Your Name
Zaya Firdaus
Name of the Organisation
High Court of Judicature, at Allahabad
Job Title
Law Clerk cum Law Trainee
Application Process
Application submitted through speed post
Duration of your Work Experience
February, 2021 – December, 2021
Onboarding Process
Physical Interview
Main Tasks and Responsibilities
As Law Clerks or Judicial Clerks, we were supposed to visit the Hon’ble Allahabad High Court on a daily basis and attend Court proceedings while sitting at the front end and below the seats of the Hon’ble Justices in the Court rooms.
I had to assist the Justice I was attached to, in finding the relevant case laws relating to the matters which will be put up on the next day. The laws are ever-changing. We had to update about the new laws that have come into force.
After Court hours, we are supposed to be present in the Judges’ chambers to assist them by researching the judgments and laws.
Work Culture and Work-Life Balance
Law Clerkship is not a very time-consuming job. One can efficiently balance one’s personal and professional life. During my clerkship, the office hours used to be from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. But this does not mean that I was mentally occupied all the time during these seven hours.
You can learn and take time off to go to the library if your Justice is absent on any particular day or you want to read books there. Striking the right work-life balance is always upon the candidate. If you start your work early, you finish early.
Good Things
There are a lot of things one has access to during the clerkship. However, it is important to identify it at the start of your clerkship so that you can benefit from it during the complete tenure of your job. These are as follows: –
- Access to sit in the courtrooms on the front side. Needless to mention, this is a luxury not available to even senior advocates. Technically, the front area is for staff members or esteemed Judges. So, we got access to sit and observe the Court proceedings from very close, which can give one a fair idea about the workings of the Courts and the skills required to survive as a lawyer or a Judge.
- We were provided with the Judge’s library, where all the law clerks used to sit. The library had a printer, which we utilized for job-related work.
- Law clerks are provided with access to legal engines like Manupatra and SCC Online for research.
Bad Things
No bad sides are associated with this opportunity if the student is keen and willing to learn.
Exit Process
The tenure of this job is usually one year, which can be extended by the Hon’ble Court for another 6 months depending upon the performance of the candidate. However, one can exit by giving an application in the Registrar’s office that they want to exit. But in a usual case, the tenure is over after a year.
Details About the Accommodation, Commuting to the Office
Allahabad is my hometown. I travelled from my home to the Court via my scooter. However, one can easily rent a room in the Ashok Nagar area or Kareli and go to the Court.
Lessons Learned
This job changed my thinking in the sense that we consider people with power rude at times but that is not the case. The protocols do not allow a person to be totally free with you.
One cannot expect professionals to treat you like family. There is a way of handling and getting everything done, but one has to look and find their own path and their own ways. No one can craft these for you.
Anything Else You Want to Share?
I would like to mention that law is a profession that requires you to be glued to your books every day. Time management is truly a skill that comes into play in this profession.
You must learn this time management from the very beginning of your first year at law school. One must know how to wake up early, leave for Court, get back from Court to the office, come back home only to attend Conference meetings via Zoom in the evening, draft one petition and reach Court on time the next day, and chill in Shimla this coming Sunday.
The purpose is not to scare the upcoming generations; it is just a reminder to reiterate the fact I mentioned above—start early to finish early!
Source: Lawctopus
