Mediocre Law Clerk Forum

[Anonymous User]

How bad is it, in terms of career detriment, to be a mediocre law clerk?

For a variety of reasons, including that I’m probably dealing with depression, I have been a subpar clerk to my Judge. I’ve only gotten a direct negative comment once, but I am honest enough to know I’m not doing a very good job, particularly with productivity.

This Judge has pretty high hiring standards, so many clerks tend to be excellent and by comparison I probably seem like a real dud. I haven’t done a terrible job but I’m probably well below the average clerk for this judge. How negatively will this affect my career? He’s not the type to really go to bat for clerk’s in the first place from what I can surmise and I won’t be practicing in this jurisdiction/market after the clerkship.

[Anonymous User]

How bad is it, in terms of career detriment, to be a mediocre law clerk?

For a variety of reasons, including that I’m probably dealing with depression, I have been a subpar clerk to my Judge. I’ve only gotten a direct negative comment once, but I am honest enough to know I’m not doing a very good job, particularly with productivity.

This Judge has pretty high hiring standards, so many clerks tend to be excellent and by comparison I probably seem like a real dud. I haven’t done a terrible job but I’m probably well below the average clerk for this judge. How negatively will this affect my career? He’s not the type to really go to bat for clerk’s in the first place from what I can surmise and I won’t be practicing in this jurisdiction/market after the clerkship.

Your worst case scenario is probably nothing more than a lack of enthusiastic support by your judge when it comes to recommending you or putting you in touch with his or her contacts for future positions.

This assumes you're accurately assessing your perceived job performance of course. Sounds like you're being pretty harsh on yourself. But who knows. Better to lower expectations. Your mental health is more important, so I hope you continue to prioritize that over the stupid obsessions our unhealthy profession fixate on in the early years of young lawyers. You'll end up fine. Stay healthy and be an ethical lawyer. The rest will work out fine.

[Anonymous User]

If you really think it's that bad, you could consider asking your Judge for a week to do some self-care, see a therapist, and tweak your medication(s) (if you haven't yet been prescribed something). One of the judges for whom I clerked actually encouraged me to do something like this if necessary when I shared that I took medication for mental health issues. Hope you get through the depression pit soon, friend. It sucks. And remember no matter what happens, you're almost certainly a good lawyer and good person for having gotten the job in the first place.

[Anonymous User]

Doesn't matter. Just don't use the judge as a recommender or reference.

Keep trying your best, obviously, and do enough not to get fired. But just let it go.

I hope you feel better.

[Anonymous User]

Honestly, as long as you don't get fired, it doesn't matter. Only *extremely* elite law firms (and other judges) will get an accurate read from the Judge anyway. But if it's just Kirkland, the Judge doesn't really care if you hurt his "brand."

[Giro423]

How bad is it, in terms of career detriment, to be a mediocre law clerk?

For a variety of reasons, including that I’m probably dealing with depression, I have been a subpar clerk to my Judge. I’ve only gotten a direct negative comment once, but I am honest enough to know I’m not doing a very good job, particularly with productivity.

This Judge has pretty high hiring standards, so many clerks tend to be excellent and by comparison I probably seem like a real dud. I haven’t done a terrible job but I’m probably well below the average clerk for this judge. How negatively will this affect my career? He’s not the type to really go to bat for clerk’s in the first place from what I can surmise and I won’t be practicing in this jurisdiction/market after the clerkship.

This is good practice for how to be in a firm without burning out, so think of it as valuable experience.

[lavarman84]

How bad is it, in terms of career detriment, to be a mediocre law clerk?

For a variety of reasons, including that I’m probably dealing with depression, I have been a subpar clerk to my Judge. I’ve only gotten a direct negative comment once, but I am honest enough to know I’m not doing a very good job, particularly with productivity.

This Judge has pretty high hiring standards, so many clerks tend to be excellent and by comparison I probably seem like a real dud. I haven’t done a terrible job but I’m probably well below the average clerk for this judge. How negatively will this affect my career? He’s not the type to really go to bat for clerk’s in the first place from what I can surmise and I won’t be practicing in this jurisdiction/market after the clerkship.

It may not matter. Many judges will say positive things about even their below average clerks, as long as they know that clerk is trying and is pleasant enough to work with in chambers.