for a niche sub-specialty
Tactical advice. Show explicit enthusiasm for generalist training; if you do not know an answer, explain your framework for finding it rather than guessing.
Format. One-to-one, practice head or Hiring Committee member
Duration. 30-45 minutes
Assessed on. Judgment, commercial presence, long-term viability
Common failure modes. Reciting rehearsed website talking points; failing to match the partner's executive presence
Tactical advice. Treat it as a peer-level strategic conversation grounded in a realistic understanding of elite practice.
Format. One-to-one, attorney outside your track
Duration. 30-45 minutes
Assessed on. Intellectual dexterity and universal competence
Common failure modes. Disinterest in or ignorance of practice areas outside your chosen track
Tactical advice. Bridge transactional and litigation as two sides of the same commercial coin.
Format. Two junior associates, restaurant or firm dining
Duration. 60-90 minutes
Assessed on. Collegiality, social grace, genuine interest (100% evaluative)
Common failure modes. Dropping your guard, over-sharing, complaining about law school, rudeness to staff
Tactical advice. Order clean mid-priced food, never alcohol, treat staff flawlessly, and stay curious and professional.
The scoring
Each interviewer enters a feedback form immediately (sub-metrics for intellectual capability, analytical depth, communication clarity and firm fit, plus a vote of Strong Offer, Offer, No Offer or Hold).
Aggregation. The Hiring Committee, composed of senior partners, aggregates all feedback and meets multiple times weekly.
Veto mechanic. An explicit negative flag on ego, preparation or interpersonal skills, including from the lunch, can effectively end a candidacy; a single lukewarm review can sometimes be offset by exceptional marks elsewhere.
Senior-round weighting. A passionate partner advocate can pull a borderline candidate through; consensus is critical.
Consistency check. Every slot must be strong; shifting personas across interviewers is penalized.
Decision timing. Offers within 1-4 business days; exceptional unanimous candidates within 24-48 hours.
The simulator
The Superday simulator is Premium Pack ($149). Multi-stage scenarios mirror the real day's exercises in order, case work, technicals, behavioural rounds, lunch.
Why candidates fail
Specific failure patterns drawn from past attendee accounts. The day is a marathon, not a sprint, and most failures are about consistency across panels.
Energy fade in the final hours
Dropping posture, engagement or responsiveness by Slot 4 or lunch is noticed immediately; the day is a stamina test.
Inconsistent narrative delivery
Giving conflicting accounts of your practice preferences or career goals to different interviewers.
Treating lunch as off-the-record
Dropping professional boundaries, complaining about law school, or asking about compensation or peer firms.
Superficial firm knowledge
Confusing Cravath's structure with other NYC firms, for example assuming it uses a free-market assignment system.
Defensiveness under scrutiny
Becoming anxious or argumentative when an interviewer pushes back on a position from your resume or writing sample.
What works
Concrete moves drilled by candidates who clear the day, drawn from accounts of recent offer-holders.
Consistent analytical energy
Maintain crisp communication and intellectual engagement from the first greeting through the final wrap-up.
Firm-specific practice fluency
Show explicit knowledge of Cravath matters such as the Paramount/Skydance merger, Epic v. Google or the Robinhood MDL.
Calibrated questions per attorney
Ask associates about day-to-day workflow and partners about long-term client retention and strategy.
Flawless, targeted follow-up
Send concise, personalized thank-you emails within 24 hours referencing a specific topic with each attorney.
From past attendees
Anonymised accounts from offer-holders. Preparation, the day itself, what worked, what did not.
Transactional candidate (2L, T14)
Prep. Researched the firm's history with long-term clients to defend wanting a generalist rotation over going straight to private equity.
Experience. Four back-to-back interviews at Two Manhattan West, two partners and two senior associates, all focused on prior financial-analyst experience and the rotation system rather than corporate-law trivia. Lunch with two second-years was relaxed but professional.
Outcome. Received an offer phone call from a partner under 48 hours later.
Litigation candidate (2L, top-20 school, fully virtual)
Prep. Prepared to defend a seminar paper thesis on its merits.
Experience. A senior litigation partner asked me to defend an obscure seminar paper against a recent Supreme Court ruling; I admitted the paper's scope limits and re-anchored my point. A corporate partner then probed the business realities behind commercial disputes across four consecutive Zoom sessions.
Outcome. The offer call arrived the following afternoon; staying highly structured paid off.
Cravath, Swaine & Moore quirks
Format conventions, debrief mechanics, and unwritten rules that come up across cycles. These do not appear on the careers site but they shape the day.
The power of the partner group
Because associates are assigned to specific partner groups rather than a pool, interviewers assess how your style fits their distinct team.
Assessed as a future colleague
Cravath grows its partnership from its own ranks, so interviewers evaluate you as a potential long-term colleague, not just a two-year assistant.
No canned case studies or brainteasers
No artificial behavioral testing or abstract puzzles; the focus stays on your actual achievements, track record and communication.
On the day
FAQ
It is an individualized 3-4 hour matrix at Two Manhattan West (or a formal virtual equivalent), not a multi-candidate superday. You sit for four to six 30-45 minute one-to-one interviews that escalate in seniority, from an associate baseline through a junior partner deep-dive, a senior partner anchor and a cross-department evaluation, then a fully evaluative lunch with two junior associates. Virtual callbacks mirror the timing exactly, replacing lunch with a virtual coffee chat. There are no case studies, brainteasers or technical finance questions.
Every interviewer files a feedback form immediately, rating intellectual capability, analytical depth, communication clarity and firm fit, and casts a vote of Strong Offer, Offer, No Offer or Hold. The Hiring Committee of senior partners aggregates qualitatively and meets multiple times weekly. Consensus is critical: a single negative flag on ego, preparation or interpersonal skills, including from the lunch, can end a candidacy, while a passionate partner advocate can pull a borderline candidate through. Offers come by partner phone call within 1-4 business days.
Manage your energy deliberately: treat each transition as a mental reset so every interviewer meets an engaged, focused candidate, and do not let your posture or questions slip by the fourth slot or lunch. Keep your narrative consistent across all interviewers, tailor questions to each attorney's seniority, stay poised when challenged, and remember the lunch is fully evaluative. Intervyo runs realistic, firm-specific callback simulations with conversational follow-ups and instant feedback on your reasoning, consistency and composure.
The other rounds
The Pack covers all four rounds end to end.
Cravath, Swaine & Moore Premium Pack
The Premium Pack ($149) adds the Superday simulator, superday simulator, interviewer profiles and a deeper firm dossier on top of everything in Pack. The page you're reading is the brief; the simulator is the rehearsal.
Get the Cravath, Swaine & Moore Premium Pack · $149Intervyo is not affiliated with or endorsed by Cravath, Swaine & Moore. Exercise details are sourced from past attendees and the firm's published guidance; verify on the firm's careers site before attending. Sector: Commercial Law.
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