Law Firm Internships for Students pt. 2

Allbright Law Firm - Shanghai Offices

Written by Rayyan Rasheed, Concordia International School Shanghai, 12th Grade

Over the summer, I had the opportunity to intern at the headquarters of AllBright Law Offices in Shanghai. Over the three weeks of my internship, I learned about the interconnectedness of corporate law while also developing an understanding about the complexities of applying legal knowledge to a real-world situation. This internship helped me realize that the most fundamental characteristic of being a lawyer is critical thinking and problem-solving. Every legal case has unique circumstances, so it’s important to improvise and adapt to the situation.

AllBright Law Offices is a China-based corporate law firm that predominantly represents Chinese companies. They have offices in many major cities in Mainland China and are ranked the seventh-largest law firm in China. AllBright Law Offices assists Chinese companies with securities and capital management, merging and acquisition, cross-boundary transactions, and dispute resolution.

For my internship, my main task was to do legal research and formulate ideas on how to assist our clients with merging and acquisition. Specifically, the associate I worked for asked me to conduct legal research on the requirements of opening a subsidiary of a Chinese financial company in Singapore. This entailed browsing over legal databases and official government websites to find out the requirements for officially registering a subsidiary of a parent company. Some of the requirements, for example, included hiring auditors or signing articles of associations with relevant stakeholders, detailing corporate rules. Moreover, I had to actively read over the Singaporean Company Act and find any clauses that could help ease the process of registration, merging incorporation, or management of the company.

Furthermore, as an international high school student who is proficient in both English and Chinese, I was also tasked with proofreading legal documents in English. For example, I had to proofread a Legal Demand Letter that was written to a European Company or highlight evidence from legal documents that supported our client’s view against international companies. I also learned how to write a memo to concisely present my research to my associate.

Overall, the experience was challenging and unique at first. Since I did not have any prior knowledge of the law, I had to learn legal definitions and research procedures myself. I would recommend this internship if you are seeking a challenging yet rewarding experience. If you are interested in business and law, corporate law firms like AllBright can help you understand the day-to-day life of working in a firm.