Internship Programme (Legal - Hong Kong Office)

Internship Programme

HKIAC offers internships to motivated students or other individuals in the early stages of their legal careers who wish to learn more about arbitration and alternate dispute resolution in Hong Kong and generally.

• Eligibility Requirements

• Remuneration

• Application Procedures

An HKIAC internship is a practical educational experience and, during their time with HKIAC, interns will principally assist the Secretariat in discharging its day-to-day duties. Under supervision, interns will be assigned tasks and projects which, to the extent possible, are relevant to their educational background and interests, and provide the opportunity to put into practice and further develop their theoretical knowledge. Where appropriate, HKIAC encourages its interns to exercise initiative and engage in independent thinking.

In particular interns may be asked to:

• undertake research on various topics in international arbitration and alternative dispute resolution;

• assist with the case management team in administering arbitration, mediation, adjudication and domain name cases;

• draft articles and prepare materials;

• attend and assist with planning hearings, meetings, seminars and conferences;

• compile case statistics; and,

• translate documents.

The aim of the HKIAC Internship Programme is to challenge interns intellectually, to give them a sense of what arbitration and alternative dispute resolution are in practical terms and to better equip them for the next stages in their careers.

Internships are generally offered for periods of between six to eight weeks.

Despite the large number of applications received every year, we limit our intake to a small number of interns annually. The Internship Programme operates year round. In order to facilitate the processing of applications, HKIAC divides its Internship Programme into generally six terms of two months each. The term schedule* is as follows:

Term 1 – January and February;

Term 2 – March and April;

Term 3 - May and June;

Term 4 – July and August;

Term 5 – September and October;

Term 6 – November and December.

Internships usually begin on the First Monday of the month in which the term commences. 

Eligibility Requirements

All candidates who wish to apply for the HKIAC Internship Programme must:

• be highly motivated and able to work well in an international and multicultural environment;

• have excellent academic qualifications;

• hold an undergraduate degree or be in the final stages of their studies;

• be able to demonstrate good communication and drafting skills;

• be fluent in written and spoken English (fluency in other languages is an advantage);

• have excellent attention to detail and organisational skills;

• have excellent interpersonal skills, including the ability to work effectively in a team setting and autonomously;

• have a pro-active, highly responsible and problem-solving attitude to work;

• have a good standard of computer literacy (especially Microsoft Office applications); and,

• be available to work on a full-time basis for the period of the internship.

Applicants from Hong Kong and abroad will be considered.

Remuneration

HKIAC interns will be remunerated pursuant to Hong Kong law. 

HKIAC will reimburse interns for any out of pocket expenses incurred directly as a result of work.

Application Procedures

Applicants who meet the Eligibility Requirements may submit the following information by email only to the Internship Programme Coordinator at internship@hkiac.org :

• a short Curriculum Vitae, including nationality, and university transcripts;
   
• a statement of interest describing your objectives in seeking an internship with HKIAC not exceeding one A4 page in length;
   
• an indication of your availability to complete the internship, including the applicable Term and requested duration*;
   
• areas of particular interest; and, 
   
• an indication of your language abilities, both spoken and written.

We encourage you to send applications at least 4 months before the start of the term for which is being applied.

* Applications for internships during periods which do not fall strictly within the Terms set out above will be considered, however it may not always be possible for the HKIAC to accommodate such requests.