Hello, I have an upcoming internship at Rajiv Mohan Law Offices. I am interested in criminal law, but not sure about the work exposure that I'd get here. If anyone has worked or interned previously, please provide some insights. Thank you!
Reputed criminal Lawyer and public prosecutor. Had an NLSIU fellow aid him a few years(who later joined Luthra I guess, Abhimanyu or something was has name if I'm not wrong).
I've worked there in the past. I speak of my personal experience, not on behalf of the Office.
It's a wonderful place to learn. Possibly the best office to learn criminal trial advocacy in a healthy environment. I've worked in offices which get toxic, this isn't one of them. Mr. Mohan is very polite, never scolds any interns. Same goes for most of his associates.
The main thing is, you have to take initiative if you want work. They get many interns who only want certificates, or only want to attend court to put up Insta stories. If you want any real work to be assigned to you, you'll have to constantly reach out to the associates or Mr. Mohan (if he's free) and ask for work. If you have an appetite for work, it's the best place to be. Some interns have been made to stay back till 10-11PM, which actually means they get some real learning.
On the flip side, if you do not have an appetite to learn, want to be there because it's chill, etc., you may not be able to extract the most out of this opportunity. But that goes for any internship.
Initially, you may only be given very clerical tasks. Put up flags, make sure files are in order, etc. Make sure you do well at that - most advocates use that to test your caliber before giving you any task of actual significance. I've had interns screw up simple tasks such as reading a handwritten note and typing it in word - of course they do not get much work then. Don't do such silly mistakes, don't slack off.
As far as stipend is concerned, the comments are right, most interns do not get stipend. A few interns have, however, got stipends in the past when they have worked well and actually contributed to the office. Nothing much, in 5-10k range (though, let's be fair, you can't get higher than this in litigation).
Keep in mind he used to be a public prosecutor who switched to defence about a decade ago. Even then he continued as SPP for a few cases. Now he does not do any prosecutorial work, however, other than advising police officers sometimes or giving lectures at judicial academy/police academy. So contrary to the other comments here, he's not a prosecutor. Though he's handling some very high profile matters currently - including Kejriwal's (ref: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/delhi-court-reserves-order-on-stay-of-summons-issued-to-arvind-kejriwal-on-eds-complaints/articleshow/108523365.cms), Brij Bhushan's (ref: https://www.indiatoday.in/law/story/brij-bhushan-defense-lawyer-prosecutor-death-sentence-in-nirbhaya-case-2408463-2023-07-18), IMO it's best if you work on the cases which are not as highlighted. Most interns want to get associated with these matters because it sounds fancy - meaning there's less good work to do. OTOH if you work on some file which has fewer people associated with it, you may be able to get more face time/recognition in briefings with Mr. Mohan and may be able to look at the case in much more detail.
does he pay any stipend?
It's a wonderful place to learn. Possibly the best office to learn criminal trial advocacy in a healthy environment. I've worked in offices which get toxic, this isn't one of them. Mr. Mohan is very polite, never scolds any interns. Same goes for most of his associates.
The main thing is, you have to take initiative if you want work. They get many interns who only want certificates, or only want to attend court to put up Insta stories. If you want any real work to be assigned to you, you'll have to constantly reach out to the associates or Mr. Mohan (if he's free) and ask for work. If you have an appetite for work, it's the best place to be. Some interns have been made to stay back till 10-11PM, which actually means they get some real learning.
On the flip side, if you do not have an appetite to learn, want to be there because it's chill, etc., you may not be able to extract the most out of this opportunity. But that goes for any internship.
Initially, you may only be given very clerical tasks. Put up flags, make sure files are in order, etc. Make sure you do well at that - most advocates use that to test your caliber before giving you any task of actual significance. I've had interns screw up simple tasks such as reading a handwritten note and typing it in word - of course they do not get much work then. Don't do such silly mistakes, don't slack off.
As far as stipend is concerned, the comments are right, most interns do not get stipend. A few interns have, however, got stipends in the past when they have worked well and actually contributed to the office. Nothing much, in 5-10k range (though, let's be fair, you can't get higher than this in litigation).
Keep in mind he used to be a public prosecutor who switched to defence about a decade ago. Even then he continued as SPP for a few cases. Now he does not do any prosecutorial work, however, other than advising police officers sometimes or giving lectures at judicial academy/police academy. So contrary to the other comments here, he's not a prosecutor. Though he's handling some very high profile matters currently - including Kejriwal's (ref: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/delhi-court-reserves-order-on-stay-of-summons-issued-to-arvind-kejriwal-on-eds-complaints/articleshow/108523365.cms), Brij Bhushan's (ref: https://www.indiatoday.in/law/story/brij-bhushan-defense-lawyer-prosecutor-death-sentence-in-nirbhaya-case-2408463-2023-07-18), IMO it's best if you work on the cases which are not as highlighted. Most interns want to get associated with these matters because it sounds fancy - meaning there's less good work to do. OTOH if you work on some file which has fewer people associated with it, you may be able to get more face time/recognition in briefings with Mr. Mohan and may be able to look at the case in much more detail.
Hope this helps.