The European Legal Studies Center | Columbia Law School

Clerkships & Internships

Students at Columbia Law School interested in European Law have the opportunity to clerk or to intern with various European institutions and international institutions located in Europe.

Columbia-Sponsored Clerkships and Internships

• Dean Acheson Legal Stage, Luxembourg  
  The European Court of Justice and the Court of First Instance of the European Community have initiated a program with several American law schools, including Columbia Law School, under which selected law students and graduates will work as clerks in the Court of Justice or the Court of First Instance. This program presents a unique opportunity to gain firsthand insight into the legal institutions of the European Community.

  Eligibility: Applications will be accepted from third-year students, LL.M.s, J.S.D.s and Columbia alumni. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents. Strong French language skills are essential for applicants to the Court of Justice. A reading knowledge of French is required for applicants to the Advocate General of the Court of Justice and the Court of First Instance. An additional European Union language, other than English and French, is desirable. Please note: No academic credit is given for the stage. It is an unpaid clerkship; however, the Parker School may provide up to $3,500 in need-based grants. To apply, contact the European Legal Studies Center with any questions. Applications are usually due in the spring semester.  

• The ICC International Court of Arbitration Clerkships, Paris, France   
  Columbia Law School has 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 unpaid.
   
• The Clerkship with the Commission des Operations de Bourse (COB), Paris, France   
  Columbia Law School has an arrangement with the French Commission des Opérations de Bourse (COB, the French equivalent of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission), under which it designates one of its graduates for a paid clerkship with the COB.
   
• The International Court of Justice in The Hague, 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 nine-month position with the court. Candidates should be third-year or LL.M. students; recent alumni also will be considered. Please note: Candidates for traineeships at the court should have a very good knowledge of French, and an excellent academic record in public international law with proven research and writing skills. Contact Professor Lori Damrosch for more information.

Other Clerkships/Internships with European Institutions and International Institutions Located in Europe

• European Court of Human Rights, Strasbourg, France  
  A number of Columbia Law School students have had summer internships with the Council of Europe’s European Court of Human Rights (not to be confused with the European Union’s Court of Justice), through the Law School’s Center for Public Interest Law. 
   
• In-service Training (stages) with the European Commission, Brussels or Luxembourg  
  The European Commission offers two five-month periods of in-service training for university graduates from the member states of the European Union and to a number of nationals from nonmember countries. These training periods involve work experience in one of the commission’s departments and are held twice each year, beginning Oct. 1 and March 1.
   
• International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia 
  The Criminal Tribunal has an Internship Programme, open to professionals and graduate students, which places interns to each of the three constituent organs of the Tribunal (Registry, Chambers, and the Office of the Prosecutor) for internships ranging from three- to six months. Preference is given to law graduates acquainted with one or more of the following disciplines: public international law, international humanitarian law, human rights law, private international law, criminal law, comparative law, and criminology. 
   
• International Labour Organization (ILO), Geneva, Switzerland  
  Each year, the office receives undergraduate or postgraduate students for professional work, including drafting legal documents and providing legal advice. Interns are assigned either to ILO Headquarters (Geneva, Switzerland) or an ILO Field Office. 
   
• International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), Hamburg, Germany
  The ITLOS  offers internships lasting from two- to six months, for current law school students under 35 years of age, having an interest in international law, specifically in international law of the sea or international affairs. Application forms can be obtained from the Registry of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, Am Internationalen Seegerichtshof 1, 22609 Hamburg, Germany; Phone, 49 40 35607-227; Fax, 49 40 35607-245; email: press@itlos.org.  
   
• World Trade Organization (WTO), Geneva, Switzerland 
  The WTO secretariat maintains a limited internship program for postgraduate university students wishing to gain practical experience and deeper knowledge of the multilateral trading system. Intake to the program is on a continuing basis, with no specific recruitment period, and internships can start at any time during the year. 
   
• World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Summer School on Intellectual Property, Geneva, Switzerland
  This program provides students and young professionals with an opportunity for in-depth study of intellectual property law and to learn about the work of WIPO.