A drive is indeed a homonym and with quite a few definitions,
however, innuendo is intended and viewers discretion is advised for the following paragraphs.
Life is like driving a car. You will need to keep your eyes on the road and focus on the direction you are moving towards. However, never forget to look at your rear-view mirror.
My journey started off the same as everyone else you see on this website. I started as a foetus, developing in my mother’s womb. A caesarean section was done on my mother as I was too heavy to carry around. Subsequently, I grew up having aspirations and dreams. I was very fortunate to be able to attend University. However, on the 1st of August 2019, during my summer break from Law School, my drive took me to Alex Chang & Co.
My dear readers should be familiar with the R&R located every 20 minutes or less in the express ways in Malaysia. Alex Chang & Co was one of the pits stop for me. I was presented an internship opportunity by Mr Chang to replenish and refine my legal knowledge and the opportunity to ‘rehat’ and ‘rawat’ before my journey takes me to another milestone. I had gained an exponential amount of knowledge and experience within a month in said “R&R”.
However, before stumbling upon Alex Chang & Co, I have had my fair share of experience in other pits stops. Alex Chang & Co, on the contrary, was quite distinctive, I was trained as a clerk right up to an ‘artificial solicitor’, or to describe with locations, from the mailroom to the judge’s chamber. Personally, the drive was not merely about the legal knowledge that I had gained but also the experience that I had accumulated through my journey with Alex Chang & Co. Friendships were made, and networks were established for my drive ahead.
I do not want to go on and on about what I did during my time at the “R&R” as it will bore both you the reader, and me as an artificial author. However, I would like to stress on how the internship has assisted me. I was selected as one of the few students to take part in the Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot. Before being one of the chosen ones, I was only given (1) day to prepare for a mini-moot and an interview. I checked my rear-view mirror, remembered all the Bundle of Documents I made under stress and tension in Alex Chang & Co, it was nothing compared to the interview. I went the extra mile like what Mr Chang did for his court submissions, in both Bahasa Melayu and English. Although the translation was not required for my interview but was told that I was the only one that came prepared with bundles, as time was a constraint for all participants and bundles were not explicitly requested by the interviewers. Therefore, contemplating on what I had experienced a few months ago, I was presented an opportunity to participate in an International Moot.
I take this opportunity to express my utmost gratitude towards everyone that contributed to my growth while I was in Alex Chang & Co pit stop. I hope my drive goes on and one day, we will be meeting at an intersection.
Johnathan Law Sze Han
