Best and worst judges to clerk for Forum

[lavarman84]

Having clerked on the 9th, if I could take a second 9th Cir clerkship I would 100% clerk for:
- Thomas
- Paez
- Bybee
- Christen

I would NOT clerk for:
- Bea (!!)
- Wardlaw (!!!)
- Berzon
- Wallace

Fmr. CA9 clerk here -- No comment on the four "NOT clerk" judges, but hands-down second the four above (Thomas, Paez, Bybee, Christen).

Another CA9 clerk here—can second pretty much everything in this thread, although I don’t know enough about Paez, Bea, or Wallace to fully comment. I would add Fletcher, Tallman, and especially Watford as three more judges I would 100% clerk for. There are probably other great judges too that I just don’t know enough about. It’s a huge court and as a clerk you don’t get to interact with every chambers, but as a general rule the average CA9 judge is a pretty outstanding person.

Wardlaw and Berzon are on that list because both are difficult, “high maintenance” personalities. But now that Kozinski has retired there are no true nightmare judges on the court. I would add Fernandez to my “no” list because he’s the Ghost of the Ninth: never in the office, and even stays at a separate hotel from his clerks and other judges when he travels. He’s not a hard personality to deal with, but his clerks are lucky to interact with him once a month, and that sort of defeats the purpose of the clerkship.

Senior judges can be a very worthwhile clerkship if they are still taking at least a 50% caseload. If a senior judge is still very active it can actually be to the clerk’s benefit that they no longer sit on en banc panels, because it will give the judge and clerk more time to work on the regular caseload. The seniors who currently sit often enough to make for a good clerkship are, to my knowledge: Wallace, D.W. Nelson, Schroeder, O’Scannlain, Hawkins, Tashima, Tallman, Clifton, and N.R. Smith.

Tallman is a tremendous person. I know a number of people who have clerked for him. And I had some limited interactions with him myself. He was a class act and went out of his way to treat me with kindness.

[Anonymous User]

Having clerked on the 9th, if I could take a second 9th Cir clerkship I would 100% clerk for:
- Thomas
- Paez
- Bybee
- Christen

I would NOT clerk for:
- Bea (!!)
- Wardlaw (!!!)
- Berzon
- Wallace

Fmr. CA9 clerk here -- No comment on the four "NOT clerk" judges, but hands-down second the four above (Thomas, Paez, Bybee, Christen).

Another CA9 clerk here—can second pretty much everything in this thread, although I don’t know enough about Paez, Bea, or Wallace to fully comment. I would add Fletcher, Tallman, and especially Watford as three more judges I would 100% clerk for. There are probably other great judges too that I just don’t know enough about. It’s a huge court and as a clerk you don’t get to interact with every chambers, but as a general rule the average CA9 judge is a pretty outstanding person.

Wardlaw and Berzon are on that list because both are difficult, “high maintenance” personalities. But now that Kozinski has retired there are no true nightmare judges on the court. I would add Fernandez to my “no” list because he’s the Ghost of the Ninth: never in the office, and even stays at a separate hotel from his clerks and other judges when he travels. He’s not a hard personality to deal with, but his clerks are lucky to interact with him once a month, and that sort of defeats the purpose of the clerkship.

Senior judges can be a very worthwhile clerkship if they are still taking at least a 50% caseload. If a senior judge is still very active it can actually be to the clerk’s benefit that they no longer sit on en banc panels, because it will give the judge and clerk more time to work on the regular caseload. The seniors who currently sit often enough to make for a good clerkship are, to my knowledge: Wallace, D.W. Nelson, Schroeder, O’Scannlain, Hawkins, Tashima, Tallman, Clifton, and N.R. Smith.

Tallman is a tremendous person. I know a number of people who have clerked for him. And I had some limited interactions with him myself. He was a class act and went out of his way to treat me with kindness.

I second this, and I'd say the same about N.R. Smith---he's just a really great guy. Maybe its an Idaho thing (Tallman moved to Coeur d'Alene after taking senior status).

[Anonymous User]

Any word on Janis Graham Jack (District Court, Southern District of Texas). Aside from one poster a few years ago mentioning that she has a reputation as a terrible boss, and super negative robing room reviews, couldn’t find any other info. Is this confirmed? Didn’t wanna put that much stock on robing room...

[Anonymous User]

Any word on Janis Graham Jack (District Court, Southern District of Texas). Aside from one poster a few years ago mentioning that she has a reputation as a terrible boss, and super negative robing room reviews, couldn’t find any other info. Is this confirmed? Didn’t wanna put that much stock on robing room...

My school's clerkship program has her red-flagged in the system. They advised me not to apply and confirmed (supposedly through alumni reports) that she is a yeller, tough to work for, and has fired several clerks without justification.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone have info on Tax Court judges?

[Anonymous User]

.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know anything about 2nd Cir. judges (Raggi, Leval, Lohier, Cabranes, Carney, Calabresi, Chin, Droney, Pooler, etc.)?

[Anonymous User]

So any thoughts on those SDNY judges? (Ramos, Oetken, Carter, Roman)

Roman sits in White Plains, so I have no sense of how working for him is.
I've heard very good things about the other three; my interactions with them have all been very positive. As far as hiring goes, Oetken is super competitive, and is attracting SCOTUS-level clerks. Carter, given his background, probably likes public interest-oriented people. Ramos seems like a great guy, and a lot of fun to work for.
I'd certainly not hesitate to apply to any of the three.

ETA: Of the Obama appointees, there really aren't any I'd say to definitely avoid.

Do you mean all SDNY Obama appointees? Because I reiterate my earlier list, and Woods in particular.

That is what I meant. But I don't disagree that you'll work hard with many of those judges you mentioned, but that's true of many (most?) SDNY judges. Clerks I knew for Forrest, Nathan, and Caproni certainly worked hard, but I don't think they begrudged it (usually). But if Woods is particularly demanding, that might be a reason to avoid.

For what it's worth, professors/former clerks at my CCN have had nothing but positive things to say about Woods and he is frequently mentioned as a contender to be elevated to the second circuit whenever the next Democrat is elected.

I have heard Woods is "a monster," regularly keeps his clerks to close to midnight, yells and demeans them... so I would avoid.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know anything about the active-status Texas CA5 judges (Jones, Smith, Elrod, Haynes, Willett, Ho, Oldham)?

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know anything about the active-status Texas CA5 judges (Jones, Smith, Elrod, Haynes, Willett, Ho, Oldham)?

Willett, Ho, and Elrod are wonderful to clerk for. Don’t know about the others for sure, but have heard good things about all except Oldham (and that’s just because I haven’t heard anything about him one way or the other).

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know anything about the active-status Texas CA5 judges (Jones, Smith, Elrod, Haynes, Willett, Ho, Oldham)?

Willett, Ho, and Elrod are wonderful to clerk for. Don’t know about the others for sure, but have heard good things about all except Oldham (and that’s just because I haven’t heard anything about him one way or the other).

Smith is supposed to be wonderful too. I've heard him described as a laid-back, mentoring-first type of boss and his chambers dress code is very casual. Jones certainly has a well-known public reputation and she screens for ideology, but I've heard she's an excellent boss who is extremely loyal to her clerks (and they are to her). Jones and to a lesser degree Smith are both occasional feeders, and I would not be surprised to see any of the 3 Trump appointees feed as well.

I'm not sure if it's intentional, but you left out Costa, who I have also heard good things about, and Owen, who is about to become Chief Judge and likes to hire like-minded die-hard conservatives.

[lavarman84]

Does anyone know anything about the active-status Texas CA5 judges (Jones, Smith, Elrod, Haynes, Willett, Ho, Oldham)?

Willett, Ho, and Elrod are wonderful to clerk for. Don’t know about the others for sure, but have heard good things about all except Oldham (and that’s just because I haven’t heard anything about him one way or the other).

I've heard Smith and Willett are delightful people. Costa is brilliant, and his writing is pristine. I can't report on his personality, but anybody can learn a lot from that guy. With regard to Jones, Ho, and Oldham, I think people who are moderate or to the left will have a harder time with them. All three are extreme and partisan imo. Smith is very conservative as well, but he seems more fair-minded. Haynes and Costa are both fairly moderate.

EDIT: And if you're willing to branch out into Louisiana (I know you asked about Texas), Carl Stewart is wonderful.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know anything about the active-status Texas CA5 judges (Jones, Smith, Elrod, Haynes, Willett, Ho, Oldham)?

How about active CA6 judges? E.g. Larsen, Sutton, Kethledge, Nalbandian, Thapar, Bush. For liberal judges, heard White works you hard but is admired by her clerks. Heard bad things about Clay.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know anything about the active-status Texas CA5 judges (Jones, Smith, Elrod, Haynes, Willett, Ho, Oldham)?

How about active CA6 judges? E.g. Larsen, Sutton, Kethledge, Nalbandian, Thapar, Bush. For liberal judges, heard White works you hard but is admired by her clerks. Heard bad things about Clay.

These judges are all quality people and at least most of these are considered above-average judges, so there's no reason to avoid any of them. Unless you don't like putting in long hours, that is; then you might avoid Thapar (and to a somewhat lesser extent Sutton), at least.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know anything about the active-status Texas CA5 judges (Jones, Smith, Elrod, Haynes, Willett, Ho, Oldham)?

How about active CA6 judges? E.g. Larsen, Sutton, Kethledge, Nalbandian, Thapar, Bush. For liberal judges, heard White works you hard but is admired by her clerks. Heard bad things about Clay.

Accurate on Clay. Thapar is excellent, as are all the Kentucky senior judges (I don't know anything about the other two new actives as bosses). Kethledge is considered a very good boss/mentor, I've met him once and he was pleasant in that reserved Midwestern kind of way. In Tennessee I've heard Donald is wonderful although she's out of the office quite a bit, while Gibbons is more formal.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know anything about the active-status Texas CA5 judges (Jones, Smith, Elrod, Haynes, Willett, Ho, Oldham)?

How about active CA6 judges? E.g. Larsen, Sutton, Kethledge, Nalbandian, Thapar, Bush. For liberal judges, heard White works you hard but is admired by her clerks. Heard bad things about Clay.

Accurate on Clay. Thapar is excellent, as are all the Kentucky senior judges (I don't know anything about the other two new actives as bosses). Kethledge is considered a very good boss/mentor, I've met him once and he was pleasant in that reserved Midwestern kind of way. In Tennessee I've heard Donald is wonderful although she's out of the office quite a bit, while Gibbons is more formal.

Are there any Judges besides Clay that would be considered "below-average"/undesirable for clerking?

[Anonymous User]

I have heard from past clerk friends that Gilman and Gibbons are both great.

[Anonymous User]

I have heard from past clerk friends that Gilman and Gibbons are both great.

Among the liberal judges, Stranch is fantastic; Moore and Cole are also great. White seems nice but does require a bit more from her clerks. Donald is a wonderful person but less engaged in chambers work than others, in part because she travels so much. Clay is the only liberal that I'm aware of who seems to have a dicey reputation among former clerks.

The conservatives are generally nice too. Batchelder and McKeague can be somewhat unpleasant on the bench and in social settings, though not sure how they treat their clerks.

[Anonymous User]

Judge McKeague once showed up to a panel dinner at a "BBQ joint" in a full suit -- despite the other judges on the panel telling him it was a casual place, and they were dressing casually.

Not sure how he treats his clerks, but ...

[Anonymous User]

The conservatives are generally nice too. Batchelder and McKeague can be somewhat unpleasant on the bench and in social settings, though not sure how they treat their clerks.

Judge Batchelder has a no-nonsense personality, for sure, but she is a wonderful person and boss.

[Anonymous User]

The conservatives are generally nice too. Batchelder and McKeague can be somewhat unpleasant on the bench and in social settings, though not sure how they treat their clerks.

Judge Batchelder has a no-nonsense personality, for sure, but she is a wonderful person and boss.

I think any negative scuttlebutt about Batchelder may be related to the Great Sixth Circuit Disturbance of 2002, where the court essentially had a civil war over the Michigan affirmative action cases (Grutter and Gratz) that led to a decade-long partisan standoff. Batchelder was part of a bloc of conservatives who accused the then-liberal majority bloc of nefarious behavior in handling the cases. Most of the judges involved in the G6CD are no longer on the court, but there's unfortunately still some lingering bad blood among the pre-2002 appointees who remain. None of that should really impact current law clerks though. I have heard good things about Batchelder as a boss.

[Quichelorraine]

I think any negative scuttlebutt about Batchelder may be related to the Great Sixth Circuit Disturbance of 2002

Thank you for brightening up a dreary Thursday. This is my favorite thing ever. I want to be a judicial bard, traveling through Ohio and Michigan and Kentucky and Tenn. and singing songs of the Great Sixth Circuit Disturbance of aught-two.

[Anonymous User]

Any insights re: S.D.FL judges?

[Anonymous User]

I think any negative scuttlebutt about Batchelder may be related to the Great Sixth Circuit Disturbance of 2002

Thank you for brightening up a dreary Thursday. This is my favorite thing ever. I want to be a judicial bard, traveling through Ohio and Michigan and Kentucky and Tenn. and singing songs of the Great Sixth Circuit Disturbance of aught-two.

Lol happy to help. I love giving Game of Thronesy names to mundane things. Let the bard's songs of the G6CD of aught-two ring out from the forests of the UP to the Delta blues halls of Memphis.

That being said, the Great Sixth Circuit Disturbance of 2002 was a legitimately big deal. People who clerked on CA6 that term have some pretty crazy stories.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know anything about the active-status Texas CA5 judges (Jones, Smith, Elrod, Haynes, Willett, Ho, Oldham)?

Willett, Ho, and Elrod are wonderful to clerk for. Don’t know about the others for sure, but have heard good things about all except Oldham (and that’s just because I haven’t heard anything about him one way or the other).

All are supposed to be awesome. All hire before 1L finishes except for Oldham, but he is so new that he may just not have had the chance to pick up that trend yet.