When people hear “laundromat,” they picture humming machines and spinning dryers, not boardrooms or contracts. But during my internship at SuperClean & Dirty Bird Laundromats, one of the biggest laundromat chains in California with 23 locations, I learned that behind every wash cycle lies a surprising amount of law.

I interned under James Bendscheidt, one of the company’s executives, who oversaw the chain’s corporate operations and expansion. My goal was to see the business side of the same legal principles I’d studied at Baker Manock & Jensen. I wanted to understand what happens when the law leaves the attorney’s office and meets the real world.

At Baker Manock, I’d watched lawyers draft contracts, review leases, and form new corporate entities. At SuperClean, I saw those same documents come to life. Lease agreements were integral in the business world. They determined where a new store could open, how much space it could occupy, and even who was responsible for fixing a broken water line. At SuperClean, I saw how lease agreements and documents went from words on paper to business decisions. The same corporate bylaws I saw being written now defined how the company operated every single day.

Working with James, I sat in on meetings about new store locations, vendor contracts, and equipment acquisitions. I watched negotiations unfold; they were careful, deliberate, and collaborative. Each one was an exercise in communication and trust. It struck me that law and business speak the same language; they just use different accents. 

One conversation with James stood out. He told me that understanding business means understanding risk. That’s where law becomes invaluable. “Law isn’t just about solving problems,” he said. “It’s about preventing them.” Having the right lawyers means that you don’t need to hire other lawyers to fix problems. They’re always thought of and prevented ahead of time. Law is less reactionary than it is strategic.

By the end of my internship, I began to appreciate law as something everchanging, not static. It’s not confined to courtrooms or offices, it’s everywhere you look. It’s present in every lease signed, every negotiation held, every partnership formed. My time at SuperClean showed me law in action, and it made me even more excited to keep learning how these systems work together. The legal system is a living structure. A structure that governs, guides, and connects the world around us.