Avv. Emilio Galdieri is an Italian corporate lawyer and a current member of the Young Bar Association of Rome. In August and September 2016, he had the opportunity to join Labré advocaten for an internship at the office in Amsterdam. Here is his report on his experience abroad.
“During my years as a corporate lawyer at the Rome office of the Italian law firm Bussoletti Nuzzo & Associati (“BNA”), I had the pleasure to work with colleagues from around the world quite often and each time I really enjoyed the opportunity to get involved in cross-border transactions or litigation cases.
Therefore, it should come as no surprise my happiness when Prof. Raffaele Torino, partner at BNA, invited me to think seriously about the possibility to do an internship abroad in the office of another Warwick Legal Network’s member firm. My excitement grew even more as soon as I received an offer by Mr. John van Loo, partner at the Dutch law firm Labré advocaten, to work with him in his office in Amsterdam for almost an entire month. It goes without saying that I immediately accepted it!
Months passed by and, before I knew it, I found myself in the capital of the Netherlands. Amsterdam is a very dynamic and vibrant city, with many talented young people and expatriates ready to work hard to pursue their dreams, so much so that sometimes you would think that it is even possible to bread new opportunities in the air. In such a business-friendly environment, lawyers with great problem-solving skills are in high demand and Labré advocaten is on the frontline of course to provide the best possible legal advice to Dutch and foreign corporate clients.
Mr. John van Loo introduced me to his colleagues and mentored me during my placement in his law firm, making sure that I could make the most out of my time over there. Therefore, while at Labré advocaten, I was involved in many interesting cases where a sound knowledge of EU and Italian corporate and contract law proved to be very useful. They ranged from transactional work to litigation, covering a wide array of topics that enabled me to have an even better understanding of the legal challenges that enterprises have to face day by day in a globalized economy. I think that I learned really a lot by working together with Mr. John van Loo: his attention to details and his constant willingness to go the extra mile to exceed client’s expectations were a true inspiration to me.
Luckily, I had the chance also to attend a hearing before the Amsterdam Court of First Instance together with Mr. Tim Boer, partner at Labré advocaten. I really enjoyed being able to get a glimpse of a Dutch civil law proceeding, not only because the case at hand was a very intriguing one, but also because of some exterior elements that made me think. By way of example, I was positively impressed by the fact that judges and lawyers dressed almost identically in the form of a black robe and a white band, conveying the idea that both are representative of the law working together at an equal level for the pursuit of justice and a better world.
Moreover, as a current member of the Young Bar Association of Rome, I was kindly invited to attend also the Summer Party of the Young Bar Association of Amsterdam by one of its current members, Ms. Annelot Sitsen. After so many wonderful experiences, this one was just the cherry on top. Such occasion gave me the opportunity to get acquainted with many other young Dutch lawyers and to exchange our point of views regarding our profession and other legal matters. It was also a lot of fun of course!
I had such a great time during my internship at Labré advocaten that I would have never left it if I had not had so many matters to take care of back in Italy. Mr. John van Loo and his colleagues at Labré advocaten made me feel very welcome since my very first day in Amsterdam and I wish to thank them all for making all of this possible. I will always cherish the good memories of the wonderful time we had the opportunity to spend together and I really hope that someday I will be able to reciprocate their hospitality by hosting them in Rome, my hometown.”
Emilio Galdieri, moc.liamg@ireidlagme
