An Interview with Shi Qiu, Foreign Law Intern

This week’s interview is with Shi Qiu, one of several interns working in the foreign, comparative, and international law divisions of the Law Library this summer.

Describe your background

I’m from China, and currently a third year JD candidate at Tulane University Law School, New Orleans, Louisiana. Prior to coming to the United States, I graduated from Zhejiang University Law School in Hangzhou, China, with an LL.B. degree, and obtained a lawyer’s license in China. When I was in China, I gained work and intern experience in a prosecutor’s office, a local court, and a law firm. In addition to the internship at the Law Library, I am also working as a research assistant at Tulane Law School, helping Professor Childress with the process of updating his book, Federal Standards of Review.

How would you describe your job to other people?

Under the supervision of Foreign Law Specialist Laney Zhang, I conduct legal research for requests from members of Congress and other parts of the U.S. government, covering the jurisdictions of China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and Singapore.

I also help to provide updates to existing reports when relevant laws are amended by drafting articles for the Global Legal Monitor. I will also write for this blog, In Custodia Legis.

Why did you want to work at the Law Library of Congress?

As a third-year law student, I’m currently considering my future career. An internship at the Law Library of Congress provides me a unique opportunity to experience a different role from ordinary lawyers, which may help me if I decide to pursue an academic or consulting career.

What is the most interesting fact you have learned about the Law Library of Congress?

The Law Library’s collection covers virtually all existing jurisdictions in the world, and it’s amazing to meet so many people from different legal cultures.

What’s something most of your co-workers do not know about you?

I’m from a family of lawyers. My mother is a law professor, my uncle is a judge, my father holds a law degree, and my wife is currently also a student at Tulane Law School.