Full name: Allie Virginski

Hometown: Grand Rapids, Michigan

Major and Class Standing: International Relations and Spanish, Senior

Social Media Handle: Instagram: @allievirginski Snapchat: @allievirginski Twitter: @AVirginski

Internship Company/Organization Name: Richardson & Asociados Abogados- Consultores

Location of Internship: Remote

Program Type: Global Remote Internship Program 

My internship title is Legal Intern. My roles and responsibilities were to study, analyze and describe the different actions available for individuals and corporations that may be used under the consumer defense act 24240 in Argentina to protect their rights and the various consumer defense laws that act together and are enforced under specific bureaus in the US. A cross country analysis of consumer defense laws in the US and Argentina: researching the history of jurisprudence and punitive damages and how they correlate with one another.

Usually, for my daily routine I pick one task within my larger topic and focus on researching articles, videos, or any other kind of news that will help me put together my findings in a clear and concise way. Most of the time, I research the law 24240 from Argentina and the US consumer defense law package. I would then look into case precedent, jurisprudence of applicability of those actions, and punitive damages reporting my findings at the end of each week.

I obtained my internship by using the James Madison College’s field experience placement resource center to help refine my resume and the College of Arts and Letters advisors to help connect me with Connect 123. They were then able to help me find the right placement at Richardson & Asociados Abogados-Consultores.

My internship is conducted in Spanish so, I have been able to gain a lot of knowledge on legal terminology in Spanish. I have also learned a lot about differences between the common law legal system of the U.S and the civil law system in Argentina. Beyond the particularities of my internship, I have enjoyed working with people from different backgrounds. The workplace environment and responsibilities are much different than the US and are more collective and collaborative which has been a very rewarding experience. 

I was very thankful to have such a smooth internship experience. The only real challenge I faced was finishing my internship work so fast. My supervisor was busy, so she wasn’t really able to come up with another task for me to work on. It was important to take initiative and explore more aspects of the law that interested me- specifically COVID-19 and how this has altered consumer behavior and laws. My supervisor ended up loving my idea and encouraged me to go even further with my research. There wasn’t always a ton of direction which was difficult, but in the end helped me grow both personally and professionally.

Upon graduation, I plan on attending law school concentrating on international law. This opportunity has solidified my future career plans and has allowed me to gain a foundation on commercial law and legal experience before entering law school. In general, I learned that the industry is very research intensive and task oriented. 

Professionally, I have learned how to manage my time balancing various tasks and time zones at once. I have worked on keeping in contact with my supervisor as I don’t physically see her everyday. Personally, I have been working on finding the right balance between work and fun. Making sure not to get burned out and find the joy in the everyday activities pursuing work that interests me.

I would advise interested students to be proactive and to be creative. No one expected everything to go virtual so making sure to adapt to the circumstances is something that is super important for a virtual internship. It is important to communicate with supervisors and professors to make sure everyone is on the same page and to ensure a successful internship experience.