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I'm a 2l at a school in NY ranked towards the bottom of the top 100. I used to live in southern CA and would love to work there at some point after I graduate. Would it be crazy for me to turn down a fairly well paying summer job at a local law firm to work for a federal district court judge in San Diego (SDCA)?? Would the job with the fed judge significantly help my chances of finding a job there later on?

Thanks!!

roothlus wrote:I'm a 2l at a school in NY ranked towards the bottom of the top 100. I used to live in southern CA and would love to work there at some point after I graduate. Would it be crazy for me to turn down a fairly well paying summer job at a local law firm to work for a federal district court judge in San Diego (SDCA)?? Would the job with the fed judge significantly help my chances of finding a job there later on?

Thanks!!

Don't give up a well paying summer job.

vamedic03 wrote:

roothlus wrote:I'm a 2l at a school in NY ranked towards the bottom of the top 100. I used to live in southern CA and would love to work there at some point after I graduate. Would it be crazy for me to turn down a fairly well paying summer job at a local law firm to work for a federal district court judge in San Diego (SDCA)?? Would the job with the fed judge significantly help my chances of finding a job there later on?

Thanks!!

Don't give up a well paying summer job.

Even if I really don't want to work here after I graduate?

roothlus wrote:

vamedic03 wrote:

roothlus wrote:I'm a 2l at a school in NY ranked towards the bottom of the top 100. I used to live in southern CA and would love to work there at some point after I graduate. Would it be crazy for me to turn down a fairly well paying summer job at a local law firm to work for a federal district court judge in San Diego (SDCA)?? Would the job with the fed judge significantly help my chances of finding a job there later on?

Thanks!!

Don't give up a well paying summer job.

Even if I really don't want to work here after I graduate?

Unless you have a reason that you absolutely won't work there, you should take the job. Would you rather run the risk of working in a location that you don't prefer or having no job at all?

I would advise taking the job as well. Firms will value your practical legal experience and will see you have ties to SoCal.

If you are certain that you want to work in SOCAL after law school, then take the position with the federal judge in San Diego as this should get your resume noticed by firms in that region.

Yea, I think it would be pretty crazy. If you are absolutely dead-set on getting a judicial clerkship upon graduation and haven't already completed a judicial externship/internship then I think it might be a closer call though.

Depends on your chances of getting a job with the firm in NY. Getting a job should be the number 1 priority.

Otherwise, the externship would be the more valuable experience. Externing for judges is one of those nice resume points that shows up on firm bios, and is more unique and valuable to employers. Also, it would be nice to have a local judge as a reference, possibly networking you to some of his/her contacts, and having the opportunity to network that summer with local attorneys. Not sure about it leading to district court clerking, as competitive as it is, but possible if the judge likes you enough or if he/she refers you to other judges.

Lawquacious wrote:Yea, I think it would be pretty crazy. If you are absolutely dead-set on getting a judicial clerkship upon graduation and haven't already completed a judicial externship/internship then I think it might be a closer call though.

Grades + LR + Faculty Recommendations will help OP get clerkships, not judicial internships. If anything, OP would be at a distinct disadvantage compared to applicants that have firm or public interest experience.

The Brainalist wrote:Depends on your chances of getting a job with the firm in NY. Getting a job should be the number 1 priority.

Otherwise, the externship would be the more valuable experience. Externing for judges is one of those nice resume points that shows up on firm bios, and is more unique and valuable to employers. Also, it would be nice to have a local judge as a reference, possibly networking you to some of his/her contacts, and having the opportunity to network that summer with local attorneys. Not sure about it leading to district court clerking, as competitive as it is, but possible if the judge likes you enough or if he/she refers you to other judges.

I don't think a judicial externship is all that unique and they tend to be less than competitive. The firm job is the right answer in this scenario, even if its some place OP would prefer not to be. Lower ranked T100 schools don't particularly have a great national reach and, unless OP has some compelling personal reason that prohibits them from living in NY, having a job is more important than having a job in a preferred location.

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JusticeJackson wrote:Do you have a full 16 week SA gig? If not, take the SA gig and see if you can work for the judge for the remainder of the summer. Also, you might be able to intern for the judge for credit during the school year next year (depending on the number of credits you're allowed to get for internships, and whether your school allows you to take internships in another state).

Without a doubt, having actual experience at a firm is looked at more favorably by subsequent employers. I don't see a reason why you'd turn down a paying legal job for a non-paying job.

where can i find those gigs?

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baboon309 wrote:

JusticeJackson wrote:Do you have a full 16 week SA gig? If not, take the SA gig and see if you can work for the judge for the remainder of the summer. Also, you might be able to intern for the judge for credit during the school year next year (depending on the number of credits you're allowed to get for internships, and whether your school allows you to take internships in another state).

Without a doubt, having actual experience at a firm is looked at more favorably by subsequent employers. I don't see a reason why you'd turn down a paying legal job for a non-paying job.

where can i find those gigs?

Some firms will let you work as many weeks as you are available. My summer is 15-16 weeks, I believe.

CanadianWolf wrote:If you are certain that you want to work in SOCAL after law school, then take the position with the federal judge in San Diego as this should get your resume noticed by firms in that region.

Terrible, terrible advice. If there were board malpractice, this would be it.

Extern for a judge during the school year if you don't have any judge experience on your resume and take the summer paying job.

Chances of networking with your judge in SD are pretty slim, not to mention risky. Not worth it imo.

RVP11 wrote:

baboon309 wrote:

JusticeJackson wrote:Do you have a full 16 week SA gig? If not, take the SA gig and see if you can work for the judge for the remainder of the summer. Also, you might be able to intern for the judge for credit during the school year next year (depending on the number of credits you're allowed to get for internships, and whether your school allows you to take internships in another state).

Without a doubt, having actual experience at a firm is looked at more favorably by subsequent employers. I don't see a reason why you'd turn down a paying legal job for a non-paying job.

where can i find those gigs?

Some firms will let you work as many weeks as you are available. My summer is 15-16 weeks, I believe.

I assume this is not $3k /week biglaw that is giving you 15-16 weeks (or biglaw in general)? If it is, I'm pretty fucking envious because that extra 5-6 weeks is a lot of dough ($15-18 thousand to be exact, assuming $3k /week).

OP- like everyone here already said, take the job with the firm.