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Hey all,

This might be a silly question, but I am getting ready to begin an internship with my local public defender's office here in about a week. I have gone through all of the material provided to us from the office, but there is no mention of any sort of dress code. Should I wear a suit daily, or perhaps just a nice button down and some khakis? I don't have much in the way of formal clothes, so I need to go and purchase some before the week is out.

Thanks!

Every office is different so it’s best to just ask whoever hired you. If you’re gonna be in court it’s safe to say you’ll need to wear a suit but no knowing for sure what just around the office entails

Show up in a suit and feel it out from there

Like others have said, it depends on the office. Last summer I was at a PD's office, and wore a suit every day. I was generally only scheduled to go to court on certain days, but I found that often another attorney (other than my direct supervisor) would ask me if I wanted to go with them for a hearing or something similar, so I took to wearing a suit every day to make the most of those opportunities.

Wear a suit on the first day and check it out from there. You will see what people wear on a daily basis, but it really varies from city to city. I would recommend always having a jacket and tie in your car/office in case you have to go into court on a day you were not expecting.

Danger Zone wrote:Show up in a suit and feel it out from there

+1
So just hold off on buying work clothes until after that first day/week. As long as you've got one suit you'll be fine until you can afford to buy more.

It’s always best to over dress you first day, as it’s your only chance to make a first impression post interview
. Besides as others said, you may find yourself going to court more often than not ( while unlikely on day 1 as you probably have trainings/ paperwork to do). In addition you will probably be meeting other attorneys.