Let’s Talk DC Circuit! Forum

[Anonymous User]

How competitive do people anticipate Pan's clerkship will be in years to come?

Very. Hard to tell if she’ll feed (only was at DDC for a minute) but she has the background for it. If she actually gets an early feed I think she’ll be right up there with Millett and Pillard

What does that even mean? She was not in a high ranking gov position before her appointment, she did not clerk for SCOTUS, and her connection to the current justices is not overwhelming obvious. Not every liberal judge appointed to a TLS-coveted circuit will be a feeder.

[Anonymous User]

How competitive do people anticipate Pan's clerkship will be in years to come?

Very. Hard to tell if she’ll feed (only was at DDC for a minute) but she has the background for it. If she actually gets an early feed I think she’ll be right up there with Millett and Pillard

I'm sure she'll be super competitive b/c she's a young liberal and it's DC Cir but not sure what the SCOTUS connection is?

[Anonymous User]

Garcia will most definitely be a feeder. Kagan, Griffith, OMM and DOJ. Only 35 though so confirmation is not a shoo-in.

[Anonymous User]

Garcia will most definitely be a feeder. Kagan, Griffith, OMM and DOJ. Only 35 though so confirmation is not a shoo-in.

He will be confirmed. More interesting will be to see if the ABA delays their rating so that he won't get an NQ for not having practiced for 12 years.

[Anonymous User]

Garcia will most definitely be a feeder. Kagan, Griffith, OMM and DOJ. Only 35 though so confirmation is not a shoo-in.

He will be confirmed. More interesting will be to see if the ABA delays their rating so that he won't get an NQ for not having practiced for 12 years.

The ABA would never pull such a move

[Anonymous User]

How competitive do people anticipate Pan's clerkship will be in years to come?

Very. Hard to tell if she’ll feed (only was at DDC for a minute) but she has the background for it. If she actually gets an early feed I think she’ll be right up there with Millett and Pillard

I'm sure she'll be super competitive b/c she's a young liberal and it's DC Cir but not sure what the SCOTUS connection is?

Uh, huh?? Pan is going to be 56 by the time she is likely to be confirmed. That's younger than average for sitting judges but quite old for a new judge. Millett and Wilkins are only 58 and they've been sitting on the circuit for 8 years, each. Justin Walker, while a hack, is nearly 15 years younger than Pan. Neomi Rao (also a hack) is not even 50. Pan can be senior in less than a decade.

[Anonymous User]

Pan has feeder potential because obviously Bristow / DOJ / DC appellate backgrounds play, including some political roles...not everything is being a former SCOTUS clerk (and of course, plenty of former SCOTUS clerk judges don't feed, as we see with the various Trump district judges who haven't yet). But it's not a shoo-in. Age isn't a disqualifier for her feeding, that's kid of nonsense. I agree with the poster above that was basically like "we'll see." A better chance at feeding than, like, Wilkins (or her fellow nominee Childs), but less of a top prospect than Heytens / Garcia.

[Anonymous User]

Pan has feeder potential because obviously Bristow / DOJ / DC appellate backgrounds play, including some political roles...not everything is being a former SCOTUS clerk (and of course, plenty of former SCOTUS clerk judges don't feed, as we see with the various Trump district judges who haven't yet). But it's not a shoo-in. Age isn't a disqualifier for her feeding, that's kid of nonsense. I agree with the poster above that was basically like "we'll see." A better chance at feeding than, like, Wilkins (or her fellow nominee Childs), but less of a top prospect than Heytens / Garcia.

I think all of this reveals a harsh reality: there are basically no liberal feeders anymore. If you get a competitive clerkship with a well respected liberal judge, you have about equal shot these days. There are few if any chambers who offer a meaningful leg up at this point. The old feeders are gone, and there are just too many good judges and not enough scotus spots; in a world in which getting a coa clerkship is so lopsided and difficult on plan, lots of scotus level candidates are landing all over due to variance.

In terms of boost, maybe Srinivasan or a couple others offer something small, but he’s also taking like top 1-5 people grades-wise at HYSC, so sure a lot of them will eventually go on up. Nearly any other CADC judge is going to keep you in the running of your profile, grades, professors are competitive I think.

[Anonymous User]

Pan has feeder potential because obviously Bristow / DOJ / DC appellate backgrounds play, including some political roles...not everything is being a former SCOTUS clerk (and of course, plenty of former SCOTUS clerk judges don't feed, as we see with the various Trump district judges who haven't yet). But it's not a shoo-in. Age isn't a disqualifier for her feeding, that's kid of nonsense. I agree with the poster above that was basically like "we'll see." A better chance at feeding than, like, Wilkins (or her fellow nominee Childs), but less of a top prospect than Heytens / Garcia.

I think all of this reveals a harsh reality: there are basically no liberal feeders anymore. If you get a competitive clerkship with a well respected liberal judge, you have about equal shot these days. There are few if any chambers who offer a meaningful leg up at this point. The old feeders are gone, and there are just too many good judges and not enough scotus spots; in a world in which getting a coa clerkship is so lopsided and difficult on plan, lots of scotus level candidates are landing all over due to variance.

In terms of boost, maybe Srinivasan or a couple others offer something small, but he’s also taking like top 1-5 people grades-wise at HYSC, so sure a lot of them will eventually go on up. Nearly any other CADC judge is going to keep you in the running of your profile, grades, professors are competitive I think.

If Pan becomes a feeder/semi-feeder it will be for the same reason that Boasberg is a feeder -- she's very hooked into the elite DC social scene. In fact, her profile is very similar to Boasberg's, just slightly more impressive in every facet. And her husband was a SCOTUS clerk, worked on Bill Clinton's defense team, and is plugged into the left-leaning nonprofit scene.

[Anonymous User]

Pan has feeder potential because obviously Bristow / DOJ / DC appellate backgrounds play, including some political roles...not everything is being a former SCOTUS clerk (and of course, plenty of former SCOTUS clerk judges don't feed, as we see with the various Trump district judges who haven't yet). But it's not a shoo-in. Age isn't a disqualifier for her feeding, that's kid of nonsense. I agree with the poster above that was basically like "we'll see." A better chance at feeding than, like, Wilkins (or her fellow nominee Childs), but less of a top prospect than Heytens / Garcia.

I think all of this reveals a harsh reality: there are basically no liberal feeders anymore. If you get a competitive clerkship with a well respected liberal judge, you have about equal shot these days. There are few if any chambers who offer a meaningful leg up at this point. The old feeders are gone, and there are just too many good judges and not enough scotus spots; in a world in which getting a coa clerkship is so lopsided and difficult on plan, lots of scotus level candidates are landing all over due to variance.

In terms of boost, maybe Srinivasan or a couple others offer something small, but he’s also taking like top 1-5 people grades-wise at HYSC, so sure a lot of them will eventually go on up. Nearly any other CADC judge is going to keep you in the running of your profile, grades, professors are competitive I think.

If Pan becomes a feeder/semi-feeder it will be for the same reason that Boasberg is a feeder -- she's very hooked into the elite DC social scene. In fact, her profile is very similar to Boasberg's, just slightly more impressive in every facet. And her husband was a SCOTUS clerk, worked on Bill Clinton's defense team, and is plugged into the left-leaning nonprofit scene.

I’ve heard she’s a really tough boss and not great to work for—very much unlike Boasberg—and I wonder if that will factor into things.

[Anonymous User]

Pan has feeder potential because obviously Bristow / DOJ / DC appellate backgrounds play, including some political roles...not everything is being a former SCOTUS clerk (and of course, plenty of former SCOTUS clerk judges don't feed, as we see with the various Trump district judges who haven't yet). But it's not a shoo-in. Age isn't a disqualifier for her feeding, that's kid of nonsense. I agree with the poster above that was basically like "we'll see." A better chance at feeding than, like, Wilkins (or her fellow nominee Childs), but less of a top prospect than Heytens / Garcia.

I think all of this reveals a harsh reality: there are basically no liberal feeders anymore. If you get a competitive clerkship with a well respected liberal judge, you have about equal shot these days. There are few if any chambers who offer a meaningful leg up at this point. The old feeders are gone, and there are just too many good judges and not enough scotus spots; in a world in which getting a coa clerkship is so lopsided and difficult on plan, lots of scotus level candidates are landing all over due to variance.

In terms of boost, maybe Srinivasan or a couple others offer something small, but he’s also taking like top 1-5 people grades-wise at HYSC, so sure a lot of them will eventually go on up. Nearly any other CADC judge is going to keep you in the running of your profile, grades, professors are competitive I think.

If Pan becomes a feeder/semi-feeder it will be for the same reason that Boasberg is a feeder -- she's very hooked into the elite DC social scene. In fact, her profile is very similar to Boasberg's, just slightly more impressive in every facet. And her husband was a SCOTUS clerk, worked on Bill Clinton's defense team, and is plugged into the left-leaning nonprofit scene.

I’ve heard she’s a really tough boss and not great to work for—very much unlike Boasberg—and I wonder if that will factor into things.

Have heard similar things — she has a terrible reputation among DDC clerks because of how bad/borderline abusive a boss she is. Can’t imagine someone like her going to bat for her clerks.

[Anonymous User]

I’ve heard she’s a really tough boss and not great to work for—very much unlike Boasberg—and I wonder if that will factor into things.

Never stopped any other feeder.

[Anonymous User]

Damn Boasberg really does seem like the GOAT clerkship. Great boss, great mentor, and a feeder. Feels like there has to be a catch here.

[Anonymous User]

Damn Boasberg really does seem like the GOAT clerkship. Great boss, great mentor, and a feeder. Feels like there has to be a catch here.

Getting perfect grades and having a professor with a connection to him isn't enough of a catch?

[Anonymous User]

Pan has feeder potential because obviously Bristow / DOJ / DC appellate backgrounds play, including some political roles...not everything is being a former SCOTUS clerk (and of course, plenty of former SCOTUS clerk judges don't feed, as we see with the various Trump district judges who haven't yet). But it's not a shoo-in. Age isn't a disqualifier for her feeding, that's kid of nonsense. I agree with the poster above that was basically like "we'll see." A better chance at feeding than, like, Wilkins (or her fellow nominee Childs), but less of a top prospect than Heytens / Garcia.

I think all of this reveals a harsh reality: there are basically no liberal feeders anymore. If you get a competitive clerkship with a well respected liberal judge, you have about equal shot these days. There are few if any chambers who offer a meaningful leg up at this point. The old feeders are gone, and there are just too many good judges and not enough scotus spots; in a world in which getting a coa clerkship is so lopsided and difficult on plan, lots of scotus level candidates are landing all over due to variance.

In terms of boost, maybe Srinivasan or a couple others offer something small, but he’s also taking like top 1-5 people grades-wise at HYSC, so sure a lot of them will eventually go on up. Nearly any other CADC judge is going to keep you in the running of your profile, grades, professors are competitive I think.

If Pan becomes a feeder/semi-feeder it will be for the same reason that Boasberg is a feeder -- she's very hooked into the elite DC social scene. In fact, her profile is very similar to Boasberg's, just slightly more impressive in every facet. And her husband was a SCOTUS clerk, worked on Bill Clinton's defense team, and is plugged into the left-leaning nonprofit scene.

I’ve heard she’s a really tough boss and not great to work for—very much unlike Boasberg—and I wonder if that will factor into things.

Have heard similar things — she has a terrible reputation among DDC clerks because of how bad/borderline abusive a boss she is. Can’t imagine someone like her going to bat for her clerks.

It’s also possible that she’s just adjusting to the job—the learning curve for first-year DJs is insane, though she was at least a judge before

[Anonymous User]

Ooh this is the kind of insider info I come to TLS for - how bad are we talking? Lots of yelling/screaming? Long hours? All of the above?

You would think the learning curve is less steep since she was on DC Superior Court before. I also wonder what Jia Cobb's reputation is among DDC clerks so far?

[Anonymous User]

Damn Boasberg really does seem like the GOAT clerkship. Great boss, great mentor, and a feeder. Feels like there has to be a catch here.

Getting perfect grades and having a professor with a connection to him isn't enough of a catch?

What kind of person is getting Srinivasan/Boasberg these days? I had the profile/recommenders of someone who would be competitive but didn’t get a whiff. Are they hiring literally the 4 best law students in the country and what does that look like?

[Anonymous User]

Damn Boasberg really does seem like the GOAT clerkship. Great boss, great mentor, and a feeder. Feels like there has to be a catch here.

Getting perfect grades and having a professor with a connection to him isn't enough of a catch?

What kind of person is getting Srinivasan/Boasberg these days? I had the profile/recommenders of someone who would be competitive but didn’t get a whiff. Are they hiring literally the 4 best law students in the country and what does that look like?

#1 in the Class of '22 at UVA (as of the end of 2L) has that clerkship combination, but for 1 year out. So perhaps not that far off from "the 4 best law students in the country" (at least on paper).

[Anonymous User]

Idk if this is the thread for it, but what is the profile typically for Boasberg/Sri 1L summer interns. I have to imagine it must be competitive albeit not nearly as competitive as getting a clerkship with them. Anyone in a chambers at Boasberg/Sri significance sorted through intern applications?

[Anonymous User]

Damn Boasberg really does seem like the GOAT clerkship. Great boss, great mentor, and a feeder. Feels like there has to be a catch here.

I clerked for a DC Circuit judge years ago. During my clerkship, I saw Boasberg on the street a few blocks away from the courthouse, kind of near Chinatown. He said hi very warmly. I have zero idea if he recognized me—a nobody—from the courthouse (despite us having never met before) or if he just greets strangers on the street like one would in a smaller town. But either way, left me with the impression that he is just a great guy.

[Anonymous User]

Damn Boasberg really does seem like the GOAT clerkship. Great boss, great mentor, and a feeder. Feels like there has to be a catch here.

I clerked for a DC Circuit judge years ago. During my clerkship, I saw Boasberg on the street a few blocks away from the courthouse, kind of near Chinatown. He said hi very warmly. I have zero idea if he recognized me—a nobody—from the courthouse (despite us having never met before) or if he just greets strangers on the street like one would in a smaller town. But either way, left me with the impression that he is just a great guy.

Former Boasberg clerk here. He may have recognized you (dude has Clinton-like facial memory), he also could have just been being friendly. When I say Boasberg knows EVERYONE that is an understatement. You go to a restaurant and like people across the table will greet him and then the chef will come out and banter with him. At the risk of my doxxing myself if he is for some reason reading this I was walking with him to lunch one day and a former criminal defendant warmly greeted him and thanked him for the kindness he showed during sentencing. Boasberg remembered who he was and why he sentenced him lightly and they talked for a bit about how the man had gotten back on his feet. I swear to god I have never met a man who was not more thoughtful, careful, warm, and friendly than Boasberg. The entire experience truly felt unreal. He works directly with his interns and is involved in their lives (he keeps all their resumes and updates it regularly). He and the judicial assistants are great friends. Never seen him lose his temper at anyone (with the exception of the occasional lawyer in court who honestly deserves it). He continually has reunions with his former clerks. I could go on and on.

[Anonymous User]

Pan has feeder potential because obviously Bristow / DOJ / DC appellate backgrounds play, including some political roles...not everything is being a former SCOTUS clerk (and of course, plenty of former SCOTUS clerk judges don't feed, as we see with the various Trump district judges who haven't yet). But it's not a shoo-in. Age isn't a disqualifier for her feeding, that's kid of nonsense. I agree with the poster above that was basically like "we'll see." A better chance at feeding than, like, Wilkins (or her fellow nominee Childs), but less of a top prospect than Heytens / Garcia.

I think all of this reveals a harsh reality: there are basically no liberal feeders anymore. If you get a competitive clerkship with a well respected liberal judge, you have about equal shot these days. There are few if any chambers who offer a meaningful leg up at this point. The old feeders are gone, and there are just too many good judges and not enough scotus spots; in a world in which getting a coa clerkship is so lopsided and difficult on plan, lots of scotus level candidates are landing all over due to variance.

In terms of boost, maybe Srinivasan or a couple others offer something small, but he’s also taking like top 1-5 people grades-wise at HYSC, so sure a lot of them will eventually go on up. Nearly any other CADC judge is going to keep you in the running of your profile, grades, professors are competitive I think.

If Pan becomes a feeder/semi-feeder it will be for the same reason that Boasberg is a feeder -- she's very hooked into the elite DC social scene. In fact, her profile is very similar to Boasberg's, just slightly more impressive in every facet. And her husband was a SCOTUS clerk, worked on Bill Clinton's defense team, and is plugged into the left-leaning nonprofit scene.

I’ve heard she’s a really tough boss and not great to work for—very much unlike Boasberg—and I wonder if that will factor into things.

Have heard similar things — she has a terrible reputation among DDC clerks because of how bad/borderline abusive a boss she is. Can’t imagine someone like her going to bat for her clerks.

It’s also possible that she’s just adjusting to the job—the learning curve for first-year DJs is insane, though she was at least a judge before

Didn't stop Kozinski from going to bat; but it may turn off very top applicants.

SS/JEB combo has a nearly perfect hit rate on feeds (just one to my knowledge who hasn't gotten the call-up).

[Anonymous User]

Garcia will most definitely be a feeder. Kagan, Griffith, OMM and DOJ. Only 35 though so confirmation is not a shoo-in.

He will be confirmed. More interesting will be to see if the ABA delays their rating so that he won't get an NQ for not having practiced for 12 years.

The ABA would never pull such a move

The ABA indeed did pull such a move: https://twitter.com/fedjudges/status/15 ... JRhRGh5_zw

[Anonymous User]

Garcia will most definitely be a feeder. Kagan, Griffith, OMM and DOJ. Only 35 though so confirmation is not a shoo-in.

He will be confirmed. More interesting will be to see if the ABA delays their rating so that he won't get an NQ for not having practiced for 12 years.

The ABA would never pull such a move

The ABA indeed did pull such a move: https://twitter.com/fedjudges/status/15 ... JRhRGh5_zw

Very strange that Nardacci got a Qm/NQmin. That’s one step from NQ—not even a “substantial” majority thought she was Q (which would be Qsm/NQmin). Based on resume she seems like a shoo-in for WQ. I wonder if she got it for temperament like VanDyke or something.

[Anonymous User]

Garcia will most definitely be a feeder. Kagan, Griffith, OMM and DOJ. Only 35 though so confirmation is not a shoo-in.

He will be confirmed. More interesting will be to see if the ABA delays their rating so that he won't get an NQ for not having practiced for 12 years.

The ABA would never pull such a move

The ABA indeed did pull such a move: https://twitter.com/fedjudges/status/15 ... JRhRGh5_zw

Yikes lol