Rising 3L Jonathan Kronert is no stranger to working overseas. Before law school, he lived in Thailand for two and half years, spending some of that period teaching English to high school students in the southern city of Suratpittaya. This summer, he returned to the country to extern at the Bangkok law firm JTJB International, supported by a grant from the Law School’s Frederick K. Cox International Law Center. The opportunity, Kronert notes, fits into his long term goals. “I am interested in a few different career outcomes. U.S. immigration law, corporate responsibility, diplomacy and other areas of law that will allow me a greater chance to develop a career overseas, with my sights set on Asian countries,“ he said. “I can also get a better understanding of how I might fit in as a foreign attorney.”
JTJB specializes in business law, and Kronert notes that “every day is different” at the firm. He works with attorneys across the office on “striking expert comments in arbitration, drafting client emails in contract negotiations and reading contracts between the same parties to evaluate their interrelatedness and potential breaches.” He notes that the externship has encouraged him to further develop his communication and client contact skills. “In school we are trained to analyze the facts and the law, then convey information to our supervisor or the court. What’s missing is conveying that information to a client; telling them why their preferences are difficult to achieve or simplifying complex or dense information relative to whatever they’re asking for in a palatable way.”
Kronert believes the experience has been helpful in other ways, too. For a budding attorney interested in building a professional future in Asia, the externship offers a chance to expand his network in the region. “The attorneys here [at JTJB International] are highly regarded in Thailand, so I have the opportunity to learn from high performing and experienced lawyers.” And though Kronert “is not actively learning Thai,” he notes he will “have the ability to practice and learn everyday, for free.” There can be intangible benefits, too. “I enjoy my life here in Thailand,” Kronert says, “I’m in a great place physically, emotionally and mentally as a result, which is an understated positive for career development.”
For his success, Kronert credits the work culture at JTJB. “Everyone here has been so incredibly kind, accommodating and respectful to me,” he notes, “[my] supervisors, the associates, the partners; everyone has been kinder to me than deserved and I’m grateful for the manner in which I’ve been treated.” His advice to students thinking about externing overseas is to have realistic expectations. “There are many advantages to an experience like this, but there are also glaring downsides, like not developing connections with U.S. employers or activity specific tasks.”
“I don’t think you need to know exactly what you want out of the externship or your future career, but I think the opportunities you're seeking overseas should, in some way, benefit both your optimal career, as well as, your second, third and tenth career choices,” he adds. “Simply put, try your best to have the externship fit you, rather than completely adapting to it.”
Every year, the Law School’s Cox Center provides over $80,000 to support dozens of externships across the globe like the one Kronert had in Thailand.