How Băncilă, Diaconu și Asociații turns internships into a real springboard to business law: Rigorous selection, “buddy” mentoring, and concrete career opportunities for motivated students | Miruna Coderie, Lawyer: “It is a genuine development opportunity that can mark the beginning of a solid career in the legal field.”

The internship program run annually by Băncilă, Diaconu și Asociații, part of the EY Law network, is a real opportunity for Law students who want to experience business law from the inside.The internships generally take place in July or August and have an initial duration of one month, with the possibility of extension depending on participants’ interest and performance.The internship is paid and includes, in addition to remuneration, benefits such as scholarships, free courses, or gym discounts, within a flexible approach tailored to each student’s profile. A defining element of the program is its broad exposure: interns can work on real matters in areas such as real estate, corporate and commercial law, mergers and acquisitions, banking, employment, or data protection. Selection is rigorous, based on a CV and interview, with personal motivation carrying essential weight, and admitted candidates come from top universities in Romania as well as international institutions. Throughout the program, each student benefits from the guidance of a “buddy”—a senior lawyer who supports their integration and helps them understand tasks. Ongoing evaluation and individualized feedback complete the process, ensuring a genuine framework for learning and development. For the firm, internships are an essential link in the recruitment strategy, and some program graduates have later become lawyers within the team.

The Program and Selection: A Gateway to Business Law

At Băncilă, Diaconu și Asociații, internships are not seen as mere formal exercises, but as true training experiences and a way to select future generations of lawyers. “We are pleased to support the training of future legal professionals by organizing our annual internship program,” explained Miruna Coderie, Lawyer, Băncilă, Diaconu și Asociații SPRL.

The internships are designed to offer a combination of practical learning and exposure to the real dynamics of a business law firm. Their typical duration is one month, but, depending on participants’ interest and performance, this may be extended. “It takes the form of practice stages with an initial duration of one month, with the possibility of extension depending on the participants’ interest and performance,” the lawyer emphasized.

As a rule, the internship takes place in July or August. The choice is no coincidence: for students, the summer break is the ideal time to combine the theory learned at university with practice in a professional setting. “Students have the opportunity to interact directly with the firm’s lawyers and to become familiar with the activity of a law firm affiliated with the EY Law network,” added Miruna Coderie.

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Clear Objectives and Real Benefits

Beyond structure and duration, the program has a strategic stake for the firm: attracting talented young people. “By organizing the internship program, Băncilă, Diaconu și Asociații aims to ensure participants’ involvement in real projects and direct interaction with the firm’s lawyers. At the same time, this internship is a strategic recruitment tool through which we aim to identify and attract high-potential students interested in building a career in business law,” noted Miruna Coderie.

An important feature is that the internship is paid. “Collaboration takes different forms, depending on the student’s profile and availability: employment contract, internship agreement, or private scholarship agreement, according to our needs and those of the student concerned,” the lawyer explained.
Remuneration is not standardized but adapted to each case. “Compensation may take the form of a scholarship or a fixed amount, together with a benefits package (for example, free courses, discounts at gyms, etc.), depending on the candidate’s profile and the duration of the collaboration; our approach is flexible,” added Miruna Coderie.

Exposure to Multiple Practice Areas

Another differentiating aspect of the program is the absence of a single theme for each edition. The firm prefers to offer students as diverse an experience as possible, precisely to help them better understand the complexity of the profession. “The internship program organized by Băncilă, Diaconu și Asociații does not have a single professional theme; the aim is to offer participants broad exposure to the firm’s practice areas and to allow them to interact directly with real legal work,” stressed Miruna Coderie.

This strategy also has a practical purpose: evaluating students in varied contexts. “Through this approach, we also aim to observe how students respond to practical challenges, structure their legal thinking, and show interest in various specializations, as part of our process of training and selecting future colleague-lawyers,” she added.

The practice areas in which interns may be involved are numerous. Depending on ongoing projects, interns may take part in activities in areas such as real estate, corporate and commercial law, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), banking, employment law, or data protection, thus having the opportunity to work directly with specialized lawyers and contribute to solving real matters. 

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How Selection Works

The selection process is rigorous but transparent. “The selection of students for the internship program organized by Băncilă, Diaconu și Asociații is carried out through a transparent process that evaluates both academic background and practical skills. Selection is based on the CV and an interview with the student,” explained Miruna Coderie.

There are two ways to apply: either through student associations (especially via events such as Jobfest or Practica Specială, or initiatives organized with ELSA, which pre-screen CVs), or directly by sending the application to office@bdattorneys.ro