How to be a bad senior

Recently, I came across a sharply written article on Bar & Bench titled How to Be a Bad Intern. It rightly highlighted certain kinds of unprofessional intern behaviour such as lack of punctuality, poor attitude and disengagement that can frustrate even the most well-meaning seniors.

But as I read through the piece, a glaring omission struck me: where is the discourse on the other side of the equation? Where is the conversation about bad seniors? The kind of exploitative behaviour that many law students and interns face but are too afraid to speak up against?

Legal internships are, for most students, their first exposure to the profession. Ideally, they should be spaces for structured learning, meaningful engagement and ethical mentorship. Instead, far too often, they become spaces of silent endurance, where exploitation is normalised under the garb of “discipline” and “professionalism.”

Here is how to be a bad senior:

1. Tell interns they “know nothing,” then make them do all the clerical work for free

Delegating long hours of drafting, printing, filing and scanning while simultaneously undermining interns with dismissive remarks about their lack of knowledge. If they “know nothing,” why are they doing so much of your work?

2. Demand punctuality, then make them stay until everyone else has left

Timeliness is important, no doubt. But it’s not just for interns. It’s hardly fair to demand that interns reach by 9:00 AM sharp while making them stay long after working hours just to prove that they’re "serious enough."

3. Justify unpaid internships in the name of “learning” while offering no guidance

There’s an unspoken culture of unpaid internships being passed off as a privilege. But many of these “learning opportunities” come with little to no mentorship. Interns are expected to work silently, without feedback, often filling the gap between associate and clerical staff, unpaid and unnoticed.

4. Avoid even basic reimbursements while sending interns across the city

Sending an intern out in Delhi’s 45°C heat or Mumbai’s monsoon downpour to deliver documents or attend a listing, without travel or food reimbursements, is not a learning exercise. It’s outsourcing office logistics at the intern’s personal expense.

5. Say “things given for free aren’t valued,” then refuse to offer even basic recognition

Interns are told they shouldn’t expect payment because “learning itself is the reward.” Yet many aren’t even given credit for the work they contribute. No mention in drafting. No acknowledgment. No reference letters. No respect.

Professionalism is a two-way street. If we expect interns to behave with integrity, punctuality and humility, shouldn’t seniors be held to similar standards of fairness, transparency and respect?

Ranjan Choudhary is a final year law student of Law Centre 2, Faculty of Law, Delhi University.