Beike and Paul did an 8-week internship at Poelmann van den Broek

The end of the year is in sight and the internships of Paul Smarius and Beike Baaijens are almost over as well. Together they look back on their internships at Poelmann van den Broek. Paul's focus was on construction law and Beike participated in the practice of our receivers and attorneys corporate law.

Looking for practical experience

"During my undergraduate, I worked at the court as an outside court clerk. That's nice to be able to get an inside look at the judiciary, but I still missed the practical experience within the legal profession. That's why I started an internship." Paul continues: "I very deliberately passed all my courses first, so that I could now focus entirely on practice. After co-organizing the Legal Business Day, I still wanted to see more of the practice, because of course everyone talks about it a lot then." Beike adds: "Before doing an internship, you naturally talk a lot with students and trainee lawyers, all of whom tell you how fun and important it is to gain internship experience. Great stories are fun, of course, but it's even more fun to experience it yourself. Because experiencing it yourself is quite different from listening to and speaking to people." He continues: "Going along to a large bankruptcy to also see all the property law issues you deal with during your studies come to life, I found very interesting. The practice is much more practical than the study sometimes makes it seem. You're really negotiating. You see that bankruptcy, which has a big impact on the lives of everyone involved. It's great to see how the trustee works in this, you get a different perspective. For me, this has made the law come more alive, which has made me even more enthusiastic about working within the legal profession."

Paul has also learned other things than in the lecture halls: "At the Radboud University there is no course in construction law, but through Koen Roordink and Marloes Beeren I got the chance to immerse myself in this," says Paul. "So you actually know quite little in terms of subject matter when you leave university. So it came in handy that I happened to be able to take a course in construction law on the first day. And in the same week was team outing, so that was very nice start." Paul continues: "It's fun to figure things out and then communicate them directly to the client. This makes you learn to communicate things that are very clear to you well and clearly. What I have noticed here is that it has to be not only legally correct, but also solution-oriented. The client must be able to use your piece or advice immediately, which makes the job of a lawyer interesting and dynamic." Paul has also experienced the practice up close: "During my internship, for example, I went along to an arbitration case. It was very interesting to see how negotiations took place in the corridor."

Lots of inspiration for thesis and learning to write differently

Doing an internship also contributes to your writing skills, Beike says: "One of your main occupations is writing legal notes on a variety of topics. You are presented with a legal issue that you then answer using all the legal sources, which you probably already know from university. This greatly improves your writing skills, which I found very enjoyable." Paul agrees with Beike: "That is indeed true, I wrote a lot of notes. This also helped me in writing my thesis, because it improves your writing skills considerably." Beike adds: "Moreover, you get feedback here from someone who has been in the business for years, you learn through this what is relevant to practice. I find that very interesting."

Office-wide, but with your own focus

The internship at Poelmann van den Broek is basically office-wide, but you are free to bring your own focus to this. Beike explains: "From the start of my internship I was dragged through the service area entrepreneurship, I was immediately invited to participate in team meetings and other meetings. This really makes you participate in a team, you get to know the attorneys and other employees very well." Beike continues: "It is expected of you here that you also take the initiative yourself, but when I participated for a while I was asked along to many interesting things. I really liked that, after all, you do an internship to experience practice." Paul adds: "By participating in the day-to-day, you start writing and thinking in a different way because you learn what is relevant to practice."

Positive and open working atmosphere

Beike: "There is a pleasant atmosphere in the office. You can be yourself and have easy contact with everyone, from legal assistant to partner. This gives you the feeling that you can walk in anywhere, which in practice was really the case." Paul continues, "The firm also considers a positive atmosphere important, this is also encouraged among themselves. For example, I attended several meetings where most trainee lawyers were present, from all the different service areas. During these meetings, relevant skills were taught by experienced attorneys from the firm, while at the same time you get to know your colleagues better."

And in the future.

"This week there are several more client appointments scheduled and I am still participating in an internal course on general contract law. Then my internship will be over" says Paul. Beike has his last internship day next Friday: "When I look back at the past eight weeks, time has gone by so quickly. In January I leave for Glasgow to study for five months and then enjoy the summer vacations. After that I'll start my master's, so I'll have some time to think about whether that will be civil law and/or business law."

We are always looking for motivated student interns

Are you a driven law student and at least in your third year? Then come join us as an intern and get to know the various service areas of our firm. For more information click here.