Legal Project Management Co-op

Goodwin Procter • Boston, MA

4d

About The Position

The Legal Project Management Co-op is an integral member of Goodwin’s Legal Project Management (LPM) team within the Client Value function. The co-op supports live matter budget tracking, using firm data and AI-assisted workflows to monitor financial performance, identify risks, and prepare practical, partner-facing reporting. The role reports to the Director, Legal Project Management and works with LPM colleagues in Boston and London, as well as Strategic Pricing, Finance, and wider Client Value teams.

The co-op also analyzes matter economics, helps measure the value added by LPM, creates charts and summaries, and improves the processes, templates, guides, and checklists used by the team. Additional work may include post-matter reviews, pricing support, and research on legal operations and AI trends. The role handles confidential client, matter, and financial information. No prior legal or professional experience is required; the team will provide instruction on how a global law firm operates as a business.

Requirements

• Working toward a degree through Northeastern University’s co-op program.
• Experience using frontier AI tools to improve work quality and efficiency, and enthusiasm for further use of AI.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel, including formulas, lookups, and pivot tables, and willingness to develop advanced skills.
• Comfort with Microsoft Office, including Word, PowerPoint, and Outlook, and Microsoft Teams.
• Analytical mindset and attention to detail, including willingness to investigate unusual figures.
• Clear written and verbal communication skills, including ability to explain numbers in plain language.
• Strong organizational skills, ability to manage recurring deadlines across multiple pieces of work, and ownership and follow-through.
• Ability to work independently and contribute to team projects, with confidence to ask questions when needed.
• No prior professional experience is required; this may be the candidate’s first co-op.

Nice To Haves

• A degree focus in Business Administration, Finance, Economics, Data Science, Information Systems, or a related field; students from any degree or background are welcome.
• Experience with data visualization tools such as Tableau or Power BI, or with automation.
• Coursework, class projects, or personal projects demonstrating analytical, AI, or process-improvement skills.
• Curiosity about how professional services firms price, staff, and make money.
• An instinct for identifying and improving processes.

Responsibilities

• Support regular reporting for a portfolio of live matters by retrieving time and billing data, updating budget workbooks, and tracking spend against budget by phase and workstream.
• Identify budget overruns, scope changes, and staffing differences from plan, and flag concerns to the LPM team and matter partners.
• Draft concise, partner-facing reports and update emails that translate financial data into practical next steps.
• Maintain the portfolio register, including reporting due dates, matter changes, and new matters in the pipeline.
• Run and refine AI-assisted workflows used for budget tracking, from source-data review through report drafting.
• Review AI outputs for accuracy and judgment, and test prompts, tools, and approaches to improve the process.
• Analyze matter data for trends in budget performance, staffing mix, realization, and profitability.
• Help quantify LPM’s value, including interventions, overruns avoided, and write-offs reduced.
• Create charts, dashboards, and summaries for partners and business leaders.
• Improve step-by-step guides, templates, and checklists for the budget tracking framework.
• Contribute ideas for scaling LPM across the firm.
• Support wider LPM and Client Value projects, including post-matter reviews, pricing support, and research on legal operations and AI trends.
• Present a project or key learnings to the team toward the end of the co-op.
• Handle confidential client, matter, and financial information with discretion and in accordance with firm policies.

Benefits

• Real responsibility from day one, including ownership of a live portfolio used by partners.
• Hands-on experience using AI in a global law firm’s operations.
• Practical business education in pricing, budgeting, profitability, and law firm operations.
• International exposure working with colleagues and matters across the US and UK.
• Regular coaching and feedback from LPM leadership, with a plan for the first weeks.
• A portfolio of work, process improvements, and results to discuss in future interviews.

What This Job Offers

• Career Level: Intern
• Education Level: No Education Listed