, Forum

[gotmilk?]

Some additional district court posts will go up in the next few days. Probably N.D. Cal., N.D. Ill., and E.D. Pa. After that, E.D. Va., one or two Texas districts, and E.D.N.Y./D.N.J./D.Conn.

Other nominations welcome. Same w/ideas for what the heck to say on the district court pages that would be useful.

Yay for ND Cal. Obviously any suggestions for info to add on district court pages requires extra work on your part (and you're doing plenty that everyone appreciates as it is), but here are a few ideas:
1. Which judges may move early (you already do this, if I remember correctly)
2. Which judges may be especially prestigious or competitive (I know there's not as much differentiation here as there is on CoA, but some particular judges come to mind).
3. Mention judges' backgrounds (patent litigator, AUSA, etc.). Might help people find good fits.
4. Re: patent stuff, I just wanted to chime in again my request for more info on the Fed Cir page (if possible). As regards district courts, you might want to have a page (or mention on individual districts' pages) for judges who are a part of the patent pilot program.

Thanks again for all your excellent work.

[kalvano]

I thought an article on which judges might be possible for people with less-than-stellar credentials might be useful.

[Anonymous User]

I thought an article on which judges might be possible for people with less-than-stellar credentials might be useful.

Well, Justice Thomas hired a cum laude graduate from GULC whose first clerkship was with the Court of Appeals of the Armed Forces, so there's him. Seriously, I know little about this, but judges with poor reputations (as either judges or as people/bosses) are sometimes more accessible because their applicant pool is weaker. The same's true of senior judges, though their pool may not be weaker so much as just a lot smaller. That said, I will say that some older judges, especially in what's disparagingly referred to as flyover, are rather parochial, and quite enamored with applicants from nearby schools, applicants who come to them with recommendations from friends, and applicants who may not meet more modern conceptions of what makes a killer resume. (At least one such judge has an expressly stated hiring preference for people of Appalachian descent.) And of course, someone stating on OSCAR that he prefers the top 30% rather than the top 5 or 10 percent is a clue - though not always an accurate one, as I think Sutton, for some reason, says top 30% on his OSCAR.

[Anonymous User]

I'm still waiting for the website devoted entirely to mediocre clerkships: getting hired by district court judges with poor judgment and low standards.

[Anonymous User]

I'm still waiting for the website devoted entirely to mediocre clerkships: getting hired by district court judges with poor judgment and low standards.

Well, there was a district judge who wrote an entire opinion in the format of Wayne's World. See Noble v. Bradford Marine, 789 F. Supp. 395 (S.D. Fla. 1992). Unfortunately, that judge appears to no longer be on the bench.

[Anonymous User]

Another segment coming up soon: some off-plan COA hiring will heat up in March, a good month or two earlier than it has in prior years. Word from multiple, reliable sources is that a number of judges have moved their timetables up significantly.

Wow, interesting to hear. Any tips on which circuits? Are these all feeders, or are some non-feeders hiring in March too? I'm not in feeder range but am probably not far behind (top 5% at a T10). I wasn't planning on getting my application packet ready till May or June...bad idea?

[Anonymous User]

Another segment coming up soon: some off-plan COA hiring will heat up in March, a good month or two earlier than it has in prior years. Word from multiple, reliable sources is that a number of judges have moved their timetables up significantly.

Wow, interesting to hear. Any tips on which circuits? Are these all feeders, or are some non-feeders hiring in March too? I'm not in feeder range but am probably not far behind (top 5% at a T10). I wasn't planning on getting my application packet ready till May or June...bad idea?

Top 5% is just "not far behind" feeder range. Top 5% at a T10 (I'm assuming lower T10 in this case) is more of the "good shot at getting a COA clerkship" range. Single digit rank is "really good shot at getting a COA" and #1, 2 or 3 at a lower T10 is feeder range.

Top 5-10% should be aiming at a mix of COA and strong district courts.

[Anonymous User]

Earlier anon here. You're totally right - I am not close to feeder range and I didn't mean to indicate that I thought I was. I really just meant to ask if, due to GTLRev's claim that more judges are hiring in March, us non-feeder applicants should be prepping as well (or if the March hires are still exclusively feeder types)?

[Anonymous User]

Does top 10% at S have a chance at feeders, or would feeders for S require more like top 5%?

[Anonymous User]

It seems like some of the judges must be dipping below their "preferred GPA" for some schools. At UVA, the average GPA for an EDTX clerkship is 3.3: right at median, but all the EDTX judges want at least top 20% according to OSCAR.

[vamedic03]

It seems like some of the judges must be dipping below their "preferred GPA" for some schools. At UVA, the average GPA for an EDTX clerkship is 3.3: right at median, but all the EDTX judges want at least top 20% according to OSCAR.

Those UVA #'s = pre-ITE and small sample size. Last UVA grad who went to EDTX was class of 2009 and only 3 UVA grads have clerked there in the past decade. This isn't to say that they aren't worth applying to, but you should speak with the counselors at UVA to get a better sense of what your odds are nowadays.

[Anonymous User]

I'm starting a 1 yr clerkship with a d.ct. judge in August, and don't have anything lined up for after I finish. When is the best time to start applying to firms? (I want to stay in the same city I'm clerking in)

[barrotmartin]

tag

[Anonymous User]

gtlrev,
whats the salary for a clerkship? link please

[sunynp]

Thanks for all your work on this. I was going to click on an ad or two to help you out - but it was for a "death lawyer" LOL. The other was to talk to a lawyer 24 hours a day. It freaked me out a little, but I will click in the future.

[tgo2013]

New post up today: E.D.N.Y.

D. Conn. coming soon. Also, please remember to fill out our user survey (LinkRemoved) if you haven't already.

The promised post on March COA hiring is still forthcoming, as are a few other features. Any suggestions for other district courts to profile? Thoughts on the new law firm clerk hiring format? I was thinking a table might work better than the list format.

Can you do N.D. Ga. and D. Md?

[Anonymous User]

N.D. Ga. up today; D. Md. will go up on Thursday.

Other courts coming in the weeks ahead: Tax Court, S.D. Cal., Ct. Fed. Cl.

Awesome! Can I add E.D.Cal. to the long list of requests?

[romothesavior]

GTL, can't say enough how much this resource is appreciated. Keep up the great work.

If I could make one recommendation, I think adding more names to the list of DCT judges who hire off-plan would be awesome. I know multiple people (including myself) are only applying to DCT judges and the dedicated district pages are helpful, but we are struggling to find the judges who hire off-plan since most still hire on-plan. If there was a more comprehensive list of known off-plan judges under the "District Court" tab, that would be immensely helpful.

A lot of this information could be solicited on your site, as well has here on TLS. A friend and I are planning on making some calls this week to find out what midwestern DCT judges are hiring off-plan, and I'd be happy to pass that information along. Hopefully others will do the same for their area, and we will then have a more extensive list of off-plan judges.

[Anonymous User]

N.D. Ga. up today; D. Md. will go up on Thursday.

Other courts coming in the weeks ahead: Tax Court, S.D. Cal., Ct. Fed. Cl.

Looking forward to S.D. Cal.! Thank you.

[Anonymous User]

N.D. Ga. up today; D. Md. will go up on Thursday.

Other courts coming in the weeks ahead: Tax Court, S.D. Cal., Ct. Fed. Cl.

Looking forward to S.D. Cal.! Thank you.

You and the 2,000 others of us.

[Anonymous User]

Pretty sure this is something I should be able to find out myself, but I've looked everywhere and can't seem to find it: How can I tell if judges are able to view my applications (I'm a 3L now) for 2013 clerkships? I'm graduating in May 2012, but I don't know whether that makes me an "alum" for 2013 or still in school because technically I am (and thus hidden from them until 2013's plan opens up). I've been submitting my applications, but I'm worried maybe they're just pending in OSCAR.

And sorry if you've answered this elsewhere, I couldn't find that either.

[romothesavior]

Outstanding, thanks man. I'll let you know if I find anything, and I encourage others to as well.

[Anonymous User]

Pretty sure this is something I should be able to find out myself, but I've looked everywhere and can't seem to find it: How can I tell if judges are able to view my applications (I'm a 3L now) for 2013 clerkships? I'm graduating in May 2012, but I don't know whether that makes me an "alum" for 2013 or still in school because technically I am (and thus hidden from them until 2013's plan opens up). I've been submitting my applications, but I'm worried maybe they're just pending in OSCAR.

And sorry if you've answered this elsewhere, I couldn't find that either.

Good question. The judges should be able to see your apps, but knowing OSCAR, I would not be surprised if that did not bear out in practice. The best solution, I think, is to find a grad from your school who is currently clerking & send his/her judge an app. Then see if it goes through. Another option: call the OSCAR help desk. I think the # is listed somewhere on OSCAR itself.

Anonymous from above here, I called the help desk and you're right, members of the class of 2012 are considered "graduates" for the 2013 cycle. Judges should be able to see our applications immediately.

[Alyosha]

Thanks so much for doing this G.T. L. Rev. It's an incredible resource and I've been telling people interested in clerking that they should go to the site.

One thing that might be helpful is to move the FAQ link to the main page. Currently you have to go to the January posts link to find it. Just a suggestion. I thought they were super helpful.

Thanks again.

[Tangerine Gleam]

Sounds exciting across the board. Don't forget to click those ads like crazy, everybody...