Week 3 Reflection

Jared Levine

6/14-6/18

My third week interning for Levnethal, Mullaney & Blinkoff, LLP brought no shortage of interesting new learning experiences. I continue to prosper and feel comfortable in my office setting. I have gotten acquainted with my summer’s weekly routine and have effectively retaught myself how to wake up early and make it to work every day on time. For this, I am arguably most proud. 

Week 3 interning at the firm tasked me with a variety of organizational, experiential, and important tasks. At the beginning of the week, I was tasked with organizing and finding a list of case files and certain contents within them to be delivered to one of the childcare agencies the firm represents. On Tuesday, I was asked to deliver these documents to the childcare agency, located in Brooklyn. I drove into Brooklyn with 3 large boxes of binders and had to simultaneously maneuver a wheel-barrow type tool carrying the boxes, while also navigating my way through an immense government building. Once I found the agency, I was glad to have been tasked with what I was. I spent a good amount of time chatting with the case workers and agency directors that I delivered the necessary items too. I was able to see where events such as visitation, administrative work, and personal consultations take place. After doing so, I feel as though I have a much better understanding of the child welfare work I do alongside Mr. Blinkoff in the office. 

Later this week, I spent time observing and meeting individuals within two different government bodies located very close to my house. One was the zoning board of appeals for the village closest to my house, and the other was village justice court within a village that comprises the other side of my town, Port Washington. At the zoning board meeting, I was able to hear a case presented that I was asked to review prior to the meeting, and this was somewhat exciting to me. In village justice court, I was able to witness more conflictive disputes and to learn how such matters are settled. I was amazed at the differences between the ways in which the two bodies operated. Obviously they perform different functions, but it was interesting to me how the justice court had plexiglass in front of all local officials and a police presence in the room, whereas the other government building had none of these features. My guess is this is due to the demographics of each village. 

Lastly, this week my organizational tasks certainly increased as I feel as though my site supervisors have increased their trust in me. I am now often responsible for finding, printing, and organizing information sent to Mr. Blinkoff, as well as for scanning and organizing information digitally. The more tasks I take on here, the more streamlined my day as an employee feels. I am certainly becoming more skilled in my work everyday and feel as though the attorneys I work with are benefiting from my presence, at least to some degree.