MHC Intern Life: India Kelly

For the next MHC Intern Life in our new series, we talked to India Kelly. India just finished her law degree in Trinity College Dublin and is an intern in our June intake. We asked her to describe her third week as an intern here.

I began my final week at MHC with some department work at my desk. I was assigned to the Medical Law department for the duration of my internship, which was a great coincidence as I have just finished writing my final year dissertation on litigating medical negligence claims. The work involved conducting some background research on a client query for one of the partners. It was interesting to apply the research skills I learned during my law degree, like reading and interpreting legislation and searching for case law, to a ‘real life’ practical situation.

This was followed by a lunchtime briefing session with some newly qualified solicitors, or NQs. This was essentially an informal talk where each solicitor presented a short piece on their department, the kind of work they do, their journey to MHC and so on. I found these sessions really useful to get a behind the scenes insight into the various different departments, beyond what you see on the firm’s website. It was also a great way of becoming familiar with more people in the firm. The afternoon was then spent working on my group project with the other interns in my group. We had been tasked with presenting an analysis of the legal issues associated with two Web 3.0 commercial use cases. The project was a great opportunity to learn about a new area of law, and to work more closely with fellow interns.

On Tuesday morning I attended my department’s weekly meeting. This presented an interesting overview of the various different cases the department has been working on, beyond those I have been involved in during my internship. The meeting was followed by another lunchtime briefing session, this time with a number of trainees who told us about their experience doing the Professional Practice Courses (PPC) in Blackhall. I had no idea how much fun this stage of legal training could be, and am now greatly looking forward to the experience myself! I finished the day with some department work set by my Senior Associate mentor. She always took care to explain the background to the cases I was assisting with, which meant that I could meaningfully engage with the work and get a more rounded learning experience during my internship.

Wednesday was an exciting day, as I accompanied a partner and solicitor to a mediation in the Four Courts. The case involved a claim for over €20 million in damages arising out of catastrophic birth injuries, so the stakes were immensely high. It was great to experience a different and less common method of dispute resolution outside of traditional court-based litigation. Mediation procedures are quite unique, and I was really interested to see how they worked in practice.

Thursday was my last full day, which got off to a slightly terrifying start as we presented our group projects to a boardroom of 10 MHC partners. Although they made sure to put us through our paces during the Q&A session, our stage fright was eased by their genuine interest and appreciation for our projects. The intern group celebrated the completion of our projects with an after-work dinner and drinks in the nearby docklands.

The celebrations continued on Friday, as the firm hosts its annual summer barbecue. This is the first big event that MHC has hosted post COVID-19, so the anticipation for the now (in)famous ‘Mother of All Parties’ has grown to monumental proportions! Our intern cohort is fortunate to have such an exciting end to what has been a genuinely enjoyable learning experience on the Internship Programme.

Learn more about our internship programme.