3 Week Internship at Eggleston and Kosnik LLC, A Law Firm
Description of Link
For our Animas junior LINK project, we were required to explore our interests and consider how they may play a role in our future by securing a three week internship at a business of our choice. Professionals in our chosen fields accompanied us on these journeys and guided us not only through their day to day life on the job, but through our LINK projects, which took the form of a summation of our experience as interns as well as our contributions to the business.
Description of Business
The business at which I interned was Eggleston and Kosnik LLC, a downtown Durango law firm serving the LaPlata county area and specializing in business, real estate, and contract negotiation as well as the mediation of disputes. The website and logo of this law firm are included below, followed by a description of how I spent my three weeks at this business:
At Eggleston and Kosnik, I spent my three weeks researching for cases taken on by the law firm, exploring ongoing events at the court independently, and shadowing the lawyers in client meetings, courthouse proceedings, and site visits. While I utilized the online law database CaseMaker to read up on the procedures used in cases which mirrored those under current scrutiny at the firm, I also helped my mentors by presenting these cases to them, permitting them to see the outcomes of cases similar to their own at the time. Outside the office, I sat in on two criminal cases at the LaPlata County Courthouse, and shadowed Paul Kosnik at the courthouse while he helped mediate a case in small claims. Regarding the law office, I was allowed to observe client meetings with Duke Eggleston and follow Mr. Kosnik out to view a conflicted realty easement, while the rest of my time was devoted to my project and the review of legal statutes that would prove relevant to my current work in order to help me understand what was going on in each negotiation.
LINK Preparation and Anticipation
When I started settling on an internship, I had already decided that I wanted to explore law, didn't have any specifications other than this, and was fortunate enough to know a lawyer through personal experience. Duke Eggleston is one of my parents' friends, and my search for an internship was made easier by his enthusiasm about educating me in his legal profession, this initial acceptance saving me the time and energy required in repeated attempts at securing a place to intern. I chose this particular opportunity because I wanted to see the basic operations of law, regardless of the specialty of this given law firm.
I hope to gain from this experience an idea of how legal cases are handled and the variety of work unique to law. As I enter my internship, I aim to recognize what makes up a working day in the life of a lawyer, as well as what kinds of skills are used in legal work. Although I am not trained as a lawyer and have little to offer in the realm of a professional opinion, I hope to be an aid to the employees of Eggleston and Kosnik in conducting legal research and providing them with case details and proofreads to help them in the construction of their arguments. The mark which I aim to leave at this internship is one demonstrating the capability of a high school intern to be responsible and respectful in all aspects of their assignments, and hopefully to motivate this businesses to educate and inspire more students like myself.
I hope to gain from this experience an idea of how legal cases are handled and the variety of work unique to law. As I enter my internship, I aim to recognize what makes up a working day in the life of a lawyer, as well as what kinds of skills are used in legal work. Although I am not trained as a lawyer and have little to offer in the realm of a professional opinion, I hope to be an aid to the employees of Eggleston and Kosnik in conducting legal research and providing them with case details and proofreads to help them in the construction of their arguments. The mark which I aim to leave at this internship is one demonstrating the capability of a high school intern to be responsible and respectful in all aspects of their assignments, and hopefully to motivate this businesses to educate and inspire more students like myself.
LINK Reflection
The skills and abilities which were most useful coming into LINK were those of being able to function in a professional environment and the ability to comprehend complex wordings in legal documents. The first of these allowed me to communicate with the other members of the office and understand exactly what the effects of my work would be in terms of helping my coworkers with a case, while the last of these allowed me analyze high-level readings which were presented to me and understand their applications to cases and corresponding statutes. A specific example of both of these skills was in my collaboration with Paul Kosnik in editing the regulations for a condo complex, in which I was able to not only communicate effectively and respectfully with Paul, but complete the assignment by sifting through the legal jargon and finding the most relevant points made in the text.
The most important skills and abilities which I developed during LINK were those of researching examples and evidence for legal cases and identifying what kinds of legal cases were present in the world around me. I developed both of these through use in the office and used them through my internship in being able to note the aspects of certain types of court cases and recognize these in my environment and in databases. A specific example of both of these skills was present when I researched the components of a transactional case through example cases on CaseMaker, then successfully identified the presence of this type of case in my local Durango community.
I grew through the shortcomings and challenges of LINK in that despite an internship which I found to be unexciting, I completed all of my work and was actually able to know my interests better after experiencing law. Even after I lost interest in a large portion of the work carried out by lawyers in this field, I strived to continue to turn out quality work. I was also able to look at the bright side of an experience like this and know my own interests and preferences better when the time comes to select a career.
I feel that I played an important part in this organization through my efficient and professional work supplementary to that of the lawyers. Although it would have been difficult for me to provide a greater degree of legal counsel for the employees of Eggleston and Kosnik, using the resources that I have I followed directions promptly and helped the lawyers with their own work in a respectful and effective manner. I would ask this law firm to accept other interns using my own experience as an example of how a high schooler can operate successfully within a professional environment and contribute meaningfully to an office in light of their limited training and experience in law.
This internship has helped me formulate an idea of where college will take me in that I now know that I do not want to go into this type of law. This experience was beneficial in that I realized that this career was not for me, but that there are other options in law which can take me places beyond the office, such as government and foreign service, both of which I may be interested in pursuing. I know now that I can and will use law as a tool in my higher education and beyond as a foothold for other options which may be yet to present themselves.
The most important skills and abilities which I developed during LINK were those of researching examples and evidence for legal cases and identifying what kinds of legal cases were present in the world around me. I developed both of these through use in the office and used them through my internship in being able to note the aspects of certain types of court cases and recognize these in my environment and in databases. A specific example of both of these skills was present when I researched the components of a transactional case through example cases on CaseMaker, then successfully identified the presence of this type of case in my local Durango community.
I grew through the shortcomings and challenges of LINK in that despite an internship which I found to be unexciting, I completed all of my work and was actually able to know my interests better after experiencing law. Even after I lost interest in a large portion of the work carried out by lawyers in this field, I strived to continue to turn out quality work. I was also able to look at the bright side of an experience like this and know my own interests and preferences better when the time comes to select a career.
I feel that I played an important part in this organization through my efficient and professional work supplementary to that of the lawyers. Although it would have been difficult for me to provide a greater degree of legal counsel for the employees of Eggleston and Kosnik, using the resources that I have I followed directions promptly and helped the lawyers with their own work in a respectful and effective manner. I would ask this law firm to accept other interns using my own experience as an example of how a high schooler can operate successfully within a professional environment and contribute meaningfully to an office in light of their limited training and experience in law.
This internship has helped me formulate an idea of where college will take me in that I now know that I do not want to go into this type of law. This experience was beneficial in that I realized that this career was not for me, but that there are other options in law which can take me places beyond the office, such as government and foreign service, both of which I may be interested in pursuing. I know now that I can and will use law as a tool in my higher education and beyond as a foothold for other options which may be yet to present themselves.
LINK Project
LINK Photos
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