Six Months Between Clerkships Forum

[lawfan2012]

Anonymous from May 16—why don’t you ask the judge if s/he has any suggestions? People I know in similar situations have had judges make some calls and help them find an interesting gig for the gap period.

[nixy]

What about this related scenario: say you have a top clerkship lined up for the distant future (i.e., it starts in two years) and currently work in big law.

Any downside to quitting big law six months before the clerkship begins, and just traveling the world during that time? Anyone done something similar?

Never heard of anyone doing this, but heard a few people daydream about it. It would be (a) expensive and (b) a six-month gap in your resume. I don't know what you plan to do after your "top clerkship," but most elite legal jobs want people who will work hard, and taking six months off biglaw would make it look like you wouldn't want to work hard.

Really? 6 months would be that significant? I don’t think working hard at a job *while you’re at it* is nullified by choosing to take a break from that job. I think a gap of doing nothing at might possibly be a problem, but traveling the world is a pretty active, positive thing to do, and 6 months isn’t that long. I’d be surprised if it were really an issue, if you can afford to do it. It’s very easily spun as “I knew this would be the easiest time to take such a break because I will be so committed/dedicated to my work after the clerkship.”

[265489164158]

Why not see if you can be an adjunct professor at a law school (in old city or new) teaching legal writing? As a clerk, you clearly have the skills. Also, I think that would still leave you time to travel before/after the semester. It is likely not a lot of money, but could be satisfying.

[hdivschool]

What about this related scenario: say you have a top clerkship lined up for the distant future (i.e., it starts in two years) and currently work in big law.

Any downside to quitting big law six months before the clerkship begins, and just traveling the world during that time? Anyone done something similar?

Never heard of anyone doing this, but heard a few people daydream about it. It would be (a) expensive and (b) a six-month gap in your resume. I don't know what you plan to do after your "top clerkship," but most elite legal jobs want people who will work hard, and taking six months off biglaw would make it look like you wouldn't want to work hard.

Really? 6 months would be that significant? I don’t think working hard at a job *while you’re at it* is nullified by choosing to take a break from that job. I think a gap of doing nothing at might possibly be a problem, but traveling the world is a pretty active, positive thing to do, and 6 months isn’t that long. I’d be surprised if it were really an issue, if you can afford to do it. It’s very easily spun as “I knew this would be the easiest time to take such a break because I will be so committed/dedicated to my work after the clerkship.”

I think there'll be a significant number of people who'll think that quitting your biglaw job to take a six-month vacation suggests that you aren't serious about biglaw, particularly when you're taking "a break" in your career after working only a year or two. If you've quit once, you might quit again. There is no sense in which quitting your biglaw job to travel the world is a plus for future biglaw employment. It is only a question of how big of a negative it is. I don't think it makes you unemployable, and certainly there is more to life than biglaw employment prospects. YMMV.

[Anonymous User]

What about this related scenario: say you have a top clerkship lined up for the distant future (i.e., it starts in two years) and currently work in big law.

Any downside to quitting big law six months before the clerkship begins, and just traveling the world during that time? Anyone done something similar?

Never heard of anyone doing this, but heard a few people daydream about it. It would be (a) expensive and (b) a six-month gap in your resume. I don't know what you plan to do after your "top clerkship," but most elite legal jobs want people who will work hard, and taking six months off biglaw would make it look like you wouldn't want to work hard.

Really? 6 months would be that significant? I don’t think working hard at a job *while you’re at it* is nullified by choosing to take a break from that job. I think a gap of doing nothing at might possibly be a problem, but traveling the world is a pretty active, positive thing to do, and 6 months isn’t that long. I’d be surprised if it were really an issue, if you can afford to do it. It’s very easily spun as “I knew this would be the easiest time to take such a break because I will be so committed/dedicated to my work after the clerkship.”

I think there'll be a significant number of people who'll think that quitting your biglaw job to take a six-month vacation suggests that you aren't serious about biglaw, particularly when you're taking "a break" in your career after working only a year or two. If you've quit once, you might quit again. There is no sense in which quitting your biglaw job to travel the world is a plus for future biglaw employment. It is only a question of how big of a negative it is. I don't think it makes you unemployable, and certainly there is more to life than biglaw employment prospects. YMMV.

I know someone who was at my firm that did this not too long ago. Her clerkship begins in September and she left at the end of April (so not quite as long as the 6 months contemplated here, but still a nice long summer off). I remember thinking that no one would even know because their resume would have, for example, "Big Firm LLP: 2017-2019" and then "Clerkship: 2019-2020." I wouldn't include months on the resume at that point.

For what it's worth, I'm pretty sure that she told people she had a clerkship and was leaving the firm; she didn't exactly volunteer to any partners the exact time frame of when the clerkship started. It was something like "I have an upcoming clerkship with Judge X on Court Y. I will be leaving the firm on April 30. Happy to chat about winding me down on Case Z etc." As far as I know she has burned no bridges and would be welcomed back after the clerkship if she wanted.