This fall, Mercer University-Walter F. George School of Law’s Corporate Counsel Externship Program will pair students with companies to do field work for six to nine hours a week, while also being mentored by an in-house lawyer. The new program meets a growing interest from students as well as a growing need from corporations.
Thirteen corporations, including Tractor Supply, Home Depot, Aflac, Atrium Healthcare, Delta Metals, Americold Logistics and SWM International are already signed up to participate.
Mercer Law School already has several clinic and externship opportunities on the trial and advocacy side of legal practice, with students often working with judges and district attorneys, and this new program will place more focus on the business side, said Ben Parrish, who is leading the program. Parrish practiced as an in-house lawyer for almost his entire career and retired from his position as Tractor Supply general counsel in 2021.
“In the last 20 years, the number of legal positions in-house has grown exponentially,” Parrish said. “In-house lawyers play increasingly important roles for companies.”
Timothy Floyd, director of experiential education, said many more alumni are now working at in-house counsel offices, much more than in the past, and he has many current students who express interest in doing that for a career.
“So the chance to get real-world experience under the supervision of someone like Ben, it’s really meeting a need that our students have identified,” he said.
