Let's talk 2nd Circuit! Forum

[Anonymous User]

By reputation, McMahon is tough as nails, but a good judge.

I know someone who clerked for her and he didn't really like his time there. But he is also kind of an incessant complainer so who knows.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know if the SDNY/EDNY/DCT/2C judges with available OSCAR postings consider off-plan applications on a rolling basis as they are submitted? or do they mostly wait until June to review both 2L and 3L/grad applications? thanks for any info!

[Anonymous User]

Depends on the judge. Some are interviewing now; others are waiting until Plan Day.

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

Agreed. She is new, so this reputation may not have been as widely known or discussed previously and young lawyers tend to have the personalities to take some degree of punishment. It is Second Circuit so people might rather be abused than move to a flyover district. For what it's worth, I respected her clerks, but these reports of her behavior ring true. I also heard she could never keep an assistant and they don't all have great things to say.

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

.

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

Hopefully more widespread reporting of the extent of the mistreatment, versus just vaguely "avoid," will help.

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

Forgot to add in earlier comment that she made a clerk come in on xmas eve because she was mad at them.

[LawBurner1]

Does anyone know if the SDNY/EDNY/DCT/2C judges with available OSCAR postings consider off-plan applications on a rolling basis as they are submitted? or do they mostly wait until June to review both 2L and 3L/grad applications? thanks for any info!

I am clerking for one of these judges and we're considering applications on a rolling basis, although unless we get a fantastic application we'll probably wait till the plan opens. (We'd also consider 2Ls as soon as they have four semesters of grades, even before the plan opens, if they email their applications to our chambers address. This might be a consideration for 2Ls who see 'email or apply through OSCAR' openings.

[LawBurner1]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

Agreed. There's a judge in our courthouse who has a reputation for being extremely difficult to work for and his clerks are just as well credentialed as everyone else. I think in some instances, the word doesn't spread so well (looking back at my judge list from when I was applying, there are judges I would've been happy to get an interview with who I now know would not have provided pleasant clerkship experiences) and in others, applicants decide that the career boosts of clerking/clerking for a big-name judge/clerking in a certain locale make having a difficult boss worthwhile.

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

Correct, but there are also just tons and tons of very-good-but-not-great resumes in the CA2 pile, and Perez has never been one of the judges who aims for tippy top students like Lohier or Park.

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

Agreed. There's a judge in our courthouse who has a reputation for being extremely difficult to work for and his clerks are just as well credentialed as everyone else. I think in some instances, the word doesn't spread so well (looking back at my judge list from when I was applying, there are judges I would've been happy to get an interview with who I now know would not have provided pleasant clerkship experiences) and in others, applicants decide that the career boosts of clerking/clerking for a big-name judge/clerking in a certain locale make having a difficult boss worthwhile.

[*]
There is a literal red flag at some law schools about her (at my own and confirmed at my girlfriend’s). I’ve been explicitly advised not to even apply to her - so make it make sense…

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

Agreed. There's a judge in our courthouse who has a reputation for being extremely difficult to work for and his clerks are just as well credentialed as everyone else. I think in some instances, the word doesn't spread so well (looking back at my judge list from when I was applying, there are judges I would've been happy to get an interview with who I now know would not have provided pleasant clerkship experiences) and in others, applicants decide that the career boosts of clerking/clerking for a big-name judge/clerking in a certain locale make having a difficult boss worthwhile.

[*]
There is a literal red flag at some law schools about her (at my own and confirmed at my girlfriend’s). I’ve been explicitly advised not to even apply to her - so make it make sense…

It really isn't that complicated. These law students don't care. They are so obsessed with being able to say that they clerked on second circuit that they will do it. Part of it is these law schools too. They spend two years hammering into a student's brain that clerking is the goal, clerking is the goal, so of course these people apply to her. I remember talking to a Pan clerk who knew exactly what she was getting into but all she says is D.C. Circuit, D.C. Circuit.

[Anonymous User]

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

Agreed. There's a judge in our courthouse who has a reputation for being extremely difficult to work for and his clerks are just as well credentialed as everyone else. I think in some instances, the word doesn't spread so well (looking back at my judge list from when I was applying, there are judges I would've been happy to get an interview with who I now know would not have provided pleasant clerkship experiences) and in others, applicants decide that the career boosts of clerking/clerking for a big-name judge/clerking in a certain locale make having a difficult boss worthwhile.

[*]
There is a literal red flag at some law schools about her (at my own and confirmed at my girlfriend’s). I’ve been explicitly advised not to even apply to her - so make it make sense…

It really isn't that complicated. These law students don't care. They are so obsessed with being able to say that they clerked on second circuit that they will do it. Part of it is these law schools too. They spend two years hammering into a student's brain that clerking is the goal, clerking is the goal, so of course these people apply to her. I remember talking to a Pan clerk who knew exactly what she was getting into but all she says is D.C. Circuit, D.C. Circuit.

1) The DC Circuit >>>> 2nd Circuit; 2) While Perez is fine, Pan’s career trajectory blows Perez’s out of the water and she’s already produced a couple of Bristows. Not saying the abuse is justified because her credentials are better or that the clerkship is “more” prestigious, but a Perez clerkship hardly seems worth the pain.

[Anonymous User]

1) The DC Circuit >>>> 2nd Circuit; 2) While Perez is fine, Pan’s career trajectory blows Perez’s out of the water and she’s already produced a couple of Bristows. Not saying the abuse is justified because her credentials are better or that the clerkship is “more” prestigious, but a Perez clerkship hardly seems worth the pain.

Pan has had 1 Bristow, and she had very little to do with it.

[lavarman84]

1) The DC Circuit >>>> 2nd Circuit; 2) While Perez is fine, Pan’s career trajectory blows Perez’s out of the water and she’s already produced a couple of Bristows. Not saying the abuse is justified because her credentials are better or that the clerkship is “more” prestigious, but a Perez clerkship hardly seems worth the pain.

Neither clerkship is worth the pain. But many law students don't have a sense of how much your life in chambers revolves around your judge and just how miserable a year can be if you have a bad boss.

[Anonymous User]

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

Agreed. There's a judge in our courthouse who has a reputation for being extremely difficult to work for and his clerks are just as well credentialed as everyone else. I think in some instances, the word doesn't spread so well (looking back at my judge list from when I was applying, there are judges I would've been happy to get an interview with who I now know would not have provided pleasant clerkship experiences) and in others, applicants decide that the career boosts of clerking/clerking for a big-name judge/clerking in a certain locale make having a difficult boss worthwhile.

[*]
There is a literal red flag at some law schools about her (at my own and confirmed at my girlfriend’s). I’ve been explicitly advised not to even apply to her - so make it make sense…

It really isn't that complicated. These law students don't care. They are so obsessed with being able to say that they clerked on second circuit that they will do it. Part of it is these law schools too. They spend two years hammering into a student's brain that clerking is the goal, clerking is the goal, so of course these people apply to her. I remember talking to a Pan clerk who knew exactly what she was getting into but all she says is D.C. Circuit, D.C. Circuit.

1) The DC Circuit >>>> 2nd Circuit; 2) While Perez is fine, Pan’s career trajectory blows Perez’s out of the water and she’s already produced a couple of Bristows. Not saying the abuse is justified because her credentials are better or that the clerkship is “more” prestigious, but a Perez clerkship hardly seems worth the pain.

See. Exhibit A. There will always be people who find a way to justify the abuse of judges or at least downplay it.

[Anonymous User]

Eunice Lee, and to a lesser degree, Myrna Perez.

Myrna was well known as the worst bully at the Brennan Center. She had a talent for cruelty toward women especially. She would tear them down for sport to make herself feel better with her own insecurities. She likely had BPD and tried to control her team’s whole lives in an all encompassing, narcissistic, and violating way. Enough people on this thread have warned applicants she is abusive and exhausting. Stop applying to her.

Former CA2 clerk. While Menashi is probably the judge the other judges like the least because he is an unprincipled troll, Perez seems like the worst experience for the clerks.

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

Agreed. She is new, so this reputation may not have been as widely known or discussed previously and young lawyers tend to have the personalities to take some degree of punishment. It is Second Circuit so people might rather be abused than move to a flyover district. For what it's worth, I respected her clerks, but these reports of her behavior ring true. I also heard she could never keep an assistant and they don't all have great things to say.

Her assistant is hilarious though and does seem to know it’s not a normal chambers environment.

[Anonymous User]

Is Perez then just accepting low-quality (or lower) applicants? I can’t imagine high-achieving law students/lawyers who would accept a clerkship at the risk of being fired and likely abused/overworked if they had the credentials to have other options.

You'd be suprised.

Agreed. There's a judge in our courthouse who has a reputation for being extremely difficult to work for and his clerks are just as well credentialed as everyone else. I think in some instances, the word doesn't spread so well (looking back at my judge list from when I was applying, there are judges I would've been happy to get an interview with who I now know would not have provided pleasant clerkship experiences) and in others, applicants decide that the career boosts of clerking/clerking for a big-name judge/clerking in a certain locale make having a difficult boss worthwhile.

[*]
There is a literal red flag at some law schools about her (at my own and confirmed at my girlfriend’s). I’ve been explicitly advised not to even apply to her - so make it make sense…

It really isn't that complicated. These law students don't care. They are so obsessed with being able to say that they clerked on second circuit that they will do it. Part of it is these law schools too. They spend two years hammering into a student's brain that clerking is the goal, clerking is the goal, so of course these people apply to her. I remember talking to a Pan clerk who knew exactly what she was getting into but all she says is D.C. Circuit, D.C. Circuit.

1) The DC Circuit >>>> 2nd Circuit; 2) While Perez is fine, Pan’s career trajectory blows Perez’s out of the water and she’s already produced a couple of Bristows. Not saying the abuse is justified because her credentials are better or that the clerkship is “more” prestigious, but a Perez clerkship hardly seems worth the pain.

See. Exhibit A. There will always be people who find a way to justify the abuse of judges or at least downplay it.

Prestige or no prestige, it's fair to say that some people end up with an abusive judge because that's the only offer they have. Not saying they should take it, but people in that position for a variety of reasons pick that over starting back at 0 again.

[Anonymous User]

You'd be suprised.

Agreed. There's a judge in our courthouse who has a reputation for being extremely difficult to work for and his clerks are just as well credentialed as everyone else. I think in some instances, the word doesn't spread so well (looking back at my judge list from when I was applying, there are judges I would've been happy to get an interview with who I now know would not have provided pleasant clerkship experiences) and in others, applicants decide that the career boosts of clerking/clerking for a big-name judge/clerking in a certain locale make having a difficult boss worthwhile.

[*]
There is a literal red flag at some law schools about her (at my own and confirmed at my girlfriend’s). I’ve been explicitly advised not to even apply to her - so make it make sense…

It really isn't that complicated. These law students don't care. They are so obsessed with being able to say that they clerked on second circuit that they will do it. Part of it is these law schools too. They spend two years hammering into a student's brain that clerking is the goal, clerking is the goal, so of course these people apply to her. I remember talking to a Pan clerk who knew exactly what she was getting into but all she says is D.C. Circuit, D.C. Circuit.

1) The DC Circuit >>>> 2nd Circuit; 2) While Perez is fine, Pan’s career trajectory blows Perez’s out of the water and she’s already produced a couple of Bristows. Not saying the abuse is justified because her credentials are better or that the clerkship is “more” prestigious, but a Perez clerkship hardly seems worth the pain.

See. Exhibit A. There will always be people who find a way to justify the abuse of judges or at least downplay it.

Prestige or no prestige, it's fair to say that some people end up with an abusive judge because that's the only offer they have. Not saying they should take it, but people in that position for a variety of reasons pick that over starting back at 0 again.

.

[Anonymous User]

No job or credential is worth your dignity.

[Anonymous User]

Several SDNY judges have been interviewing 3Ls and alums now before the Plan opens