Law Internship in Chandigarh: Where to Apply

Chandigarh suits a student who wants a serious litigation internship in a city small enough to move around easily. The Punjab and Haryana High Court sits here and serves two states and a union territory, so the docket is large while the city itself is compact. Everything you need is within a short drive.

The High Court

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has been located in Chandigarh since 1955. Its territorial jurisdiction covers the states of Punjab and Haryana and the Union Territory of Chandigarh. Delhi was once within its jurisdiction, until the Delhi High Court was established in 1966.

The building was designed by Le Corbusier as part of the planned city, which is incidental to your internship but worth seeing.

The practical point for an intern is that one court here handles matters arising from two states with different state legislation. A chamber may argue a Punjab land matter in the morning and a Haryana service matter in the afternoon, and you have to keep track of which state’s rules apply. That is a genuinely useful discipline, and it is specific to this court.

What the practice looks like

Service law is a notably strong stream here, covering the two state governments and their boards and corporations: appointments, seniority, promotions, disciplinary proceedings and pensions. Criminal work, civil and property disputes, and matters arising from agricultural land and village common land also make up a large share.

If service law interests you, Chandigarh is one of the better cities in India to see it done well, because the volume generated by two state administrations is substantial.

The district court

The District Court at Chandigarh is in Sector 43, within walking distance of the Inter State Bus Terminus. The complex has four floors and 31 court rooms, housing around thirty courts: the District and Sessions Judge, nine Additional District and Sessions Judges including a special court for CBI cases and a fast track court for heinous crimes against women, a Civil Judge (Senior Division), a Chief Judicial Magistrate, and eighteen subordinate courts of which six are special courts dealing with cheque dishonour cases under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act.

Those six dedicated Section 138 courts are worth noting. Cheque bounce work is high volume, procedurally distinctive, and something a young advocate is very likely to handle early in practice. A fortnight watching those courts teaches you a practice area you will actually use.

Tribunals in and around the city

National Company Law Tribunal, Chandigarh. Company and insolvency matters for the region.

Debts Recovery Tribunals. Three DRTs sit in Chandigarh, handling bank recovery and SARFAESI work.

Armed Forces Tribunal, Chandigarh Regional Bench. Note the location carefully: the bench is at Chandimandir, Panchkula, in Haryana, rather than in Chandigarh itself. It is close by, but if you are arranging travel or accommodation around an internship there, plan for Panchkula.

Where to apply

• High Court chambers. The main route, and the Chandigarh bar is approachable by the standards of the metros.
• Service law specialists. Worth seeking out specifically, since this is a local strength.
• District court advocates at Sector 43. Best for trial exposure, and an easy place to spend a week alongside a High Court internship because of the short distance.
• Government law offices. The Advocate General offices for Punjab and Haryana both operate from Chandigarh. Access typically requires an introduction.
• Tribunal practitioners. Advocates appearing before the NCLT or the DRTs, for company and banking exposure.

How to apply

Email, addressed to a named advocate, kept short. Four paragraphs: who you are and your year, why that chamber, your exact dates, and a note that the CV is attached. Send a one page CV and a short writing sample.

Chandigarh has several law colleges and a steady flow of local students, so summer places go early. Write in March for May, and in October for a winter internship.

Regional language matters more here than students expect. Documents, witness statements and client conversations may be in Punjabi or Hindi. If you read Punjabi, say so, because it is a practical advantage and chambers notice. If you do not, that is not a bar, but expect to need help with the file.

What you will be doing

Reading files, searching for judgments, preparing briefs, attending hearings and taking notes. In a service law chamber you will spend a lot of time with service rules, government circulars and departmental records, and learning to read a government order carefully is the main skill on offer.

Ask to see a paper book before a hearing. Ask what the key document in the file is and why. Advocates in a city this size generally have time to answer, which is one of the real advantages of interning somewhere other than Delhi.

Living there

Chandigarh is easy to get around, cheaper than the metros, and the sectors are well connected. Accommodation is usually straightforward to arrange near the court or in the neighbouring sectors. Panchkula and Mohali are close enough to stay in if that suits you better.

Most litigation internships here are unpaid, as elsewhere. Some chambers pay a small amount or cover travel. There is no standard rate, so ask once you have been offered a place rather than in your first email.

Rule 25

Bar Council of India Rule 25 requires twelve weeks of internship over a three year course and twenty weeks over a five year course, with no single internship running more than four continuous weeks in any one year, and at least one internship with trial and appellate advocates. A Chandigarh chamber doing both High Court and Sector 43 work covers that requirement cleanly, and the short distance between the two makes it practical to split your weeks.