Since 1994, at least six Columbia Law students have been selected to clerk on the Constitutional Court of South Africa (Hoyt Webb'93, Sharon McPherson '95, Kristen Wells '96, Laboni Hoq '00, Angus Tarpley '01 and Sherrel Evans '01). Both Mr. Tarpley and Ms. Evans clerked while participating in the exchange program with the University of the Witwatersrand. In addition to clerkships on the South African Constitutional Court, Columbia students have clerked at the Constitutional Court in Israel.
The ICC International Court of Arbitration Clerkships Columbia is the only American law school to have a standing arrangement with the ICC International Court of Arbitration, under which it designates a candidate every year for a clerkship with the ICC Court. The clerkship is invaluable to those who wish to engage in international arbitration.
The Clerkship with the Commission des Operations de Bourse The "Commission des Opérations de Bourse" has ceased to exist. Its new name is "Autorité des marchés financiers". You find more information on the following site: http://www.amf-france.org/
Clerkship with the Federal Court of Appeals of Buenos Aires Up to two students participating in the exchange program with the University of Buenos Aires may apply for a clerkship at the Federal Court of Appeals of Buenos Aires. This Court deals primarily with cases involving maritime and intellectual property law.
International Organization Externship Students in their second or third year of law studies, as well as LL.M. students, may earn up to 2 points of academic credit through externships with various offices of the United Nations, including the Office of the High Commission for Refugees and the Office of the General Assembly Affairs, as well as non-governmental organizations represented at the U.N. The externship may be taken in conjunction with the seminar Law and Current Problems of the United Nations, taught by the former head of the Codification Division of the Office of Legal Affairs (UNOLA), Dr Roy Lee.
Private Law Internships A program providing both summer associate placement and internship opportunities in Latin America was established by Professor Alejandro Garro in 1995. Many first-year law students interested in Latin America have spent approximately 10 weeks of their summer at law firms in several different countries in Central and South America. Last summer Denise Lee '03 spent the summer at the law firm of Barros and Errázuriz Abogados in Santiago, Chile. This law firm has agreed to take a Columbia J.D. each year for a summer internship. For students who have a Latin American focus, this provides a wonderful opportunity to learn first-hand the legal and business practices of the region and to gain important contacts with prominent Central and South American law firms and legal professionals.
Similar opportunities are organized through the Centers for Korean and Japanese Legal Studies. For many years, the Law Firm of Matsuo and Kosugi has offered a paid internship to one Columbia law student in the summer after his or her first year.
Career Placement In addition to assisting students with summer placements, the regional legal centers and the Career Services Office at the Law School aid students in obtaining associate positions in Japan, China, Taiwan, Korea and Europe as well as other locations around the world. They are also instrumental in guiding graduates to U.S. law firms with a significant foreign and international practice. During the Early Interview Program organized by the Career Services Office at the Law School in August 2002, twenty-six overseas offices offered employment opportunities to both 2L and/or 3L students. These firms were firms with overseas branches or foreign firms interested in hiring U.S. trained lawyers. In addition, each year the Career Services Office organizes the Overseas-Trained LL.M. Student Interview Program for LL.M. candidates.
For more information about the Career Services Office please click here.
The Columbia Society of International Law sponsors an annual conference that includes a discussion on careers in international law, as well as an update of law practice developments in international law. This program provides an opportunity for U.S. and foreign lawyers to discuss the myriad international career options available to students. Contact with Columbia's extensive alumni/ae network also provides a unique resource for students seeking to practice abroad or to engage in transnational law.
Applications are due by 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 1, 2009. Click here for application form. Ambassador Ann Wagner is pleased to announce that the U.S. Embassy in Luxembourg is accepting applications for the Dean Acheson Legal Stage (traineeship) Program in Luxembourg at the Court of Justice of the European Communities for 2009-2010. These stage opportunities for periods of not more than three months are offered to a limited number of students from select U.S. law schools. Applications must be received by the U.S. Embassy in Luxembourg by May 1, 2009.
Available Stage Periods at the European Court
There are two possible Dean Acheson Legal Stage periods for 2009-2010:
Fall Term (mid-September to mid-December)
Spring Term (mid-February to mid-May)
Some flexibility regarding dates may be possible at the discretion of the Judge or Advocate General to whom the Dean Acheson stagiaire is attached. Exact dates will be determined by the calendar of the Court. The maximum stage period is three months due to Luxembourg visa requirements for non-E.U. citizens.
Categories of Dean Acheson Legal Stage
Three types of stage are available:
With a Judge of the Court of Justice
The Dean Acheson stagiaire works in the Chambers of a Judge of the Court of Justice in association with his or her referendaires (law clerks). The stagiaire is expected to assist the Judge and his or her referendaires as required. This experience offers an unparalleled opportunity to gain insight into a judicial process characteristic of the European Court, but very different from the American approach, involving a high degree of intellectual teamwork. Strong French language skills are essential.
With an Advocate General of the Court of Justice
The Dean Acheson stagiaire works in the Chambers of an Advocate General of the Court of Justice in association with his or her referendaires. The stagiaire takes part in the research and writing of the Advocate General’s opinions, an experience most akin to a traditional U.S. judicial clerking experience. Advocates General prepare their opinions in their native language. The stagiaire therefore needs to have the language skills appropriate to the Advocate General who selects him or her. A reading knowledge of French is required.
With a Judge of the Court of First Instance
The Dean Acheson stagiaire works in the Chambers of a Judge of the Court of First Instance (CFI), assisting him or her in connection with cases before the CFI. Candidates for this stage should have a strong background in antitrust/competition law. A reading knowledge of French is required.
Eligibility Requirements
The purpose of the Dean Acheson Legal Stage Program is to promote mutual understanding between the peoples of the United States and the European Union in the context of the legal profession. It is therefore open to American citizens and legal permanent residents only. Priority will be given to applicants who have completed three years of law school and who have a strong knowledge of Community Law. As noted above, some knowledge of French is required, varying with the type of stage. Knowledge of an E.U. language other than French and English is an advantage, and generally necessary for a stage with an Advocate General.
Application Procedure
Applications must include a completed application form and graduate and undergraduate transcripts.
All applications must first be submitted to each law school’s administrator for review. After initial screening, each law school should forward as a single packet a maximum of three (3) endorsed applications to the U.S. Embassy in Luxembourg. After review, the Embassy will forward approved applications materials to the Court of Justice for review and circulation among the Judges and Advocates General, according to the applicant’s stated preferences.
Individual Judges and Advocates General will select Dean Acheson stagiaires from the lists submitted and the European Court of Justice will notify the Embassy and the applicants of their selection.
Financial Assistance
No U.S. Government funds are available to assist applicants chosen for Dean Acheson Legal stages. Dean Acheson stages are unpaid, and the European Court of Justice does not make any funds available to support Dean Acheson stagiaires.
No academic credit is given for the stage. It is an unpaid clerkship; however, the ParkerSchool may provide up to $3,500 in need-based grants.
Participating Schools
Boston University Columbia University Cornell University Duke University Fordham University Georgetown University George Washington University Harvard University New York University Northwestern University Seton Hall University Stanford University University of California, Berkeley University of California, Los Angeles University of Chicago University of Michigan University of Minnesota University of Pennsylvania University of Southern California University of Texas at Austin University of Virginia Vanderbilt University Yale University
Columbia has been selected to participate in the Dean Acheson Legal Stage Program at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. This program is one of the most sought-after internships in the European Union and is an extraordinary opportunity for Columbia's graduates to engage in substantive research and work with leading European judges and advocates-general from the Court of Justice and the Court of First Instance. There are three stages, each lasting a minimum of three months. A stagiaire with the Court of Justice works in the chambers of a judge in association with the legal secretaries (clerks), gaining insight into the collegial judicial process that is characteristic of the European Court. A stage with an advocate-general of the Court of Justice involves research and writing of the advocate-general's opinions—an experience similar to the U.S. clerkship. The stagiaire with the Court of First instance works in the chambers of a particular judge, assisting with cases (dealing primarily with antitrust/competition law) before the Court. Over nine Columbia Law J.D. and LL.M. students have been selected to participate in this program. While the stages are unpaid, the Parker School provides need-based grants to offset living expenses in Luxembourg.
Since 1998, 15 J.D., LL.M. and JSD graduates have been selected to participate in the program. The following individuals were selected to the traineeship in previous years:
Julie Bedard Cecile Boyer Kimberly Danzi Kyriakos Fountoukas Miyako Ikuta Christopher Kirkham Rafael Leal-Arcas Elina Mangassarian Marguerite Marty Gwanael Muguet Jacques Roder Tom Snels Kevin Stemp Andrea Welcher Sidne Koenigsberg Victoria Koroteyeva Jason Casey Emmanuelle Henry Carolyn Bidwell
The deadline to submit your application is 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, April 1st, 2009.
Inquiries
Questions concerning this program may be addressed to:
Jeffrey T. Lodermeier Public Affairs Officer U.S. Embassy Luxembourg 22, blvd Emmanuel Servais L-2535 Luxembourg Tel. +352 46 01 23 ext 2121 Fax +352 26 27 04 37 LuxembourgPublicAffairs@state.gov http://Luxembourg.USEmbassy.gov
International Internship and Clerkship Opportunities
Columbia has a wide array of international internships, clerkships, and externships available to its J.D. and LL.M. students that provide an unparalleled opportunity to see first-hand the legal and business practices of the region and to gain important contacts with practitioners, human rights activists and members of the judiciary from around the world.
Human Rights Internship Program Sends approximately 75 students on paid internships at human rights organizations in the US and around the world. Since the establishment of this program over 20 years ago, more than 1,200 Columbia law students have participated in internships in the U.S. and more than 50 foreign countries. Students have interned at the Legal Resources Center in South Africa, European Court of Human Rights, the International Criminal Tribunal in Rwanda, Human Rights Watch offices around the world, among numerous other organizations.
International Court of Justice in The Hague, The Netherlands Under an experimental traineeship program that the Court instituted for the first time in spring 2002, Columbia Law School was selected to nominate a candidate for a single 9-month position with the Court. The following students have clerked at the Court since the establishment of this program. Simon De Smet for the 2002-2003 cycle, Misa Zgonec-Ronej in 2003-2004, and Natalya Scimeca in 2004-2005. Cecily Rose has been selected for the academic year 2006-2007.
Attached please find the application form and the announcement for the traineeship beginning in September 2009. THE APPLICATION DEADLINE IS JANUARY 16, 2009.
