t4 --> fed clerkship --> biglaw? Forum

[Anonymous User]

I interviewed with a law clerk for a federal district court on Monday for a judicial internship, and apparently he went to a really shitty t4. Obviously this doesn't apply in the current economy, but would it have technically have been possible in a better economy to attend a t4 (one that would have left you with no shot at biglaw no matter what your grades are), do a federal clerkship (in a secondary market), and then go into biglaw in a major market? ... If this works, it seems like a genius plan for someone in c/o 2008 (or someone entering law school a couple years from now) because this dude could have technically left law school completely debt-free, spent a year clerking for a federal judge, and then ended up in the same place as a Penn grad.

[Cleareyes]

Anything is technically possible. Students from low ranked schools DO sometimes clerk for the supreme court. As for it being a good plan...umm..there's possibility and there's probability. It's generally not a good idea to PLAN on hitting the lotto.

[transferornot?]

Anything is technically possible. Students from low ranked schools DO sometimes clerk for the supreme court. As for it being a good plan...umm..there's possibility and there's probability.

Wow, I didn't know that.

It's generally not a good idea to PLAN on hitting the lotto.

Yeah, but what if the lottery ticket was free? If you lose, you lose nothing (as oppose to the Penn student who spends $200K to attend Penn, and strikes out at OCI).

[Anonymous User]

Anything is technically possible. Students from low ranked schools DO sometimes clerk for the supreme court. As for it being a good plan...umm..there's possibility and there's probability.

Wow, I didn't know that.

It's generally not a good idea to PLAN on hitting the lotto.

Yeah, but what if the lottery ticket was free? If you lose, you lose nothing (as oppose to the Penn student who spends $200K to attend Penn, and strikes out at OCI).

well then you have to consider all the penn students that have great jobs and are extremely happy with what they are doing.

[Cleareyes]

Anything is technically possible. Students from low ranked schools DO sometimes clerk for the supreme court. As for it being a good plan...umm..there's possibility and there's probability.

Wow, I didn't know that.

It's generally not a good idea to PLAN on hitting the lotto.

Yeah, but what if the lottery ticket was free? If you lose, you lose nothing (as oppose to the Penn student who spends $200K to attend Penn, and strikes out at OCI).

You lose 3 years of your life and probably have to at least pay for living expenses.

[Renzo]

ITT: People rediscover the concept of "expected value"

[RVP11]

Yet another thread in which someone wants to know if there is a backdoor to BigLaw so they can avoid all the annoyance and trouble of going to a good law school or getting good grades.

There is no backdoor.

[MeTalkPrettyOneDay]

ITT: People rediscover the concept of "expected value"

And opportunity cost

Re:

Yeah, but what if the lottery ticket was free? If you lose, you lose nothing (as oppose to the Penn student who spends $200K to attend Penn, and strikes out at OCI).

[nealric]

I interviewed with a law clerk for a federal district court on Monday for a judicial internship, and apparently he went to a really shitty t4. Obviously this doesn't apply in the current economy, but would it have technically have been possible in a better economy to attend a t4 (one that would have left you with no shot at biglaw no matter what your grades are), do a federal clerkship (in a secondary market), and then go into biglaw in a major market? ... If this works, it seems like a genius plan for someone in c/o 2008 (or someone entering law school a couple years from now) because this dude could have technically left law school completely debt-free, spent a year clerking for a federal judge, and then ended up in the same place as a Penn grad.

As said before, it's theoretically possible, but extremely improbable. First, it's very rare to get a federal clerkship from a T4. To the extend that it happens, it's usually one of the top 5 people (not percent) in the class. That alone would make biglaw a possibility in a good economy. If by some miracle you did get a federal clerkship in a secondary market without outstanding grades, that wouldn't necessarily be a ticket into biglaw. Not all federal clerks get biglaw offers ITE.

It's certainly not something you could realistically plan to do in advance.

[samiseaborn]

Did you ask the clerk who they were sleeping with? Or which member of their family was 'old friends' with the judge?

[underachiever]

Hey OP lets lay off Penn...the generic T14 will do

[absworkoutplan]

LOL, what's wrong with Penn as an example? It seemed like an arbitrary choice on the poster's part...and probably pretty representative of the overall T14 as it's smack in the middle .

[Anonymous User]

Anything is technically possible. Students from low ranked schools DO sometimes clerk for the supreme court. As for it being a good plan...umm..there's possibility and there's probability.

Wow, I didn't know that.

It's generally not a good idea to PLAN on hitting the lotto.

Yeah, but what if the lottery ticket was free? If you lose, you lose nothing (as oppose to the Penn student who spends $200K to attend Penn, and strikes out at OCI).

You lose 3 years of your life and probably have to at least pay for living expenses.

Presumably if you have high enough numbers some t4 is going to want you enough to give you a living stipend (so no cost). What's 3 years of my life really worth (or to 95+% of law students)? I mean if you have a BA and your other options are either working retail or dining tables, it's not like the 3 years is a huge loss. In the end you still end up with a JD. From what looked at I really haven't seen many attorney positions for under $40K /year. So worst case scenario you would put in 3 years of your life and come out making $40K /year, which is way better then the alternative of dining tables or working retail (either option leaving you with well under $40k /year in income). Best case scenario you end up completely debt-free and making a boatload of money in biglaw. Either way, I think it's a win-win situation (unless you have some useful UG degree such as engineering), which is definitely not true for the Penn student (sorry underachiever) that blows $200K in borrowed money and strikes out at OCI.

Hell, if I had even known clerking for a federal judge was an option leaving a really low t4 when I started law school I would have hands down attended the school that the clerk I interviewed with did for free. And top 5 people really isn't anything very impressive at a lower ranked school. I mean I was top 5 people and I started at a school much better ranked then a t4.

[RVP11]

Anonymous User, your post assumes that you can get a job from a T4.

[Renzo]

Anonymous User, your post assumes that you can get a job from a T4.

And that a loser who can't find a better job than working at Best Buy out of college could get a law job at all.

[bigben]

Anonymous User, your post assumes that you can get a job from a T4.

And that a loser who can't find a better job than working at Best Buy out of college could get a law job at all.

Well this is silly. When it comes to getting a law job, it doesn't really matter if you got laid off from McDonald's and went on unemployment. All that really matters is your law school and your grades. Sorry if this shatters some illusion of superiority for you.

[Anonymous User]

I know its only anecdotal, but i know somebody that:

T4 Valedictorian--->Federal Clerkship--->Now Looking for a job.