Engaging the Process
By: Nam Le, CAS ’23
Nam reading a judgment from the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court!
Jingsh Law Firm – Beijing, China
A major reason I chose to apply to GRIP: Law and International Affairs in Beijing was because I wanted to explore either law or international affairs. I realized the generality of my interest was in international law, so I sought to clarify which careers I liked. With great gratitude, my experiences thus far at Jingsh Law Firm have furthered my perception of private international law. Not only do I find my work intellectually stimulating and aligned with my current interests, but I have also identified new areas I hope to explore, providing more insight into potential career paths.
The vast majority of my work consists of research. In order to assist my supervisor in formulating legal strategies for the clients, I conduct weekly research. For example, one week, I had the opportunity to focus on Swiss international business law. I needed to figure out how to hold a Swiss trust accountable under their own laws. Contextualized with Jingsh Law Firm’s Chinese client, we also had to first consider how to go about beginning the legal process with a lawsuit in China. I found managing multiple layers and components challenging, but working through the case forced me to research efficiently and think analytically.Â
In addition to being intellectually engaging, frequent connections to my academic interests pleasantly surprise me. My projects consistently involve international arbitration bodies and/or international treaties. For instance, when reviewing an agreement, it has been interesting to see how different international and domestic legal components contribute to its structure. Particularly, being able to compare Swiss and Chinese materials has been exciting. The opportunity to dive deeper into these arbitration bodies and the application of treaties have strengthened a personal understanding: I want my future career to be related to my core interest of public international law.
However, my internship at Jingsh Law Firm has also opened my perspective with regards to which kinds of careers I should pursue. At Penn, I have been lucky enough to enroll in a series of classes that align with my interests, from International Law to East Asian Diplomacy. Given how much I enjoyed simply exploring and pursuing my interests, I assumed my professional experiences must similarly be catered to my subject interests. Instead, beyond international trade and private international law, my internship has focused on areas outside of my core interests— yet, I found myself enjoying the work itself.
Conducting the research, persevering through complex cases, reviewing legal documents, and drafting my own all gave me an unexpected sense of satisfaction. Moreover, my supervisor’s kind efforts to teach me a multitude of new concepts and skills have greatly aided in my development. Despite not directly overlapping with my primary interests, my internship projects at Jingsh have demonstrated that I can feel personal success and be content in the process itself, even when exploring an unfamiliar landscape like private international law.
Engaging research, continued academic relevance, and a newfound appreciation for the work itself have made my internship at Jingsh Law Firm such a rewarding experience. I look forward to further developing these skills and my career goals as I continue!
The Global Research and Internship Program (GRIP) provides outstanding undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to intern or conduct research abroad for 8 to 12 weeks over the summer. Participants gain career-enhancing experience and global exposure that is essential in a global workforce.