Idk where you got this info, but it isn’t what I’ve heard. I do get the impression that they work more than average on the Eighth Circuit, but it is an enjoyable experience.Anonymous User wrote: ↑Tue Jun 03, 2025 5:11 pmReally bad. Stay away.Anonymous User wrote: ↑Tue Jun 03, 2025 11:48 amAnyone have insight into Stras' hiring process and the experience in his chambers?
Let's Talk 8th Circuit! Forum
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Anonymous Posting
Anonymous posting is only appropriate when you are sharing sensitive information about clerkship applications and clerkship hiring. You may anonymously respond on topic to these threads. Unacceptable uses include: harassing another user, joking around, testing the feature, or other things that are more appropriate in the lounge.
Failure to follow these rules will get you outed, warned, or banned."
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Anonymous User
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Re: Let's Talk 8th Circuit!
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Anonymous User
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Re: Let's Talk 8th Circuit!
Stras's chambers are good. Expect long hours, but he advocates strongly for his clerks.Anonymous User wrote: ↑Tue Jun 03, 2025 6:33 pmIdk where you got this info, but it isn’t what I’ve heard. I do get the impression that they work more than average on the Eighth Circuit, but it is an enjoyable experience.Anonymous User wrote: ↑Tue Jun 03, 2025 5:11 pmReally bad. Stay away.Anonymous User wrote: ↑Tue Jun 03, 2025 11:48 amAnyone have insight into Stras' hiring process and the experience in his chambers?
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Anonymous User
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Re: Let's Talk 8th Circuit!
Any idea if Grasz (27-28), Kobes (27-28) or Stras (28-29) have moved?
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CoalMiner
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Re: Let's Talk 8th Circuit!
Judge Gruender did a talk with our fedscoc chapter. He's looking for 180s.Anonymous User wrote: ↑Wed Mar 06, 2024 8:15 pmAnyone know why Judge Gruender asks for LSAT score? Is there a specific cutoff or is he trying to get other information from the LSAT score?
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Anonymous User
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Re: Let's Talk 8th Circuit!
Anyone have info on Stras' hiring practices? Seems like he's very grade-sensitive, like to a greater degree than some legitimate feeders, requiring 3.9-range GPAs. Is that the case?
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GoonChungus
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Re: Let's Talk 8th Circuit!
Stras is a very bad boss, perhaps the worst out of any current federal judge. Like previous posters, I have heard horror stories. Stay far away.
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Anonymous User
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Re: Let's Talk 8th Circuit!
This is an exaggeration. The worst bosses in the federal judiciary yell at their clerks, work them into the AM night after night, and (in some cases) engage in activity that would in any other workplace be illegal harassment. In some cases, there are judges who will try to sabotage the careers of clerks after their time in chambers.GoonChungus wrote: ↑Tue Dec 23, 2025 2:01 amStras is a very bad boss, perhaps the worst out of any current federal judge. Like previous posters, I have heard horror stories. Stay far away.
Based on conversations with some of his former clerks, Stras is definitely a tough boss with exacting standards that can be hard to meet. Anyone going in expecting a low-key year should be aware that it is not an easy clerkship. But he's far from the worst among appellate judges, and very very far from the worst among all federal judges. My understanding is that regardless of how rough a clerk's experience has been in chambers, he is very supportive of their future career aspirations and will make calls to advocate for them.
