Professional Development & STEP

from Annual Report of the International Board of ELSA 2020/2021

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Career Launch project.

ELSA has been connecAng thousands of law students with the professional legal world through the Student Trainee Exchange Programme since 1984 and this year, we took our professional development commitment a step further - STEP as an area has been transformed to Professional Development, encompassing all the amazing projects we have that are helping European law students and young lawyers prepare for professional life. This change was brought to reflect and emphasise the reality and strengths of the area and its officers, whilst at the same Ame expanding our professional development poryolio, which is a sector that in recent years has become more and more relevant in terms of future career opportuniAes and goals. With this change, we hope to officially establish a key pillar of our associaAon and usher in a new era for the area, its focus, and the benefits that it can bring for our members.

Acknowledging the importance of professional development and how difficult it is to network in the Ames of a pandemic, we created a new project - Career Launch, aiming to bridge the gap between theory and pracAce, the academic and professional world, allowing law students an insight into differents career paths available to them amer their legal studies. With two cycles of the project already completed, as always, it is important to evaluate the structure and project as a whole and conAnue to innovate it to increase the benefits and stature of the project for the future.

REMOTE TRAINEESHIPS

Adapting is what allows us to keep moving forward.

If the past year and a half has taught us anything, it is that adapAng is what allows us to keep moving forward and overcome any odds that life may throw at us. ELSA has undoubtedly demonstrated this ability throughout this pandemic, forcing us not only to revaluate our AssociaAon and projects, but adapt them and evolve them. A primary example of this has been our oldest and largest professional development project, ELSA’s Traineeship Programme, STEP.

With over 40 years of experience in awarding law students and young lawyers the opportunity to travel around the world and carry out work experiences in different countries and jurisdicAons, the pandemic brought a strong challenge and quesAon: how to maintain this opportunity for our members, whilst the world is currently in a lockdown? The InternaAonal Board of ELSA 2019/2020 was able to give an answer to the first part of the discussion, in the form of remote traineeship opportuniAes. Various discussions and consultaAons later, the 2020/2021 term saw the possibility of making remote traineeships become an integral part of STEP. A change and evoluAon that, not only allowed us to maintain our necessary professional development offer, but also demonstrated ELSA’s ability to be a front-runner in the sector of work experience, being on par with the developments of many internaAonal organisaAons.

STEP PARTNERS

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Partners & Financial Sustainability

The STEP area has had a long but diverse history in terms of financial sustainability and partners, in parAcular. The first years of the programme saw high-level partner engagement as well as a selfsustaining and developing project. The years following that age, however, proved more difficult, resulAng in the common concepAon of recent years of STEP boasAng no partners and financially draining the general accounts of the AssociaAon, as well as unable to fundraise.

The 2019/2020 term saw the first glimmer of hope in this aspect with the introducAon of 3 new partners, giving the iniAal boost to the financial sustainability of the project. However, with the challenges that the pandemic presented for many organisaAons including ELSA, there was a worry that this boost might dissipate. Luckily, with a heavy dose of team-work, research and vision, we were able to overcome these challenges once more, not only maintain and strengthen exisAng partnerships, but also establish new and prosperous ones.

We saw the renewal of our partnership with Fragomen, award winning experts in the field of immigraAon, with offices all around the world. Together with the MCC area we introduced our first joint partner, Akin Gump, and finally, amer a number of years of fruiyul cooperaAon in regards to the STEP programme, we were happy to welcome the Bierens Group as an official partner of the area and project, with a bright future ahead of us.

For the first Ame in many years, the STEP area and project is able to boast a self-sustaining and developing partnership and financial situaAon, allowing us to look towards the future ushering it into a new era and conAnuing to maintain and develop this environment.

STEP REBRANDING

Focus on professional development.

STEP as an area and project, undoubtedly, has a rich and incredibly long history. This history conAnuously allows us to look back in order to develop our future. Nonetheless, history should not be seen as an excuse to not innovate or adapt the project and brands to new circumstances, generaAons and needs. Many, indeed, saw the pandemic as a barrier and halt to projects and any potenAal innovaAon or renewal.

Our ability to adapt.

ELSA, however, once again, demonstrated its ability to adapt and evolve and, thanks to the work of the enAre network and the ever present spirit, we managed to use this Ame to evaluate our strengths and weaknesses. Thus, amer a 40 year history, the Network made history in bringing forward the rebranding of the STEP project. Therefore, as of the coming 1st of August, STEP will officially become ELSA Traineeships. With this change, we hope to improve our communicaAon, outreach strategies and present a clear message towards our members and interested individuals. Together with the general rebranding and refocus of the area, we hope to use these changes effecAvely as opportuniAes to look towards the future in all aspects and, thus, use these changes to evolve the project even further.

NEW DESIGN STYLE

STEP RESEARCH PROJECT

Firstly initiated in 2019.

The STEP Research Project, an internaAonal legal research group focusing on labour law in over 40 countries, had a strong internal goal aimed towards understanding the necessary labour regulaAons present in the countries of operaAon of STEP and thus ensure a strong legal framework and compliance. Whilst this goal conAnues to be a primary, it has since that first introducAon, evolved and developed to allow for an external vision. In parAcular, with the incredible support of our project partner, Caselex, without whom the project would not have been possible, and together with the enAre Board, we realised the incredible potenAal of this project and the research and knowledge that it brought in regards to labour regulaAons surrounding specifically trainees around the world, allowing us to begin draming ideas and partnerships aimed at uAlising this as a means and basis for advocacy and policy input.

Boasting in-depth research.

With important conclusions being drawn in regards to remote working policy, the status of trainees, and general barriers to work experience and professional development, we pass the torch to the new Board and are looking forward to seeing ELSA become a primary player towards the advancement of the status and opportuniAes for work experience worldwide.

It is important to note one of the greatest strengths and reasons for the success of the project, namely our Network and Officers. It is due to the Areless work and research of NaAonal and Local Officers that the STEP Research Project is able to boast in-depth research and knowledge from over 20 different EU and non-EU countries. With the research phase of the project finally concluded amer two years with the submission of the final naAonal reports, the opportuniAes for this project look bright.

EPILOGUE

The last few words…

In this way, we have reached the end of our term. This year was full of challenges, both typical and unexpected. We knew from the very beginning that it would not be an easy task as we wanted to achieve a lot. At that point, "Do what you can't" seemed like a funny slogan to sum up all of our plans and dreams. With Ame, however, it turned out that leaving the comfort zone and crossing borders has become our everyday life. Therefore, we learned how to develop an organisaAon in new condiAons. Today, from the perspecAve of 12 months of work, we are proud to see the achievements of the enAre Network. Time spent on discussions about strategy, brainstorming about structures and searching for meaning in our acAons has brought great results. With courage and a sense of righteousness, we enter the next decade, making groundbreaking changes and building a new future for a new generaAon of ELSA members. We have helped to take the first step and now we can observe with even greater saAsfacAon as the next Officers are gepng ready to take the baton and conAnue our joint efforts.

In the meanAme, the ELSA House has become a home for us and our team has become a second family. One that helps and supports, but also pushes you to new challenges and creates an atmosphere conducive to development. One that understands weaknesses and appreciates the virtues, that remembers about important things and allows you to be yourself. This is where our adventure with the AssociaAon ends, but the created relaAonships remain, because it was not only a year of work for ELSA, but most of all a year of our life full of new experiences and wonderful people around.

We wish you to experience something so extraordinary as well, hoping that you would have your dreams, the courage to make them come true and have friends who will accompany you on this journey.

ELSAfully yours,

Wera, Sina, Carlos, Nikos, Maja, Louis, Ilke and Fran

Professional Development & STEP