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Lawyers/Those who know the legal field
Hi ladies,
I am currently nearing the end of my first year of law school (thank goodness!) and I currently have 2 interviews for summer internships. One is for the county's D.A.'s office and the other is for a private practice specializing in family law/ADR/family court work. Right now, I am interested in family/matrimonial law but I also have an interest in criminal law and want to gain experience and explore the field since I have no legal experience. If I have the option of either internship (if I get past the interview stage), which would be the best option in your opinion for me at this stage in my education? Thanks!
ETA: I'm not taking into consideration paid v. unpaid internships since I know the D.A.'s office is unpaid and I'm assuming the private practice one is as well. I'd rather get the best experience overall.
Pipe down, you had your chance!
Re: Lawyers/Those who know the legal field
assuming you are offered both positions, i would choose the job that gives you the most hands-on, real-life, thorough and diverse experience - researching many different facets of law, drafting different types of documents (motions, memos, briefs, discovery, etc.), client contact, court/mediation appearances, etc.
also, if you are offered both positions, ask if you can split your summer b/w both jobs, i.e., work at the law firm for half the summer and work at the D.A.'s office the other half.
good luck!
DH is in the public sector and I'm in private, so we did a quick meeting of the minds.
My opinion is that you can't go wrong here. Either is going to give you the experience you need to figure out if that's what you're interested in, if you don't have legal experience.
DH says there's a better chance of you getting in to the public sector without doing an internship your first year, while it is generally harder to get in to private practice without a background and experience. His thinking is, if the private firm is a firm you think you might be interested in working in after school, you might have a leg up by working there as early as your 1L summer.
- along those lines, I worked for a private firm after my 2L summer and ended up getting hired there after I graduated. DH worked for a professor his 1L summer, a corporation his 2L summer, and interned at the DA's office during his 3L year and ended up working for the DA's office after graduation.
1. Ask your question again over on MM, there are lots of attorneys over there.
2. I'd go with the DA's office. Bias alert: that's what I did my 1L summer, and what my H did his 2L summer. (He happens to be an ADA now. I'm in a private firm, practicing a different area of law entirely.) The reason I'd go DA's office is that when, in the future, you're going on interviews, people will know what kind of work you did. To say that you interned in a DA's office is a pretty standardized thing. Work in a private firm -- much less so. Your interviewer won't know whether you answered phones and made copies, or did everything except sign your name on pleadings you drafted. You'll still have your 2L summer to work at a firm as a summer associate which can hopefully lead to an associate job offer.
Pipe down, you had your chance!