Author: Lexfolio Team

To intern in Patna, email an advocate who practises at the Patna High Court with a short CV and say which month you are free. Most placements there are with individual advocates, unpaid, and for about a month. Start by asking your college and seniors for a name.

What is verifiable

The Patna High Court began work in 1916 and has jurisdiction over Bihar. It once had a circuit bench at Ranchi, which became the separate Jharkhand High Court in 2000. For you, the point is simple: the court sits in Patna, and advocates in the chambers around it take interns for litigation work.

I could not find a standing public internship programme run by the court itself. One illustration of how the formal route works comes from a 2019 notice at a Delhi University law centre: students were told to email a resume to the placement committee, and the High Court itself shortlisted candidates. That was one college, one year, and the notice is old, so do not treat it as a current offer. But it shows a pattern: courts and large offices sometimes take interns through the college placement cell, not directly. Ask your own cell whether they have a connection with Patna.

A current example of a chamber post

In June 2026 an advocate posted an internship at a chamber in the Bihar Bar Council Bhawan at the Patna High Court. The post asked for students of any year of the three or five year LL.B., with good research and drafting skills, for one month, unpaid, applying by email with a CV. It said apply “at the earliest.”

That is the shape of most Patna offers: a named advocate, a short duration, an email address, no pay. It is also a template for what to look for. If a post gives no advocate name, no duration or asks for money, leave it.

Where interns go in Patna

• High Court chambers. Writs, service matters, criminal appeals, civil revisions. You read files, prepare notes, check the cause list and attend hearings.
• Civil and criminal courts in the city. A fuller view of a case from filing to order.
• Legal aid. The State and district legal services authorities exist for this purpose. Ask your college whether it works with one, since I could not confirm an open student programme.
• Company matters. The NCLT bench that lists Bihar in its jurisdiction is the Kolkata bench, at 5 Esplanade Row (West), which covers Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. So company and insolvency matters from Bihar are heard in Kolkata. If you want that practice, ask whether the chamber appears there and whether you would travel.

Colleges in the city

Patna has law colleges, including Chanakya National Law University. If you study there, your internship cell is the first stop. If you study elsewhere, ask alumni from Bihar. A single name from a senior is worth more than a dozen cold emails.

What to send

A short email: name, year, college, dates, and what you want to learn. Attach a one page CV and, if you can, a page of writing, such as a note on a recent judgment. Mention Hindi if you read and write it, since much work in Bihar’s courts is in Hindi. Subject line: “Internship request, 3rd year, 1 to 30 June.” Keep it under 150 words.

When to apply

I could not verify a calendar. The June 2026 post above told candidates to apply immediately, which suggests chambers decide quickly. Write four to six weeks before your break, and check listing sites in the final weeks, because short notice posts appear.

What the work involves

You start with reading. A file, a chronology, a judgment on a point. Then drafting: a reply, an application, a synopsis. You attend court with the advocate and watch the way a High Court list moves. At the end of the month, you should have a small stack of drafts, a better sense of procedure and a certificate.

Ask for old drafts to study. Ask why a ground is framed the way it is. A junior who asks specific questions in the gaps between hearings learns twice as fast.

Before you accept

1. Is the advocate enrolled and practising? Ask a senior or check the cause list.
2. Where will you sit and what are the hours?
3. What will the certificate look like? Many universities want it signed on letterhead.
4. Is it unpaid, and are you comfortable with that?
5. No fee should be asked of you.
6. Where will you stay for the month? Arrange it before you travel.

University rules

Check your university’s internship requirements under the Bar Council of India framework. Some count only court or chamber placements for part of the total. Ask your cell before you commit.

If you cannot travel to Patna

If you cannot be in Patna, ask whether an advocate will let you do research and drafting remotely, or take a writing programme like Lexfolio’s virtual internship. It will not replace court time, but it gives you edited, published work to show when you write to chambers later.

Summary

Patna is a name based market. Get one introduction from a senior, send a short specific email, and be ready for a one month unpaid placement that teaches you the daily mechanics of a High Court practice. Confirm the details in writing before you travel.

There are two routes to a law internship in Jaipur. One is a chamber at the Rajasthan High Court’s Jaipur Bench. The other is the formal internship scheme of the Rajasthan State Judicial Academy, which runs at Jodhpur and not Jaipur. The second has published rules, and they are strict.

Know which court is where

The Rajasthan High Court was set up in 1949, and its principal seat is at Jodhpur. It also has a bench at Jaipur. Most Jaipur lawyers appear at the Jaipur Bench, which hears matters from its assigned districts, and most students who say “Rajasthan High Court internship in Jaipur” mean a chamber at that bench. The Jaipur Bench has no separate internship scheme that I could find. Students go through individual advocates.

The NCLT also has a bench at Jaipur, so if you want company law, a chamber that appears there is another option.

The formal scheme: RSJA Jodhpur

An order of the Rajasthan High Court, No. 09/S.O./2023 dated 18 January 2023, sets the guidelines for internships at the Rajasthan State Judicial Academy in Jodhpur. The facts that matter:

• Who can apply. Students of government and recognised private law colleges, universities and NLUs approved by the Bar Council of India, from 2nd and 3rd year of the three year LL.B., 4th and final year of the five year integrated course, or 1st or final year of the LL.M.
• Length. Normally 15 days, extendable up to one month.
• Seats. A maximum of three seats per year, allotted first come, first served. This is the number to remember. It is very small.
• Format. Full time, following the academy’s working hours.
• Work. The academy assigns a topic and you submit a paper, report or dissertation at the end.
• Pay. None. No honorarium, travel allowance or dearness allowance.
• How to apply. A prescribed form with a photo ID proof, forwarded by your institution in the prescribed format, plus a synopsis of about 400 words. It must reach the academy at least one month before the internship, addressed to the Director.
• Conditions. A dress code, undertakings on confidentiality, no job placement, and arranging your own lodging and transport. The study outcome belongs to the academy. The internship can be cancelled for poor performance, unauthorised absence or lack of discipline.
• Certificate. Issued on successful completion, and the Director’s decision on completion is final.

Because the application must come through your institution, speak to your internship cell first. And because there are only three seats, treat this as a long shot and apply anyway if the topic suits you. Check the academy’s current notice for any change to these rules, since the order I read is dated 2023.

The usual route: a chamber in Jaipur

Most students intern with an advocate. One account on a legal listing site describes a month with a senior bar office bearer at the Jaipur Bench, from mid July to mid August. The student worked 10 am to 4 pm, Monday to Friday, did research on civil and criminal procedure and family law, prepared case briefs for civil writ petitions and attended court. She had met the advocate through a law awareness society at the High Court and emailed her CV, and joined the next day. It was unpaid. That is a typical shape: in person, a month, unpaid, found through a contact.

Two lessons from it. First, an introduction beats a cold email. If your college has an alumnus at the Jaipur Bench, ask them for a name. Second, the work was research and briefs. Be ready to do the same.

What to send

A short email with your name, year, college, dates and one line on what you want to learn. Attach a one page CV and a brief writing sample if you have one. Hindi is the working language of many district proceedings and client talks in Rajasthan, so say that you read and write Hindi if you do. Name the court you want, the Jaipur Bench, so the advocate knows you have thought about it.

When to apply

I could not verify a Jaipur calendar, except the RSJA rule that applications must reach the academy at least a month early. For chambers, write four to six weeks before your break. Summer interns tend to apply in April, winter interns in October and November.

What the work looks like

At the Jaipur Bench, the day starts with the cause list. You check whether your supervisor’s matters are listed, find the court hall and item number, and gather the papers. In court you sit and watch. In the chamber you prepare a chronology, find judgments and draft. The work is not glamorous but it is the real working life of a High Court junior.

At RSJA, the work is academic: a topic, reading and a final paper. It teaches you research discipline and gives you a certificate with an institutional name on it.

Before you accept any offer

1. Check that the advocate is enrolled and practising.
2. Agree dates, hours and whether the work is in person.
3. Ask for a certificate on letterhead and in the form your university wants.
4. Do not pay a fee for a seat.
5. Keep client information strictly inside the chamber.

University rules

Bar Council of India rules, as applied by your university, may require minimum internship weeks and a certificate from a recognised office. Check with your internship cell whether a research placement like RSJA counts, since some universities prefer court based work for part of the requirement.

Remote and writing options

If you cannot travel, remote research for an advocate or a writing programme such as Lexfolio’s virtual internship can add edited, published work to your CV. It does not replace court time.

In short

For Jaipur, the best bet is a chamber at the Jaipur Bench through a contact. For a formal certificate, try the RSJA scheme with its three seats and early deadline. Apply to both if your dates allow.

For a law internship in Chennai, write to an advocate who practises at the Madras High Court with a short CV and a one page writing sample. Say which months you are free and, if you can read Tamil, say so in the first lines. Language shapes who will take you more than almost anything else here.

What you can verify

The Madras High Court has its seat in Chennai, and the court also has a bench at Madurai. Your supervisor will tell you which of the two they attend. As a student you will almost always be in Chennai. The court’s website hosts the Tamil Nadu Mediation and Conciliation Centre, which lists mediator panels, rules and a training section. I could not confirm that it runs an internship scheme for students, so treat it as a place to learn about mediation, and ask the centre directly if you want to take part.

For company matters, the NCLT Chennai Bench is at Corporate Bhawan (UTI Building), Rajaji Salai, Chennai, and its listed jurisdiction covers Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Lakshadweep and Puducherry. A chamber that appears there will show you company petitions, insolvency procedure and tribunal practice that a general civil chamber cannot.

A real example of what chambers ask for

In February 2026 a Madras High Court advocate posted a virtual internship notice. It sought five part time interns for 2 March to 31 May 2026, with a “preferred” profile: Tamil proficiency, steady part time availability for the full three months, and candidates in or around Chennai. Applicants were asked to email a CV and a writing sample of under 500 words. The deadline was 27 February. No stipend was mentioned.

I use it to show you three things. First, short notice: the post went up on 25 February for a start on 2 March, so you cannot rely on early calendars. Second, language: Tamil was named first. Third, the application was almost nothing: a CV and a short sample. You do not need a heavy file. You need a clean one.

The Tamil question

Many orders, client conversations and lower court proceedings in Tamil Nadu use Tamil. If you read Tamil, you can do tasks that others cannot: read documents, speak to clients, summarise a vernacular order. If you do not, you can still intern, but ask the advocate what you will be given. Research, drafting in English and High Court work are done in English, so many chambers have English only tasks. Do not claim Tamil you do not have. Offer English drafting and research and let the advocate decide.

Where interns work

• High Court chambers. Writs, civil revisions, criminal petitions, service matters. Heavy reading, short hearings, long lists.
• City civil and criminal courts. More direct client contact and the full life of a case.
• Company and tribunal work. The NCLT bench above, plus other tribunals that sit in Chennai. Check which one your supervisor appears before.
• Firms and in house teams. Formal intake with set dates. Look at each firm’s own careers page.
• Mediation and legal aid. Useful if you want to learn dispute resolution alongside litigation.

What to send

A short email with your name, year, college, the dates you can work, and one sentence on what you want to learn. Attach a one page CV. Add a writing sample under 500 words, like the notice above asked. A short case note on a recent Madras High Court judgment is better than an essay on a general topic. It shows you can find a judgment, read it and state its point.

The subject line should hold your year and dates, such as “Internship request, 4th year, 1 to 30 December.” Advocates read these on their phones between hearings.

When to apply

I could not verify a fixed Chennai calendar, and the example above shows how short the notice can be. Write four to six weeks before your break, and keep an eye on listing sites and advocate pages in the weeks just before it. If you hear nothing, write again to different people instead of repeating the same email.

What the work looks like

Expect to be handed a file and asked for a timeline, then a judgment on one point, then a draft. At a High Court chamber you may also be asked to check the cause list each evening, track which of your supervisor’s matters are listed and note the court hall and item number. That daily routine is the job in miniature. Do it exactly and on time.

Notice how the advocate frames a prayer, structures a ground and cites authority. Ask for old drafts. Most advocates will share a few if you are reading carefully.

Checklist before you accept

1. Confirm the advocate is enrolled and practising at the court you will attend.
2. Confirm dates, hours and whether it is in person or virtual.
3. Ask for a certificate and what form your university wants.
4. Check that no fee is asked of you.
5. Agree on confidentiality. Do not share case papers outside the chamber.

University rules

Bar Council of India rules, as applied by your university, may require a minimum number of internship weeks and a certificate from a recognised office. A purely remote or non court placement may not count. Ask your internship cell before you commit.

If you cannot be in Chennai

Remote options like the virtual internship above exist and some are posted by High Court advocates. You can also try Lexfolio’s writing internship, which is not a court placement but gives you edited, published work for your CV.

Bottom line

Chennai rewards the student who is specific, early and honest about language. Write to ten advocates, attach a short sample, and be ready to start at short notice.

For a law internship in Pune, you will most likely work in a litigating advocate’s chamber at the Pune courts, or with a firm that handles company and commercial matters. If you want High Court exposure, plan for Mumbai, because I could not find a Bombay High Court bench in Pune.

The High Court question

Students often search for a “Pune High Court internship” and find nothing, which is correct. Pune is in the territory of the Bombay High Court, whose benches are at Mumbai (principal), Nagpur and Aurangabad (Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar), plus a bench for Goa. A circuit bench at Kolhapur was inaugurated on 17 August 2025 and became functional on 18 August. Reports describe it as covering six districts: Satara, Sangli, Solapur, Kolhapur, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg. Pune is not on that list. So as far as I can verify, High Court matters from Pune are heard at the principal seat in Mumbai. Confirm this with any advocate you plan to join, because court administration changes.

What this means for you: a Pune advocate may appear at the district courts in Pune on some days and at the High Court in Mumbai on others. Ask your supervisor early which of those you will attend, and how you will travel. Some students decide the time on the road is worth it for a month. Others choose a purely Pune based practice.

Where interns go in Pune

• Litigating chambers at the district and sessions courts. Civil suits, family matters, criminal bail, property and cheque cases. You see the whole life of a case, which a High Court chamber often does not show.
• Advocates who also appear before tribunals and consumer commissions. These give you shorter, cleaner pleadings and quicker hearings, a good place to learn drafting.
• Corporate and commercial firms. Contract drafting, due diligence, compliance. These usually publish their own intake dates on their websites, so check each one instead of relying on a general calendar.
• NGOs, legal aid and law college clinics. If your college has a legal aid clinic, start there. It is the easiest first placement and gives you real clients under supervision.

The student population changes the game

Pune has several well known law colleges, including ILS Law College and others, so the city is full of students asking for the same chambers at the same time. That has two effects. First, advocates here receive many emails and delete most of them. Second, a student from outside Pune who gives specific dates and says they can travel and stay has an advantage over one who sends a generic request.

If you are from a Pune college, ask your seniors and your internship cell. Chambers that have taken students before usually keep taking them, and a name passed by someone they trust is worth more than a cold email.

How advocates advertise

Pune advocates sometimes post internship notices on listing sites such as LawBhoomi. The ones I saw asked for a CV by email and named a month. Check each one for three things before you reply: a named advocate, a stated duration and a stated mode, in person or remote. If any of these is missing, ask. And do not pay a fee for a seat in a chamber. Genuine advocates do not charge interns.

What to send

Write a short email. Give your name, year, college, dates, and what you want to learn. Attach a one page CV and, if possible, a short piece of writing. Marathi is useful in the district courts, since many documents and some hearings use it. If you read and write Marathi, say so in the first paragraph. If not, say you are willing to learn and ask which tasks you can do without it.

A good subject line: “Internship request, 3rd year BA LLB, 1 to 30 June.” It tells the advocate your year and dates before they open the email.

When to apply

I could not verify a fixed calendar. Practical timing: write four to six weeks before your break. Summer vacation applications in April, winter in October or November. If a chamber says they cannot take you for a full month, offer two weeks.

The work

At a district court chamber, expect these tasks in roughly this order: reading and listing a file, preparing a short note, drafting a reply or application, and attending hearings. You will sit in a courtroom and see how a lower court actually runs, with many matters listed, long waits, and quick orders. Take notes on how the advocate speaks to the bench and the clerk. Those small things are what you will copy in your own practice.

At a firm, expect research memos and drafting under a template. You will learn clause by clause how a commercial contract is built, which is different from but just as valuable as litigation.

Before you accept

1. Is the advocate or firm real and practising? Ask a senior or check the court’s cause list.
2. Where do you sit? Pune only or Mumbai too?
3. How will you get a certificate, and on what letterhead? Many universities want it signed.
4. Is it paid? Mostly not, so settle that on day one.
5. Confirm the hours so you can plan travel and stay.

University rules

Under the Bar Council of India framework, many universities require a minimum number of weeks of internship across the course, with certificates and sometimes a report. Check your own university’s rules rather than assuming your internship will count. A writing internship or a non court internship may not satisfy every university, so ask your internship cell first.

If you cannot be in Pune

If you cannot travel, consider a remote option. A virtual writing programme such as Lexfolio’s internship gives you published work and an edited sample. It does not replace court time, but it is a good addition to a CV when you write to Pune chambers later.

In short

Pune is a courts and colleges city. You will find work if you are specific about dates and tasks, willing to commute to Mumbai if needed, and careful about confirming who you will be working for. Pick two practice areas, write to ten advocates, and follow up once.

To intern in Hyderabad, approach an advocate or chamber that practises at the Telangana High Court, or a firm that works on company and arbitration matters, with a short email, a one page CV and a writing sample. The High Court’s own recruitment drives are for law clerks, not students, so do not wait for a public notice.

The Telangana High Court

The Telangana High Court has been a separate court since 1 January 2019, when the former High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad was split into the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh High Courts. It sits in Hyderabad and its jurisdiction is the State of Telangana. The sanctioned strength is 42 judges, of which 32 are permanent and 10 additional.

When the court recruits, it does so for law clerks. A notice reported in November 2024 invited applications for 33 contractual law clerk posts, 31 to assist judges and 2 at the Telangana State Judicial Academy in Secunderabad. The conditions included an LL.B. degree, Indian citizenship, an age limit of 30, and familiarity with legal databases such as Manupatra, SCC Online, LexisNexis and Westlaw. The deadline in that notice was 23 November 2024, so it has passed. I mention it to show you the shape of what the court offers: it is a post for graduates, not an internship for a second year student. Watch the court’s website for future notices if you graduate.

So where do students go?

In practice, internships in Hyderabad come in four forms.

• Litigating advocates at the High Court. You attend with the advocate, prepare notes, check the cause list and draft simple applications. This is the most common route and the least formal.
• City civil and criminal courts. For trial work, civil suits and criminal bail matters. Ask the advocate which court they sit in, since the city’s courts are in more than one location.
• Company law and insolvency. The NCLT Hyderabad Bench is at Corporate Bhawan, Bandlaguda, Hyderabad, and the tribunal lists its jurisdiction as Telangana. A chamber that appears before it gives you company petitions, winding up and insolvency procedure.
• Arbitration and mediation. The Telangana government picked the International Arbitration and Mediation Centre as its arbitration centre, and the centre is based in Hyderabad. If you want to work on alternative dispute resolution, check the centre’s own website for any programme it runs for students. I could not confirm an open internship scheme, so ask rather than assume.

Using your college and its network

Hyderabad is home to NALSAR University of Law, along with many other law colleges. If you study here, your placement or internship cell may already hold a list of chambers that take interns. Start there. If you study elsewhere, ask alumni from Hyderabad. A one line message to a senior asking “Do you know a chamber at the High Court that takes interns in June?” is likely to produce a name faster than any website.

What to write

Your email should say your name, year and college, the exact dates, and what you want to learn. Specific requests work. Say “I would like to see how writ petitions are drafted” or “I am interested in company law and want to see how NCLT petitions are prepared.” Attach a one page CV. If you can, add a page of writing, for example a case note on a recent judgment. Keep the language simple and the email under 150 words.

Telugu and Urdu matter in some chambers, and Hindi matters in others. Mention any language you speak, since clients and documents may be in them. Do not claim fluency you do not have.

When to apply

I could not verify a fixed calendar for Hyderabad. Chambers take interns whenever a student is free and the advocate has work. Write four to six weeks before your break begins. For summer breaks, that is around April. For winter, October or November. Firms that run formal programmes publish their own dates, so read each one’s page before you apply.

What the work involves

Expect reading first. A file arrives and you build a chronology of events and orders. Then you find a judgment for a narrow point. Then a draft: a reply, a synopsis, an application for adjournment. At an NCLT chamber you will see company petitions, with annexures that must be arranged correctly. At an arbitration practice you will read agreements and clauses closely and prepare statements of claim or defence under supervision.

The best thing you can do is notice procedure. Which document is filed first? Who is served? What does the registry check? Procedural knowledge is what makes a junior useful, and a classroom rarely teaches it.

Things to check before you accept

1. Is the advocate actually enrolled and practising? Ask your seniors or look at the court’s cause list.
2. Where will you sit, and how far is it from where you live?
3. Will you get a certificate, and in what form? Many universities ask for a signed letter on letterhead.
4. Is it paid? Most are not. Be clear about that before you start.
5. Are you being asked to pay a fee? A genuine chamber offering a seat should not charge you for it.

Confidentiality

What you see in a client file belongs to the client. Do not photograph papers, name parties on social media or discuss pending matters in public. Advocates remember who was careful with this and who was not, and a good reference depends on it.

If you cannot be in Hyderabad

If you cannot travel, remote research and drafting for a Hyderabad advocate is possible, though less common than in person. A virtual writing internship such as Lexfolio’s internship programme can also give you published work. It does not replace time in court, but it is useful to show alongside your application.

Final point

Hyderabad has a High Court, a company tribunal, an arbitration centre and a large number of colleges. That means competition, but also variety. Choose one practice area, write to ten people who work in it, and be specific. A short, accurate email with a clear request will beat a long one that could have been sent to anyone.

To get a law internship in Kolkata, write directly to an individual advocate or chamber practising at the Calcutta High Court or the city’s trial courts, with a short CV and a writing sample. The High Court itself does not, as far as I could find, run an open internship programme, so most interns come in through a lawyer’s office.

What is verifiable about the Calcutta High Court

The High Court at Calcutta began work on 1 July 1862 as the High Court of Judicature at Fort William. Its principal seat is in Kolkata, and it has circuit benches at Port Blair and Jalpaiguri. Its jurisdiction covers West Bengal and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. That matters for you because a Kolkata chamber may have clients and hearings in any of those places, though a student intern will almost always be in Kolkata.

The court’s website carries a notice dated 29 February 2024 on how educational institutions may arrange visits. The application goes to the Registrar General from the head of the institution, with the date, purpose, list of students and contact numbers, and at least ten working days in advance. This is a visit procedure, not an internship scheme. I mention it because students sometimes assume they can simply walk in and ask for a placement. They cannot. Anything that happens inside the court happens because an advocate takes you in with them.

The High Court has also advertised law clerk cum research assistant posts in the past. Those are for graduates working with judges, not for students on a summer break. If you are in your final year or just out of college, they are worth watching for, but they are a separate track from internships. Read the current notice on the court website for eligibility, because the conditions change from one notice to the next.

Where interns actually go

Almost all interns in Kolkata work in one of four settings.

• A litigating advocate’s chamber at the High Court. You read case files, prepare short notes on a point of law, draft applications, and go to court with the advocate. The work is real, the pay is usually nothing, and the quality depends entirely on the person.
• A trial court chamber. Kolkata’s lower courts are spread across several locations. The names you will hear most are the City Civil Court, Bankshall Court, Alipore and Sealdah. Which court an advocate attends depends on the case, so ask your supervisor in advance where you will be sitting and how long the commute is.
• Company and insolvency work before the NCLT. The NCLT Kolkata Bench sits at 5 Esplanade Row (West). According to the tribunal’s own page, its jurisdiction covers West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. If you want corporate litigation, a chamber that appears at this bench will give you pleadings, petitions and procedure that a general civil practice does not.
• A firm or in house team. These tend to run formal intake with deadlines. Check each one’s own website or careers page, because dates change every year and I cannot verify a general calendar.

How chambers advertise

Individual advocates in Kolkata regularly post internship notices on legal listing sites such as LawBhoomi, Juscorpus and Verdictum. The posts I looked at asked for a CV by email, sometimes with a short writing sample, and gave a start date and duration. None promised a stipend. Treat these as a lead, not a guarantee, and do your own checking: look the advocate up on the High Court cause list, ask your seniors, and confirm that the chamber is real before you send anything personal.

What to send

Keep the email short. The first lines should say your name, year, college, the dates you are free, and that you want to work at the Calcutta High Court or a named trial court. Attach one page of CV and, if you can, a single page of writing. A short case note on a recent judgment works well. Do not send a long cover letter. Advocates read these between hearings, usually on a phone.

Name something specific. “I would like to learn how bail applications are drafted” is better than “I want exposure to litigation.” If you speak Bengali, say so in the second line. Many hearings, client conversations and local documents are in Bengali, and an intern who can handle that is more useful from the first day.

When to apply

I could not verify any fixed internship calendar for Kolkata, and I would not trust one that claims otherwise. In practice, advocates take interns when the college break falls, so write four to six weeks before your holiday starts. For the summer, that means April. For winter breaks, October or November. If a chamber says no seat is free, ask whether you can come for a shorter stretch of two weeks. Many say yes.

What the work looks like

Expect to start with reading. You will be handed a file and asked to build a short chronology: who filed what, on which date, what the court ordered. You will then be asked to find a judgment on one narrow point. The next step is a draft of an application or a reply. If the advocate trusts you, you may carry papers to the court, track the cause list and report when the matter is called. This is the work. It looks unglamorous and it is exactly what a junior advocate does in their first year.

Do not expect a large amount of time with the advocate. At the High Court the working day is built around hearings. Make your questions short and save them for gaps. Keep a notebook of every new term, form and procedure you meet. By the end of a month you will have a small vocabulary of practice that classroom learning does not give.

Rules to remember

Your university has its own internship requirements under the Bar Council of India framework, and many ask for a certificate from the advocate or office you worked with, often on letterhead and signed. Ask about this on the first day, not the last. If the chamber is not used to issuing certificates, give them the format your college wants.

Confidentiality is not optional. What you see in a client file stays in the chamber. Do not post photographs of case papers or tag clients on social media.

If you cannot get a seat in person

Some students cannot travel or are not in Kolkata for the break. In that case, write research or drafting for a Kolkata advocate remotely, or take a structured option such as Lexfolio’s virtual internship, which is a writing internship rather than a court placement. It does not replace chamber experience, but it gives you published work to show when you apply later.

A short checklist

1. Pick two or three practice areas you want to see.
2. Build a list of ten advocates and chambers you can reach, from listings, seniors and alumni.
3. Write a short, specific email with a one page CV.
4. Follow up once after a week. Do not follow up daily.
5. Ask about the certificate before your first day.

A Kolkata internship is won by being specific and early. The court is old and the bar is large, which means there is room for you, but only if someone can see exactly what you can do for them in the first week.

There are two main routes to an IP or trademark internship in India: the internship run by the Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks (CGPDTM), which accepts applications online throughout the year, and IP law firms and attorney practices that take interns directly. The government route is unpaid and the firm route varies.

The official IP office internship

A public notice dated 27 June 2025 from the CGPDTM sets out the scheme. As stated in that notice:

• Who can apply: students in undergraduate or postgraduate programmes in law, science, engineering or related fields, research scholars interested in intellectual property rights, and professionals seeking exposure to IPR frameworks.
• Online internship: 30 days, with one online session a day.
• Offline internship: 30 days for undergraduates, with short term (45 days), mid term (up to six months) and long term (up to 12 months) options. The duration depends on availability and the office’s discretion.
• Locations for offline: the IP offices in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad and Nagpur.
• Stipend: none. The notice calls the internship non-remunerative.
• Application: online through the internship page on the IP India services site, open all year. You get an application number by email.
• Documents: an updated CV, a no objection certificate from the head of your institution or nodal officer if you are a student or research scholar, and a degree certificate or marksheet.
• Certificate: issued within 10 days of successful completion.
• Queries: the notice gives internship.ipo@gov.in.

Read the current notice before you apply, because details can be revised after the date of the version we checked. An offline internship also means finding accommodation in one of those cities at your own cost.

Internships with IP firms and attorneys

Many law firms and boutique practices handle trademark prosecution, opposition, litigation and licensing. Smaller firms often take interns on a rolling basis. Pay varies, and some offer short paid programmes, though specific amounts change often and we do not state them here. The best way to find these is to search for IP firms in your city, check whether their site has a careers or internship page, and send a short email with a CV and a writing sample.

Some firms prefer students who have finished a course in IP law. If your university has an IP elective, mention your marks and any project you did.

What interns do

• Trademark searches. Checking the register for identical or similar marks before a client files.
• Preparing applications. Gathering details such as the applicant, the goods and services class, user date and the mark’s representation.
• Handling examination reports. Reading the Registrar’s objections and helping draft replies.
• Oppositions. Assisting with notices of opposition and counter statements.
• Litigation support. Researching passing off and infringement cases, and preparing notes on similarity, deceptive confusion and goodwill.
• Docketing and renewals. Tracking deadlines for oppositions, hearings and renewals.

Learn these before you start

1. The Trade Marks Act, 1999. Read the definition of a trade mark, the grounds on which registration can be refused (Section 9 absolute grounds and Section 11 relative grounds), the process for registration and the remedies for infringement and passing off. Check the sections you cite against the current bare Act.
2. The classification. Goods and services are grouped under the Nice Classification. Know how to identify the right class for a product.
3. The online system. Applications and searches are done through the Trade Marks Registry’s online portal. Spend an hour exploring the public search so you can use it when asked.
4. Basic cases. Read a few leading Indian judgments on deceptive similarity and passing off, and be ready to explain them in plain language.
5. The other IP laws. Skim the Patents Act, 1970, the Copyright Act, 1957 and the Designs Act, 2000 so you understand where a trademark ends and other protection begins.

Standing out

Write a short note on a recent trademark judgment, explaining what the court decided and why, and attach it. Interns who can write clearly are rare and valued. A tailored email beats a mass one. If you need feedback on your writing, Lexfolio’s virtual internship includes editing, and published pieces can be added to your CV.

Does it lead to a job?

An IP internship teaches useful, specific skills, but no internship guarantees a job or a pre-placement offer. Treat it as the way to find out whether you enjoy the detail-heavy nature of IP prosecution and litigation, which is often more procedural than students expect.

What we did not verify

We did not verify the current stipends of any private IP firm, and we have not listed them. Details of the government scheme are taken from the notice dated 27 June 2025, so check for any revision on the official site before you apply.

You get a cyber law internship by applying to three kinds of places: police cyber crime units that run internship schemes, advocates and firms who handle cyber and technology matters, and companies with a legal or compliance team. Openings are fewer than for general litigation, so a tailored application that shows you already understand the basics matters more than a long CV.

Where the openings are

Police and government cyber units

Some police departments have announced law internship schemes. In August 2026, Rajasthan Police was reported to have launched a scheme with a minimum of 45 days, extendable to three months, open to law students at undergraduate, postgraduate or doctoral level who scored at least 60 percent in Class XII. Interns could be placed in branches including cyber crime, crime branch, traffic and the legal branch, and the work was described as legal research, data analysis, report writing and policy analysis. The scheme was reported as unpaid. The report did not give an application route, so check the department’s official notice.

An older example is the Cyber Crime Branch in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. A 2021 notice invited final year law students, LL.M. students in cyber laws and some computer science students for three to six months, with a college recommendation and a Statement of Purpose of about 200 words, and no stipend. That listing has closed, but it shows how such schemes tend to work: formal application, institutional recommendation, no pay, and a certificate at the end.

Advocates and firms

Many litigation chambers handle online fraud, defamation, identity theft and financial cyber crime. A firm that advises start-ups or technology companies handles data protection, intermediary liability and contracts. Look for advocates who write about these topics, appear in matters relating to the Information Technology Act, or run a cyber law practice, and write to them directly.

Companies and legal tech

In-house legal and compliance teams, fintech companies and online platforms sometimes take law interns for privacy, terms and conditions and grievance handling. The openings are usually advertised on the company’s careers page or on a student job board.

What the work usually involves

• Reading and summarising judgments under the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the criminal law provisions that overlap with it.
• Helping draft complaints, legal notices and applications in online fraud and identity theft cases.
• Researching platform obligations, takedown processes and intermediary liability.
• Supporting data protection work under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and its rules.
• Preparing short notes for clients on policies, privacy notices and compliance.

Basics to know before you apply

You do not need to be a technologist, but you should be able to talk comfortably about a few things.

1. The Information Technology Act, 2000. Know the structure, and the main offence and penalty provisions: Section 43 on damage to computer systems, Section 66 on computer related offences, Section 66C on identity theft, Section 66D on cheating by personation using a computer resource, and Section 67 on obscene material. Read the text of each in the current bare Act, because the Act has been amended and some provisions have been struck down or reshaped by courts.
2. Overlap with criminal law. Cheating and forgery in online fraud are also covered by the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 for offences after 1 July 2024. Be clear about which law applies to events on which date.
3. How a complaint reaches the police. The national cyber crime reporting portal and the 1930 helpline are used for financial cyber fraud. Knowing the process shows that you understand practice.
4. Digital evidence. The Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023 deals with electronic records, and you should know the basics of how they are proved in court.
5. Data protection. The idea of consent, the roles of data fiduciary and data principal, and what the Data Protection Board is.

Building a profile

A short, accurate case comment or explainer on a cyber law judgment is the best writing sample you can send. Lexfolio accepts such pieces through Write for Lexfolio, and the virtual internship is a way to get edited feedback on one. Also consider a short certificate course on cyber security basics, but only if it teaches you something. A certificate on its own will not decide a selection.

Writing the application

Keep it to a short email. In the first two lines say who you are, your year and the dates you are free. Then one paragraph on why cyber law, with something concrete: a paper, a moot problem, a piece you wrote, a judgment you read. End by attaching your CV and writing sample. Many police schemes ask for a recommendation from your college, so ask your institute in advance.

Cautions

• You will see sensitive material, including victims’ details and, sometimes, disturbing content. Treat it with strict confidentiality.
• Do not accept an internship that asks you to access accounts or devices without authority. That can be an offence in itself.
• Avoid fee-charging “cyber law internship” programmes that give no supervision. Ask what you actually receive.

What varies

Whether a scheme is open, how long it lasts and whether it carries a certificate differs by department and year. We have not listed fixed dates because they change. Always rely on the current official notice.

The best-documented human rights internship open to law students in India is run by the National Human Rights Commission, and its eligibility and pay are published on its website. Beyond that, NGOs and legal aid bodies take interns but on different terms, and you must check each one directly because openings change often.

The NHRC internship programmes

According to the NHRC’s internship page, there are two main programmes.

In-person summer and winter internship

• Duration: four weeks, in June to July or December to January.
• Stipend: Rs 12,000, plus travel allowance for a third AC train fare from your institute to Delhi and back.
• Who can apply: LL.B. students in the 2nd or 3rd year, integrated five year students in the 4th or 5th year, LL.M. students, and students of human rights or social science postgraduate courses, with preference to final year students.
• Conditions: at least 60 percent in Class XII and in the first six semesters, age not above 28, a regular course at a UGC-recognised university, and no earlier attendance at an NHRC internship.
• Application: online, with a Statement of Purpose of 300 to 500 words titled “Reason for Joining as Intern in NHRC”.

Online short term internship

• Duration: two weeks. The page lists a session from 16 to 27 November 2026.
• Stipend: Rs 2,000.
• Who can apply: students from the third year of an integrated course, third or final year graduation students, and students in any semester of a postgraduate degree or diploma including the three year LL.B., as well as research scholars.
• Application: through the Commission’s HRCNet portal, with a 250 word Statement of Purpose.

For both, selection is by marks in Class XII (30), graduation marks (40) and the Statement of Purpose (30), with preference to candidates with research potential in human rights. Each programme takes about 100 interns. The page gives a contact email, cr.nhrc@nic.in, for queries. Dates and rules can change, so read the page on the day you apply.

Writing the Statement of Purpose

With a third of the marks resting on it, this is the part you control. Keep it concrete.

1. Name one human rights issue you have actually engaged with: custodial deaths, prison conditions, manual scavenging, the rights of persons with disabilities, the right to health.
2. Say what you did about it: a moot, a paper, a legal aid camp, a project with an NGO, a reading of a specific judgment.
3. Explain what you want to learn from the Commission’s work, in terms specific to its functions, such as handling complaints, spot enquiries or research.
4. Stay within the word limit and do not repeat your CV.

NGOs and legal organisations

Many organisations take interns in human rights law, including legal aid and litigation groups. The names that come up most often among students are the Human Rights Law Network and the Lawyers Collective, among others. Practices differ, and the availability, terms and pay change, so we do not state any as current. Visit the organisation’s own website and look for an internship or volunteer page. Several advertise openings in a few weeks’ window and reply only to complete applications.

When you contact an NGO, expect a different workplace from a firm. You may be doing field visits, fact finding, drafting petitions, working with survivors or documenting cases. The work can be emotionally heavy. Ask honestly whether you are prepared for it, and ask the organisation whether they provide supervision and support.

District legal services authorities

Legal services authorities at the district and state level provide free legal aid under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987. Many accept law students as paralegal volunteers or interns, and the work, such as legal aid clinics, jail visits and awareness camps, is directly connected to access to justice. Check with your district legal services authority, or see our guide to internships with NALSA and DLSAs.

Making an application stand out

• Send a short cover email, not a form letter. Name the specific project or area you want to work on.
• Attach one writing sample: a case comment or short note on a human rights judgment.
• Say when you are available and for how many weeks.
• Mention any language skills. Hindi, Urdu or a regional language can matter a great deal for fieldwork.

What to expect and what to avoid

Most NGO internships are unpaid or offer a small allowance. A few ask for a minimum commitment of several weeks. Avoid any organisation that asks you to pay a fee to intern, or that cannot tell you who will supervise you. If you want a short, structured way to build writing credentials first, Lexfolio’s virtual internship lets you publish legal explainers under your own name.

What we could not verify

We could not confirm current openings, fees or eligibility for individual NGOs, so we have not stated them. Treat any list you find online, including this one, as a starting point and confirm on the organisation’s own page.

Write your internship diary every working day, in a few lines, and build the report from it at the end. A report assembled from memory three weeks later is thin and vague. A report built from daily entries almost writes itself. Always check your university’s prescribed format first, because the Bar Council of India rules leave the form of the diary to each university.

What the rules say

As commonly quoted, Rule 25 of the BCI legal education rules requires every student to keep an internship diary in the form the university specifies. The diary is evaluated by a diary guide and a core faculty member, and the marks are assessed in the final semester under the clinical course. So the diary is not a formality. It is examined, and the report is usually the part that carries your marks.

The daily diary

Each entry should take five to ten minutes. Include:

• the date and the hours you worked;
• the court, forum or office you were at;
• the matters you observed or worked on, identified by case type and stage, for example “bail application under Section 483 BNSS, hearing on arguments”;
• what you did: research, drafting, filing, attending a hearing, meeting a client as an observer;
• what you learned, in one specific sentence.

The last point is where most diaries fail. “Learned about bail” says nothing. “Learned that the court asked whether the accused had been named in the first information report before looking at the grounds” shows you were paying attention.

Protect confidentiality

Do not write client names, addresses, phone numbers or case numbers in a document that will be read by your university. Use initials or “the complainant” and “the accused”. An advocate owes a duty of confidentiality, and as a trainee you should behave as if you owe the same. If your university insists on case numbers, ask your supervisor first.

Structure of the final report

Universities differ, so adapt this to the format you have been given. A sound default runs as follows.

1. Cover page and certificate. Your details, the organisation, the dates, and the signed certificate or letter from the supervisor.
2. About the organisation. Half a page. Who the advocate or institution is, what the practice covers, how it is organised.
3. Summary of the internship. One page. Dates, hours, the broad nature of the work.
4. Detailed account of work. The main section, usually week by week. For each week, name two or three tasks and describe one in detail.
5. Legal analysis of one or two matters. Choose a matter you saw closely. State the facts in general terms, the legal issue, the provisions or judgments involved, and how the matter proceeded. This is where your law shows.
6. Reflection and skills. What you learned about procedure, drafting and advocacy, and what you would do differently.
7. Annexures. Anonymised samples of your drafting, if allowed, and the diary pages.

Writing the legal analysis

Pick a matter where you can name a real legal question. A bail hearing is a good example: what the offence is, what the court considers on bail, and which judgments were relied on. Check every citation against the actual judgment on the court’s website or a legal database before you include it. A report with a wrong case name or section number loses credibility quickly. If you cite the new criminal laws, give the new section and the corresponding old one where relevant, and be sure which Act the case actually falls under, since offences before 1 July 2024 continue under the old law.

Length and style

There is no standard length. Many universities ask for something in the range of 15 to 30 pages for a four week internship, but go by your own guidelines. Use plain English, short paragraphs and headings. Do not pad with textbook definitions. Your examiner has read many reports that begin with the history of the legal profession and will mark the one that describes real work.

Common mistakes

• Copying a senior’s report. Examiners notice, and many universities run similarity checks. Use older reports to understand the structure, not the text.
• Writing everything the night before. Dates, courts and tasks get muddled.
• Listing work you did not do. If the supervisor is asked, the report and the certificate must agree.
• Missing signatures. Get the supervisor’s signature on diary pages weekly if the format requires it.
• Naming clients. See above.

If you used AI tools

Using a tool to tidy your language or plan the structure is a different thing from having it describe an internship you never did or invent a case. The experience and the analysis must be yours, and every citation must be checked against the primary source. Follow your university’s policy on AI use, which may be stricter than a general rule.

A practical weekly routine

At the end of each week, spend twenty minutes reading your five entries and writing one paragraph that summarises the week. After four weeks you have the core of the detailed account already written. If you are completing a virtual programme alongside, such as Lexfolio’s internship, keep that in a separate section so the university can see which part was supervised by an advocate and which was not.

A good law internship certificate states who you are, who issued it, the exact dates you worked, the nature of the work you did, and it carries a signature, a date and some means of verifying it. A certificate that only says “completed internship successfully” is the weakest kind and some universities will return it.

What your university actually requires

Under Rule 25 of the Bar Council of India’s legal education rules, as it is generally quoted, five year law students complete 20 weeks of internship and three year students 12 weeks, over the course of study. The rule also requires each student to keep an internship diary in the form the university prescribes, which is evaluated by a diary guide and a core faculty member. The commonly quoted version also says that internship in any year cannot run for more than four continuous weeks.

The rule does not prescribe a form of certificate. Most universities therefore issue their own format, or ask for the advocate’s or organisation’s letter in a set pattern. Check your university’s internship policy first, before you ask anyone for a certificate, so that you ask for the right thing the first time.

What a strong certificate contains

1. Your full name, exactly as on your university records, and your course, year and enrolment or roll number if the university requires it.
2. The issuer’s name and capacity. For a chamber: the advocate’s name, enrolment number and the court or bar association. For a firm: the firm’s name and address. For an institution: the department.
3. Exact dates. Start date and end date, for example 2 June to 27 June. Avoid “one month”.
4. Hours or working days, if you can get them. Universities counting weeks like to see five working days a week.
5. A line on the work. “Assisted with research on bail applications, attended hearings before the Court, and drafted replies and applications under supervision” is far more useful than “gained legal exposure”.
6. A neutral line on conduct, such as that you were punctual and maintained confidentiality. Do not ask for inflated praise.
7. Signature, date and seal or letterhead, and a contact number or email so the university can verify it.

What to leave out of the request

Do not ask your supervisor to certify things you did not do, or to write more weeks than you worked. If you were absent for part of the period, the dates must reflect that. A false certificate puts your internship credit and, in some cases, your standing in the university at risk, and it exposes the advocate who signed it.

How to ask for it

Ask at the start, not at the end. In your first week, say: “My university requires a certificate and a signed diary. Could you tell me who signs these, and how many days’ notice you need?” That puts the process on the table before anyone is busy.

Near the end, send a short email or message with the details already filled in:

• your name, course and roll number;
• the dates of your internship;
• a two line summary of the work you did;
• the university’s format, attached, if there is one;
• the date you need it by, with a reasonable cushion.

Advocates are busy, and writing a certificate from scratch is a chore. A pre-filled draft that they only need to sign is far more likely to be returned quickly. Offer it as help, not as an instruction.

If they delay

Follow up politely after a week. If the delay runs long, ask a senior, a colleague at the chamber or the office manager to remind the advocate. Keep your own record of the dates you attended, a few examples of your work with client details removed, and any messages that show you were there. Your university may accept a letter or an email from the supervisor if a formal certificate is held up.

Do not post about it publicly or name the advocate on social media. It rarely helps, and the legal community is small.

Certificates from online and virtual internships

Some programmes issue certificates for short online courses and call them internships. Before you rely on one for credit, ask your university whether it counts under its internship rules. Many universities want supervision by an advocate, a court, a legal aid body or a recognised organisation, which is different from a self-paced course.

The Indian patent and trade mark offices state that their internship certificate is issued within 10 days of successful completion, which shows the kind of timeline an institution can promise. For virtual programmes of any kind, look for a unique certificate ID and a public way to verify it. Lexfolio’s internship certificate carries a unique ID that anyone can check on the verification page. It states what you did and does not replace an internship your university requires under the Bar Council of India rules.

Keep a copy and keep the diary alive

Scan the signed certificate and the diary pages the day you receive them. Store the originals safely. Universities sometimes ask for them months later, at the time of the final semester assessment, and chambers move offices or close.

Most law internships in India pay nothing or very little. A small number of institutions pay a fixed stipend, and a few large firms pay more, but there is no standard rate and no rule that requires one. If an advocate’s chamber offers you work experience without money, that is ordinary and not a sign that something is wrong.

What the available evidence says

There is no official national data on law intern pay, so be careful with any website that quotes an “average”. Two sources are worth knowing about, and both are older and small.

• A Law Student Survey reported by Bar and Bench in March 2021 drew nearly 300 students. Of the 80 who gave stipend figures, 36 said they received no stipend at all. Those who did report an amount averaged roughly Rs 2,500 a month.
• A Careers360 report from January 2022 quoted students, not official figures. One said tier-1 firms paid a fixed Rs 5,000 to Rs 7,500 a month and that top national law university students could get around Rs 10,000. The same report said most firms did not pay students from outside the NLUs, and that in litigation only a small share of lawyers paid anything.

Treat these as a rough picture of 2021 and 2022, collected from students. Pay varies by city, firm, your university and the year. Some firms stopped paying for online internships during the pandemic and have not all returned to earlier practice.

Why so many internships are unpaid

Three reasons come up again and again. First, litigation chambers are small and the senior advocate’s income is irregular, so there is rarely a budget line for an intern. Second, the Bar Council of India has not framed stipend rules. In November 2021 a petition asking the BCI to frame internship rules was dismissed by the Madhya Pradesh High Court, which said a law student cannot be a liability to the BCI or any establishment. Third, supply is large: there are many more students who need internship credit than there are paid places.

None of this means unpaid work is worthless. A month in a chamber where you attend hearings, read case files and draft applications is often better training than a paid month of filing and photocopying at a large office.

Who tends to pay

These are patterns, not promises. Check the current notice every time.

• The National Human Rights Commission. Its in-person four week summer and winter internship, according to the NHRC website, pays Rs 12,000 plus a third AC train fare from your institute to Delhi and back. Its two week online short term internship pays Rs 2,000. Eligibility includes at least 60 percent in Class XII and in the relevant semesters, and you cannot have attended an NHRC internship earlier.
• Some large law firms and corporate legal departments. Amounts vary and are usually decided firm by firm.
• Some NGOs and research bodies offer a small allowance or a travel contribution, not a salary.

Who usually does not pay

• Most advocates’ chambers in district courts and High Courts.
• The Indian Patent Office and other offices of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks. Their public notice of 27 June 2025 describes the internship as non-remunerative, with a certificate issued after completion.
• Police schemes. The Rajasthan Police scheme for law students, reported in August 2026, was described as unpaid.
• The Cyber Crime Branch in Gujarat stated in an older notice that no stipend would be given to any intern.

Government and statutory bodies often offer experience, a certificate and a letter, not money. For many students that exposure is still worth taking, particularly in the first three years.

How to ask without sounding entitled

Do not open with the stipend. Apply first, and raise it only once you have an offer or when the notice itself is silent. A short line works: “Could you tell me whether the internship carries a stipend or any expenses allowance? I am asking so I can plan travel and accommodation.” That is a planning question, not a demand.

If you are told it is unpaid, ask two more things: how many hours a week are expected, and whether the advocate will sign your internship certificate and diary. Those matter more than the money, because your university needs them.

Making an unpaid internship worth it

1. Cap the cost. Rent, travel and food in a metro can exceed what you save by working free. Compare that with an internship in your own city.
2. Ask for the work. Before you accept, ask what interns actually do. Hearings, drafting and research are good answers. “Assist as required” is vague.
3. Get the paper. A signed certificate stating dates, duties and hours is the thing you are really taking away.
4. Mix your portfolio. One paid or stipended slot among several unpaid ones is a good outcome. Do not hold out for pay in your first and second year.

Be wary of internships that charge you

A genuine internship pays you something or costs you nothing. If a site asks you for a “registration fee” or “certificate fee” for a short virtual programme, ask what you receive for it before paying, and whether the certificate will be accepted by your university. Lexfolio’s own virtual internship is free, and the certificate describes only what you did.

What we do not know

We do not know current pay at any specific firm, and we have not listed any because the figures change and are rarely published. If a number matters to your decision, ask a senior who interned there in the past year.