Top Law Schools

Does anyone know how competitive these are? Do they only interview people they want to hire or do they make you duke it out for one spot? Also, curious as to how the experience is in general. If anyone has externed or is clerking for the 9th circuit, would love to hear about your experiences and any tips for interviewing.

I had an internship with the second circuit.
I think they are competitive but judges may not necessarily pick those with the highest GPA. They do care about things like knowledge of a second language, pre-law school work experience....

In my case, the judge pretty much wanted to hire me before she met with me.

amyamy wrote:I had an internship with the second circuit.
I think they are competitive but judges may not necessarily pick those with the highest GPA. They do care about things like knowledge of a second language, pre-law school work experience....

In my case, the judge pretty much wanted to hire me before she met with me.

Interesting. Thanks for the info. Any interview tips or what to expect during the interview?

my judge only asked me about things on my resume. no discussion of big cases .... etc.

You are only half way through your first year. You are not interviewing for clerkships....

take it easy. cast a wide net. focus on the exams!

I also interned on the second circuit. First of all, hiring is sometimes delegated to the clerks. Hiring criteria are highly variable between judges. Some care about grades, mine didn't even request a transcript. Some want people from their alma mater, others are agnostic. As far as I can tell I got the job because I had interesting work experience, was personable/somewhat interesting to talk to, and had evidence from undergrad that I could write well.

It's pretty competitive, largely because many judges don't take any interns, and those that do can only really take one because of how workflow works in appellate courts. Contrast that with district judges who can easily occupy 3-4 interns if they wanted to.

yes exactly - don't take it personally if you don't get it. Dont feel too flattered if you do get it.

I just had my Circuit CoA interview, and we went into cases (I got to pick which ones we discussed), my resume, and my thoughts on constitutional issues (with a disclaimer that I was five weeks in), but I have a friend who didn't talk about any of that...so I think it depends...

It is much easier to get a position if you apply in the fall or spring.

I worked at a district court in the 9th circuit in the same building as appellate judges and have had a lot of friends intern there at various times. Generally need extremely good credentials as 9th circuit internships are incredibly competitive, my friends who have worked at the App. level were worked extremely hard for long hours. Exception being a buddy who was with one of the older judges who was very low key with a much lighter case load; had a totally more informal, casual experience.

Got first circuit interview based on interests line of resume. Someone was a big Shakespeare fan.

I had a 2 minute phone interview with a mildly famous coa judge in which I was asked if I'd seen any nice movies lately and whether I liked law school, after which I got an offer. That was one day after I mailed them my materials.