CLA-ACE 2005 SUMMER INTERNSHIP EXPERIENCE

Andrew Harrington is in his 2nd year of a joint Bachelor of Laws and Master of Arts in International Affairs at the Faculty of Law at the University of Ottawa and the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs. Andrew earned his B.A. (Hons.) from the University of Ottawa and is fluent in English, French, Spanish and Portuguese. He clearly loves to travel, and has done so extensively throughout South and Central America, South Africa, Europe and North America. He also has spent a year teaching English as a second language and working as a translator in Florianópolis, Brazil.

When Andrew was unable to secure a summer position at a firm after his first year in law school, he looked for alternatives. He had heard about CLA-ACE from a friend and contacted the organization about its summer internship program. With his Portuguese language skills, interest in political science and international affairs, and training in Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), Andrew was immediately recognized as a terrific candidate for a CLA-ACE summer internship, and more specifically, a great match for an internship with the Asia Foundation in Timor-Leste (previously knows as East Timor).

The opportunity was radically different from what Andrew had been expecting for his summer, and he took a week to ponder the offer. But, ultimately, he knew he needed to go and felt that, "to pass up such an opportunity would have been madness."

Andrew spent his summer at the Asia Foundation, an organization that supports programs that strengthen the democratic and economic development of Timor-Leste. The Asia Foundation is currently focusing its efforts in Timor-Leste on helping to establish a sound, independent, and broadly accessibly justice system.

During his internship with the Asia Foundation, Andrew helped administer their "Access to Justice and Legislative Development" program, researched and prepared a presentation on the effectiveness of ADR mechanisms, and helped lay the groundwork for the country's first constitutional challenge. He also conducted a diagnostic of the case management systems in use by Asia Foundation's legal aid partners' in Timor Leste, including extensive on-site interviews.

The highlight of his internship was a field mission to Suai, the capital of the district of Cova Lima. This area on the Indonesian border was one of the hardest hit areas in the 1999 violence leading up to independence. The mission's goals were to assess the situation of the Asia Foundation's legal aid partner in Suai, to lay a foundation for mobile legal aid teams in the remote sub-districts, and to meet with the District Administrator and border patrol units to familiarize them with the concept of cross-border dialogue. Andrew feels that the "opportunity to participate in the mission and visit such a remote border point was both an unforgettable and irreplaceable experience."

When asked what he learned from his summer position, Andrew is unambiguous: "I learned that not securing a summer position with a law firm is not the end of the world. rather it was the beginning of a new world for me. The experience gained from this internship abroad will undoubtedly shine on future applications for summer positions with law firms, if I decide to even apply. It really helped put my life in focus and reminded me of why I went to law school in the first place."