An Intern’s Log - Elijah Loh
Elijah Loh from the National University of Singapore reflects on his four-week internship with us. Read on to hear how a chance discovery of our “Access to Justice” mission led him to Covenant Chambers, and his take on fast-paced work and our unique firm culture.
I first learnt about Covenant Chambers after I stumbled upon an article about its founder, Lee Ee Yang. He shared how he made the bold decision to leave the Big 4, join a smaller practice, and ultimately establish Covenant Chambers LLC. He felt called to the man on the street and wanted to provide justice for them. I was intrigued.
That night, I went on to their front page of their website and in very big fonts, “Access to Justice” followed by the sentence “If you require legal services on a low bono or pro bono basis, we’d be more than willing to connect with you.”. I was a rising Year 4 and having done numerous internships, this stood out to me. On the front page of most law firms, you’ll find promises of excellence and have countless accolades and achievements about their star lawyers. But a discount on their services if you need it? Not really.
Curious, I decided to intern at Covenant Chambers. What I found was an environment that was refreshingly warm. People weren’t just professionally nice, but genuinely happy to engage, sincerely kind, and ready to offer guidance. The firm has a very nice lunch culture where everyone in the firm is invited to eat together. They also have a bi-weekly breakfast gathering, and during one of them, we celebrated the May birthdays and spent the morning simply talking. Another highlight was being invited to visit my supervising lawyer’s own book café! Cool stuff. I think that’s the perk of a mid-size firm, where the team feels more connected.
Some of the work I undertook included drafting a letter of demand for an employer who had been defrauded by his employees, conducting research on civil procedure matters, preparing a representation to the Prosecution regarding a road traffic accident, and drafting legal documents on regulations concerning foreign lawyers providing arbitration services in Singapore. It was a well-rounded mix of complex legal research and simple drafting work.
But the workload was quite intense. Perhaps due to their limited internship spots, I was doing work for multiple lawyers and at the outset, I took on more than I could manage (my problem). Eventually, I had to inform them that I had reached full capacity, which they understood and very kindly respected. But I appreciated it, it’s only a month of hard work and I wanted to know the kind of cases that they do, and I guess it’s better than being chucked in a corner and forgotten.
A month after I left, a lawyer reached out to provide an update on a task I had worked on for him and thanked me again for my contribution. That small gesture really stayed with me.
Ultimately, what makes Covenant Chambers unique to me is how it has managed to build a sustainable practice that is rooted in excellence, compassion, and purpose. A truly different law firm. For any potential interns reading this, I would highly recommend you join Covenant Chambers!
