Internship Experience @ Chambers of Advocate Sanjay Awasthi, Allahabad High Court: Learn what you can’t learn from books

Your Name, College, Year of Study, Email ID

Urvashi Agrawal, Symbiosis Law School, Noida, Third Year

Name of Organisation, Location city, Team Strength

I interned under Advocate Sanjay Awasthi at the Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court. Mr. Awasthi has two offices. One in the Court Premises and the other in Aishbagh Lucknow. Both the offices are small with only an assistant as staff. Number of interns is generally 1 to 2.

Application Process

I got the internship through personal contacts but you can mail him your CV at sanawasthi@yahoo.com

He is more than happy to take interns. There’s only one pre-condition i.e. make sure you apply at least a month in advance.

Duration of internship and timings

My internship was for a period of 1 month i.e from 10th November, 2014 to 10th December, 2014.

First impression, first day formalities, infrastructure

On the first day, I was supposed to meet Sir during the lunch time because he had a hearing in the morning. When I met him, he told me a little about himself and then took a small interview of me. There were no other formalities as such. Right after lunch, he tok me to a Court room and asked me to observe hearings.

Main tasks

As it was right after my first semester, I did not have much of legal knowledge. So, Sir wanted me to learn the basics of legal profession. On most of the days, I was required to sit in the Court rooms and make notes of everything I saw. I used to make a list of all the new terms I heard and at the end of day,

Sir used to explain everything I wanted to know.
Other than this, I had to draft simple applications like application for another date, application for exemption from presence , etc.

Work environment and people

The work environment was chilled out. It’s mostly you and sir or just you all the time. So, nothing to worry about. Sir, is busy most of the times. When possible, he will try to keep you with him. Otherwise, you got to be on your own. Just make sure, you complete the work given to you on time. Work also includes reading stuff which he wants you to.

Best things

Best things were that Sir actually take an initiative to make you learn. If you show interest, you can learn a lot of legal trivia from hi which you can’t learn from the books.

Bad things

There was only one bad thing which I felt. Sometimes, Sir would be so busy that he would see you only in the morning and tell you to attend the hearings in whichever Court you like and you spend the whole day like that.

Stipend

No stipend

Biggest Lessons

What I learned from this internship is that reality is a lot different from what you read in books and see in movies. Nothing comes easy in this world. You need to be ready to work hard. Even if you get to work with the best lawyer of the world, but you are not willing to learn, it’s of no use.

Any Other Thing

Everyone like to eat. Right? So don’t miss the great food in Lucknow. In Hazratganj and Parivartan Chauk near the High Court, you have many shops delivering amazing food. Royal Cafe, Moti Mahal, Tundey Kababi, Parampara, Mr Brown, etc. are few of the famous names around. Saharaganj mall is also nearby where you can chill after the office hours.

Overall Rating

8

Accommodation

As the High Court is near Hazratganj, you really don’t need to worry about anything. Whe in Lucknow, it’s the best place to be in. The place is a hub of schools and coaching centres.

This is why one can easily get PGs and Hostels at very cheap rates. I stayed in a hostel called Sai Kripa Girls Hostel at Sapru Marg. The High Court is a 10-minutes rickshaw ride from there.

Office Timings

The office timings were 10-4, Monday to Friday. Saturday and Sunday was off. Sir was not very strict about the timings. If you have a genuine reason, you can take a half day.