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Posted: Fri Nov 25, 2011 12:30 pm
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Not quite sure about this. My guess is that you'll go in as JSP-11 for the DC clerkship (though your judge might be able to swing JSP-12 if he's really willing to go to bat for you), then JSP-12 in your first COA year. At that point, it becomes a little more complicated. Currently, there is a freeze on clerk promotions, so you might be stuck at JSP-12. If the freeze is lifted by then, you'll likely go up to JSP-13. If the judge doesn't have a career clerk or another term clerk who is more senior to you (i.e., he or she had three years of clerking at that point), you could even be promoted to JSP-14, though that's probably a long shot.I looked up the JSP-12 rate of $72k for the city where I'll be clerking. I assumed JSP-12 from another legal blog (which said JSP-12 for clerks).
That probably sounds about right. You'll be making a lot more money in big law for sure. The 1 year district court clerkship sounds like a great thing to do and a great career starter. The marginal benefit of also doing a 2 year CoA clerkship after that probably isn't worth the ~210k in lost income unless you really want appellate litigation / high profile govt work / academia.fastlenny wrote:Some big law firm will take me in three years, if not my 2LSA firm (which extended me an offer). Signing bonus of $50k for any federal district/coa or state supreme clerkship. Time credit - I don't know, depends on which firm I end up on the other side of this mountain.duckmoney wrote:Do you have a firm offer? At what salary? Are they still going to take you in 3 years? Signing bonus? Time credit?
I looked up the JSP-12 rate of $72k for the city where I'll be clerking. I assumed JSP-12 from another legal blog (which said JSP-12 for clerks).
So let's just say 72, 72, 72 versus 160, 170, 180.
That is almost 250k pre-tax (after adjusting for bonus). But after taxes from the big law pay, I guess the delta is a lot less, but how much less? Cost of living isn't much of a difference, I'm clerking in a more expensive city for years 2, 3 than where I'd work in big law - and a cheaper city for year 1, so let's just say that cancels out.