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I'm currently clerking on a federal court of appeals. When do clerks typically apply to firms for associate positions? I have an offer from the firm I summered at, but I'd like to find something at a higher ranked firm that will give me a clerkship bonus.

IIRC the answer is to ask your judge because they all have different policies about it

My judge allows me to apply anytime. I am just curious about when most firms are interested in receiving applications from current clerks.

The vast majority of firms I have contacted have said that they wait until 2-3 months before your anticipated start date. That said, I would contact the firms in which you're interested and ask.

Is it wildly inappropriate to e-mail firms and ask whether they pay AIII clerkship bonuses? Lots of firms (even some big ones) don't list that info on their website and I frequently can't find the answer elsewhere on the internet. And quite frankly, with the amount of debt I have, I could really use 50k.

Anonymous User wrote:Is it wildly inappropriate to e-mail firms and ask whether they pay AIII clerkship bonuses? Lots of firms (even some big ones) don't list that info on their website and I frequently can't find the answer elsewhere on the internet. And quite frankly, with the amount of debt I have, I could really use 50k.

I would reach out to an alum from your school who clerked. And not lead with that question.

As opposed to just e-mailing HR??