Understanding Sony Legal Internships
What is a Sony Legal Internship? Each year, Sony contributes towards providing a unique opportunity for aspiring legal professionals by offering highly coveted Sony legal internships. These internships are suited for high-achieving law students who are ready to embark on a formal journey towards their dream of becoming legal professionals. They provide a once-in-a-lifetime experience, help you further your career and showcase your passion for the field. The core purpose of each Sony legal internship is to give aspiring legal professional an opportunity to represent an extraordinary company in the entertainment space, while offering opportunities to network with some of the most well-regarded scholars in the field . The Sony legal internship program also offers valuable insight into the day to day responsibilities of being a legal professional, and helps law students refine their professional and interpersonal skills, such as facilitating team discussions, participating in public speaking engagements and working collaboratively on team projects. To help you take advantage of this unique opportunity, we’ve created this comprehensive guide, which we hope will help you better understand the Sony legal internship program and the process.
Why Choose a Legal Internship with Sony?
Completing a legal internship with Sony’s legal department is a unique opportunity for law students to gain valuable industry experience in a fast-paced and ever-changing environment. From entertainment law to privacy and data security, the legal intern will get a well-rounded experience that spans several areas of practice and gain exposure to some of the biggest names in the industry. In addition to gaining industry knowledge, the legal intern will have the chance to network with other Sony employees and establish relationships with in-house professionals that may be beneficial in the future.
In addition to fostering the development of legal skills and providing an inside look at the inner workings of a major corporation, an internship at Sony provides students with a comprehensive understanding of how the company operates with adherence to privacy regulations. Depending on the area of legal practice that the student is interested in, the internship can also help gain exposure with the government relations practice as well as several business teams within the company.
Each intern has the opportunity to work directly with an attorney on various projects that contribute to their legal team’s mission. By gaining first-hand experience working alongside industry professionals, the student will be able to better understand their individual career goals and begin to think about how to reach those goals.
In addition to the skills and knowledge gained throughout the internship, Sony Legal interns also receive competitive compensation. Legal interns are paid on an hourly basis and the internship can qualify towards upper level academic credit at participating law schools.
Eligibility and Application Details
Sony seeks talented students with a law degree from an established college or university in the United States or Canada who are eligible to work in the United States or Canada for this internship and have excellent academic standing. Candidates will be considered for the internship on the basis of achievement of academic, career, and personal goals. Sony does not discriminate in employment opportunities and treatment on the basis of race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or any other protected category under the law.
The application process for a legal internship at Sony generally begins with submission of a resume and cover letter by email. Key elements to include in your cover letter are the following: (1) The preferred schedule (days you’d be available to intern); (2) The preferred location (Atlanta, California, New York); and (3) The number of semester hours for which you’d like to receive credit (if seeking academic credit). Include the personal and career goals that you envision being fulfilled through this internship with Sony. Your resume should be no longer than one page and should include your GPA, any relevant coursework, and any previous legal work experience.
The deadline for applying is generally in the early spring semester.
Skills and Experience Acquired
The spectrum of legal opportunities at Sony means that interns are likely to be involved in a variety of tasks and responsibilities. In particular, with exposure to transactions, litigation and labor law, interns will receive substantive training that will ground them in key legal skills as well as industry knowledge in media and technology.
Interns can expect early exposure and increasing depth of responsibility as their time progresses. Diligence and initiative will allow them to handle diverse matters, such as: Sony employees are a mixture of academics and walks of life. The Sony general counsel has a J.D. and Ph.D. in philosophy. Many lawyers throughout the corporation have experienced the practice of law. But there are also Sony employees who came from other disciplines, such as actors, directors, designers, and technologists. This diversity of experience is a prime source of inspiration at Sony, as each department tries to innovate and accomplish goals in their own way. Legal interns will be well-poised to become future innovators in their field with the skills and experience gained at Sony.
Common Responsibilities and Projects
Typical responsibilities and projects of a legal intern at Sony include conducting legal research. This could involve analyzing potential infringements of intellectual property rights, such as fair use determinations in connection with the use of copyrighted material, or determining the liability of Sony in connection with a third-party’s alleged misappropriation of proprietary information. Students reviewing Sony’s largest merger to date, Sony Ericsson’s acquisition of mobile phone manufacturer, Eloka, had the opportunity to gain exposure to multi-jurisdictional anti-trust issues .
Due to the diversity and size of its operations, Sony also offers legal interns the ability to work on broad range of issues, including mergers and acquisitions, intellectual property, anti-trust, production and development, business strategy, taxation, and labor and employment. Legal interns find it especially useful to attend seminars such as the "Top Gun Director Training", where Sony’s officers are trained on the responsibilities of their position, and "Law School for Executives", where executives are given an overview on legal issues relating to their business functions.
Reviews and Success Stories
Interns have their share of challenges, with demanding supervisors, long hours and the pressure to deliver. Yet when all is said and done, what everyone hopes to gain from such program is a deep understanding of the business and an opportunity to put into practice some of the theoretical knowledge learned in law school. Many interns are able to share such experiences. Amy Z., a corporate and litigation lawyer now, administered trademarks at Sony Legal for four years, and continues to be an executive member of the U.S. Legal Department Team. She explained that Sony’s trademark and copyright group provides a unique experience for interns, giving an in-house perspective on intellectual property matters. Susan gives her take on how the Sony internship program run on many levels and from many aspects, making for an enriching experience. David N. is a current corporate counsel at Sony, and one who started as a summer intern. He was fortunate enough to have the best of both worlds at Sony, working in its corporate and litigation departments. David plans to continue at Sony, and appreciates how his internship has led to a full-time position. David also provided insight on the Sony hiring process and emphasized how the Sony team looks for interns who are personable, friendly, interactive, team-oriented, and with a sense of humor.
How to Differentiate as a Candidate
While the Sony application process begins with a standard submission of resumes and cover letters, standing out to us means showing a prospective passion for entertainment law and a keen insight into the industry itself. We also look for candidates with strong academic credentials, writing prowess, and relevant experience. Oftentimes this means internships or clerking for judges, but other avenues are great too. Students with technical skills related to Sony (i.e., knowledge of gaming platforms, an interest in music or interactive programs) catch my eye as well. But, more than anything, we value oral and written communication skills since interns frequently interact with outside parties. Using precise language in correspondence is especially key for us. Even if Sony is not your ultimate destination, I think any student with an eye toward entertainment law should want to come here. Our work is complex and moving at a break-neck pace. Interns are given real responsibility and I think those experiences provide invaluable practical lessons.
Looking Ahead Post-Internship
Interns can expect to garner a wide variety of professional experiences during their internship at Sony, including first-hand in-house experience with the Sony culture. Some internship positions fall under the general Sony family program; therefore, interns have the opportunity to broaden their working network and resume to include other departments as well. Sony Legal interns can continue to build a relationship with the Employee Relations department through a paid Human Resources co-op that consists of a dedicated 40-hour work week for eight months. As a Sony co-op , interns will further interact with Sony employees while performing general HR duties under direction from the HR team. Current Sony co-ops include: Fisher Schultz, student at University of Pittsburgh; Soojin Yang, student at Boston College Law School; and Veronica Homer, student at Cornell Law School. It has been known that Sony hires undergraduate interns from one season into permanent employment. Past Sony legal interns secured full-time employment within other Sony divisions and brands.