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I imagine this must happen often, but I'm not clear on the mechanics: I'm starting my next clerkship for a federal judge in a new city (State B) that is not where I passed my first bar last year (State A). However, I will likely need to stay in this new city for a couple years after the clerkship ends, and I'll be interviewing with firms here during the normal hiring cycle for clerks.

When would I or should I take the State B bar? I could do it during the clerkship, like in February or July of 2018, but that would require studying and taking time off as a clerk. Or I could accept a position at a firm and tell them that I'm taking the bar the following year in february 2019, but I'm not sure they'd take kindly to that and I want a good answer for when I'm taking the State B bar when I interview. Sadly states A and B don't have a waive-in relationship, although I have taken the MBE already when I passed State A so I wouldn't have to start over completely in studying. What's the best practice here?

Anonymous User wrote:I imagine this must happen often, but I'm not clear on the mechanics: I'm starting my next clerkship for a federal judge in a new city (State B) that is not where I passed my first bar last year (State A). However, I will likely need to stay in this new city for a couple years after the clerkship ends, and I'll be interviewing with firms here during the normal hiring cycle for clerks.

When would I or should I take the State B bar? I could do it during the clerkship, like in February or July of 2018, but that would require studying and taking time off as a clerk. Or I could accept a position at a firm and tell them that I'm taking the bar the following year in february 2019, but I'm not sure they'd take kindly to that and I want a good answer for when I'm taking the State B bar when I interview. Sadly states A and B don't have a waive-in relationship, although I have taken the MBE already when I passed State A so I wouldn't have to start over completely in studying. What's the best practice here?

This will depend on the particular circumstances of your clerkship. In my clerkship, studying for a bar exam would be very difficult because my judge's hours (i.e., my hours) are not conducive to studying for the bar. However, I have several friends that work easy 9-5s in their clerkships and have judges that are okay with the occasional study at work. Unfortunately, you won't know this until you are actually in your clerkship.

Ultimately, there may be some benefits to waiting. Some states, like California, will allow you to skip the MBE if you are admitted to another bar for 4 years. You could also end up with a job that will pay the bar expenses for you. Finally, who knows where you will be in 3-5 years from now. Your life could change dramatically, you may have kids, you may quit law, or State B could be less appealing.

Yeah, I know a number of people who took a second bar while clerking, but it does depend entirely on your judge/hours. (I don't think they generally took time off except for the exam, either.)