International Clerkship Report

Nicolas Rücker, November 2007

Sponsoring Office:    Frankfurt
Receiving Office:      Sydney

After having spent four weeks as an intern in the IP practice group of Baker & McKenzie’s Frankfurt office in autumn 2006, I was given the opportunity to participate in the firm’s International Clerkship Programme in the summer of 2007.

My time in Frankfurt had been a fantastic experience, so I was thankful to get the chance to experience Baker’s international network first-hand. Soon I found myself heading to multicultural Sydney, Australia’s corporate and financial centre, where I was provided with a fabulous apartment adjacent to the office. As corporate law had been my major, I was assigned to the Corporate/M&A practice group, probably the most dynamic practice right now.

During my clerkship, I was constantly able to compare the applicable Australian company law with the German company law I had learned so far, finding lots of similarities and quite a few distinctions. I undertook a wide array of work, from research on complex issues of law to preparing contracts or assisting in a legal due diligence. One of the highlights was attending the closing of an asset deal I had been working on for a while. Seeing the final details of the agreement being negotiated by the parties proved to be truly intriguing.

The international focus of Baker & McKenzie quickly became obvious to me as not only the very first matter I worked on involved an American client, but another matter required extensive research on UK and Continental European partnership law for proper advice on a restructuring issue. The staff was as international as the clients, for the Sydney office was joined by lawyers from the UK, the US and Belgium, for example. Lunchtime often saw me meet up with a Brit, a Thai and an Australian. Only few law firms can offer such a broad international setup.

Lots of social events were organised, as for instance I participated in the annual inter-law firm football tournament as part of the Firm’s side. By mingling with the trainees and associates at these informal events, I could learn a lot about their experiences with the Firm.

Concluding my clerkship, I was able to travel around Australia with rewarding experiences such as bushwalking in the Blue Mountains or watching a pro surf competition at Bells Beach.

Special thanks must go to Verena Ruf and Elisabeth Bagehorn in Frankfurt and Craig Lawrie and Nathan Lithgow in Sydney for organising the clerkship in the first place. I would like to thank the whole Corporate North team and especially Michael Hope for always being helpful and supportive.

My clerkship proved a memorable experience and, as such opportunities are rare, I feel very grateful for having been admitted to the program. The International Clerkship Program offers the unique chance to broaden one’s horizons; I would therefore strongly recommend it to any interested and committed law student.