Application Information
- Applications for the Externship are open during the Spring Term. Information on specific dates and times can be found in the link below.
- Allard School of Law J.D. students in second and third year are eligible to participate.
- Students are matched with organizations after acceptance to the program.
Apply to the Externship or Learn More
Course Descriptions and Schedules
The Externship is composed of 7 credits.
Learning Outcomes
Those who practice as in-house counsel know that their practice is unlike that of lawyers at a typical law firm. In-house counsel are more than just legal advisors to their organizations. While the exact role of in-house counsel varies depending on the relationships formed between counsel and the senior management team of their organization, in general, in-house counsel are trusted advisors whose roles often extend beyond strictly legal matters. They affect the full range of their organization’s decisions. While in-house counsel may historically have functioned primarily as conduits between the organization and outside law firms, with the rising cost of legal services and the trend for many organizations to expand their in-house legal departments, the role of in-house counsel has shifted significantly, with in-house counsel handling more and more legal matters in-house.
Unless the organization is large and has a large in-house counsel department, most in-house counsel do not specialize in a single practice area; instead, they practice in many areas, including mergers & acquisitions, competition law, securities, tax, real estate, procurement, ethics, privacy, intellectual property, in addition to standard contracts, addressing employment law issues and overseeing litigation.
In-house counsel are also responsible for performing non-legal duties, particularly as they gain seniority within an organization. Those non-legal duties include strategic planning, corporate governance, risk management, legal education for management and employees, working with outside suppliers such as auditors, managing outside legal fees, directing outside counsel, setting the tone for an ethical culture, and overall leadership. Increasingly, in-house counsel are seen as leaders within their organizations, with the ability to influence decision-making and guide the organization's overall direction.
A key objective of the Externship is to give the student exposure to the variety, depth, and complexity of in-house counsel practice and to make the student aware of the types of legal and business issues that normally confront an in-house practitioner. To achieve this objective, the participating organization is encouraged to expose the student to a variety of legal practice areas and non-legal functions of the organization to help the student gain relevant skills.
Participating organizations may consider involving the student in an investigation, litigation or transaction due diligence, allowing the student to job shadow a typical day for in-house counsel, allowing the student to spend a day with a sales rep or to observe a manufacturing line, asking the student to make a presentation to executive/management (i.e. training in a legal area such as CASL or privacy), or assigning the student to a project.
At the conclusion of the Externship, the student should understand: the ethical obligations of in-house counsel and professional responsibility, how in-house counsel practice varies from a typical law firm practice (including the advantages and disadvantages of an in-house counsel practice), the legal and non-legal functions of an in-house counsel, to whom in-house counsel owe a duty of loyalty and confidentiality, and generally, the practical, hands-on nature of in-house work.
Program Support
Participating organizations and students will receive ongoing support from the Allard School of Law throughout the term. Karim Amlani is the Adjunct Professor for the Corporate Counsel Externship, as well as a Senior Director of Legal at Hootsuite.
Awards
The following awards are available to students enrolled in the Corporate Counsel Externship.
Corporate Counsel Externship Award
An award totalling $3,000 is offered annually to second- or third-year JD students enrolled in the Corporate Counsel Externship at the Peter A. Allard School of Law who have demonstrated excellence in business law and exceptional service to their placement organization's in-house legal team and business stakeholders. The award is made on the recommendation of the adjunct director of the Corporate Counsel Externship and the Director of the Centre for Business Law at the Peter A. Allard School of Law.
Jack T. Edwards Memorial Award in Law
A $1,300 award has been made available through an endowment established by the Edwards Family in memory of Jack T. Edwards for a student in the JD program who has demonstrated dedication to a clinical legal program at UBC Law. After serving as a fighter pilot in the RCAF reserve, Jack Edwards went on to a successful career as a lawyer in Vancouver before being appointed a Justice of the Supreme Court of British Columbia. Jack was dedicated to serving clients and his profession with integrity. The award is made on the recommendation of the Peter A. Allard School of Law.
