“Working at the Public International Law & Policy Group (PILPG) this summer has been a blast. PILPG is a unique global law firm that provides legal and policy advice to post-conflict states and governments. We assist our clients with peace negotiations, war crime prosecutions, and constitution drafting. I was honored to prepare memoranda and other legal documents for our South Sudan clients as they prepared to declare independence and the Republic of South Sudan became the world’s newest state on July 9, 2011.”
Category Archives: Fellowships and Grants
Mollie Bracewell (JD ’13), 2011 Chayes Fellowship recipient, on her work for Southeast Asia Investigations into Social and Humanitarian Activities in Cambodia
“I have just started a new project this week: my boss at SISHA was hired for a consultancy by the UNODC to prepare an assessment of human trafficking in Cambodia. I am working on the legal part of the final report, so I’m looking at statutes and laws that pertain to trafficking in any way like labor law, contract law, migration, criminal law, and then looking at how those laws are enforced (if they are enforced). I’m also looking at the criminal prosecutions and assessing how the prosecutions unfold. And I’m looking at the way the government regulates, monitors, or streamlines NGOs and how the government itself takes preventative measures. The report is assessing whether Cambodia should and could use a victim referral mechanism, which would streamline what is a chaotic landscape of services for victims. It’s really a good project because I am getting exposure to the human trafficking issue from all sides in this country. I absolutely love SISHA. I feel like I’ve had very substantive work the whole time- not always “purely” legal but useful all the same.”
Stephen Lam (JD ’13), on his 2011 Chayes Fellowship work with InfraCo Asia, Singapore
“My major projects so far have included doing research into Bilateral Investment Treaties across SE Asia to determine which countries have the most benefits for a donor-led infrastructure development initiative, and drafting and reviewing term sheets and joint development agreements for a power plant in Bangladesh, a bridge project in Vietnam, and an agricultural development project in Cambodia. All of these assignments have allowed me to combine my legal analysis skills from HLS with specific opportunities to leverage my interest in infrastructure development and SE Asia in specific, and all in all, it’s been a great experience thus far. Over the next four weeks, it looks like I will be continuing to work on documentation/research tasks related to a couple of infrastructure projects in Cambodia and Bangladesh, and will be accompanying the Deputy Managing Director on a trip to Bangkok to meet with potential development partners.”
Megan McDermott (JD ’13), spending her summer at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in the Netherlands as a 2011 Chayes Fellow
“I’m exactly halfway through my internship at ICTY in the OTP, and I’m really enjoying the work so far…Most of my tasks have revolved around witness preparation–drafting short motions, proofing witnesses, and preparing my attorneys for missions to interview potential witnesses. The attorneys on my team, which is quite a large one compared to those working on other cases, are absolutely wonderful–kind and happy to mentor us patiently, and just great supervisors all around. I’ve also learned a great deal about different styles of lawyering from being at an institution with so many attorneys from completely different legal backgrounds.”
Amanda Barry, Program Coordinator, on the Linklaters India Internship presented by the Program on the Legal Profession
“This January I worked on site for the Linklaters India Internship program in Mumbai and Delhi. The program gives students an insight into working in the legal sector of the closed Indian legal market while also conducting research for academic papers. This year we had 10 students interning at 4 firms and one corporate counsel. Adjusting to working in a new city is both challenging and exciting. The students were already masters of the city by the time I arrived a week into the program. Their ability to adapt to and absorb the culture was astounding. Meeting with the host firms and Jindal Global Law School fostered greater collaboration and support for student research.”