Let's talk 11th Circuit! Forum

[Anonymous User]

Does anybody have any intel on 11th Circuit movement for 2023 onwards?

Who are you interested in? I have some insight on Jordan and Lagoa.

What's the deal with Jordan? Waiting for summer to hire? Worth it so send in something now?

Jordan is reviewing apps now for his remaining Fall 2021 hiring, and has told some applicants to expect to hear from him "early spring." It's worth it to apply since he's still reviewing, but it helps to have personal connections since he is so popular and hires from a broad range of schools.

I thought he had finished for '21 way long ago (like 2019). Interesting.

[Anonymous User]

Any insight on the (many) Trump appointees to the Circuit? (Specifically Newsom and Grant) Are they all extremely ideological?

[Anonymous User]

Any insight on the (many) Trump appointees to the Circuit? (Specifically Newsom and Grant) Are they all extremely ideological?

I wouldn't call Newsom extreme but he's definitely what you'd expect from a Fed Soc judge. He has a very informal writing style, check out this wild concurrence in US v Caniff (noting the "sheer mind-blowing awesomeness" of Inception): https://media.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinion ... 712410.pdf

[Anonymous User]

https://media.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinion ... 913694.pdf

As a practitioner, it annoys me to no end when judges hijack appeals to do some strutting, especially because the standard reaction is to go on and on about how brilliant and insightful it is.

Save your longform musing about the history and purpose of standing doctrine, filled with citations to your prior concurring opinions, for law review, where it belongs.

If anybody in this thread clerks for Newsom, please tell him not to do this. Ever. Especially if it delays an otherwise simple appeal for months. We get it. You're smart, and only sometimes evil, and use contractions.

[Anonymous User]

https://media.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinion ... 913694.pdf

As a practitioner, it annoys me to no end when judges hijack appeals to do some strutting, especially because the standard reaction is to go on and on about how brilliant and insightful it is.

Save your longform musing about the history and purpose of standing doctrine, filled with citations to your prior concurring opinions, for law review, where it belongs.

If anybody in this thread clerks for Newsom, please tell him not to do this. Ever. Especially if it delays an otherwise simple appeal for months. We get it. You're smart, and only sometimes evil, and use contractions.

That was a 50(ish) concurrence... for a six page opinion...

[Anonymous User]

https://media.ca11.uscourts.gov/opinion ... 913694.pdf

As a practitioner, it annoys me to no end when judges hijack appeals to do some strutting, especially because the standard reaction is to go on and on about how brilliant and insightful it is.

Save your longform musing about the history and purpose of standing doctrine, filled with citations to your prior concurring opinions, for law review, where it belongs.

If anybody in this thread clerks for Newsom, please tell him not to do this. Ever. Especially if it delays an otherwise simple appeal for months. We get it. You're smart, and only sometimes evil, and use contractions.

On the one hand, Spokeo is completely broken, maybe the most practically unworkable SCOTUS case of the last decade, and it's nice to see Fed Soc judges joining liberals in recognizing that and looking for solutions. On the other, yeah this should have been an LR article and Newsom's writing often walks the line between folksy and cringey.

For anyone interested in this, Will Baude's article on it in the Supreme Court Review is excellent.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone know anything about Rosenbaum? The fact that she goes out of her way to say how hard the work is seems like a bit of a red flag

Super smart, but she will work you hard. I don't think she's as bad as a Kozinski or Posner, but her clerks are routinely working until 11:00 PM a lot of nights.

Can someone confirm or deny this? How is Rosenbaum to work for; is it really this bad? This post was a bit old. So seeking newer information.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone know anything about Rosenbaum? The fact that she goes out of her way to say how hard the work is seems like a bit of a red flag

Super smart, but she will work you hard. I don't think she's as bad as a Kozinski or Posner, but her clerks are routinely working until 11:00 PM a lot of nights.

Can someone confirm or deny this? How is Rosenbaum to work for; is it really this bad? This post was a bit old. So seeking newer information.

This question is a few months old, but for what it is worth -- Rosenbaum is demanding, but she's also a team player. If her clerks are working until 11, so is she.

[Anonymous User]

Any comments on MDFL judges?

Whittemore and Merryday - great to work for, generally (and correctly) viewed as the brightest stars on the district’s bench. Southern gentlemen. Merryday’s writing style is unique. His clerks work more than most others in the district but not bad hours (8-6)

Moody - also great to work for. Well regarded.

Scriven - don’t know much except that her clerks really like her.

Kovachevich - fantastic to clerk for. Despite her age, she’s still a force and she’s been on the bench long enough to see/know everything (and lots of great stories). Well regarded by the bar.

Honeywell - nice person but chambers is a disaster. Her clerks sometimes have to totally rewrite things a dozen times, and sits on draft opinions for months or years. Not well regarded by the district bar

Covington - her clerks regularly quit before their terms end (often within weeks of starting). Avoid at all costs. Don’t want to say too much more but if you’re seriously considering clerking for her, post non anonymous and I’ll message you.

I heard horror stories about Merryday. Long hours. Weekend work. Forced his clerks and litigants to come in at a time when others were evacuating due to a hurricane. Played favorites. Not a kind boss. While I never worked for Covington, I interviewed with her and got awful vibes. Her interview seemed more designed to drive away applicants than anything. I wanted nothing to do with working for her after it.

While I can't comment on Tom Barber as a judge, I can say that he came off as a fabulous person when I met him. Very personable and has a great sense of humor.

Merryday's hours are longer than most or all in the district (usually 8-6 but longer for trials, and he tries more cases than most others in the district). Not a former clerk of his but I'm close to several and the horror stories aren't correct (except the hurricane one is sort of true - it was a tropical depression ). He's a former BigLaw partner and reportedly runs his chambers like Big Law (except there's not any shouting or anything like that). I'm told he has high expectations for his work and his clerks, but the clerks who I know loved working for him and they served two-year terms. So take that anecdote for what it's worth.

I can credit that some of the Merryday horror stories are true. The clerks who like him best are the ones who most resemble him: usually male, somewhat conservative, willing to put up with harsh (and often unfair) criticism, and adaptive to his peculiar writing style. He has an 8 page style guide with an extensive list of "banned words" (like any word starting with "re"). Also, I have never once heard Merryday referred to as one of MDFL's "brightest stars."

[Anonymous User]

Anyone know if judges have hired for 2023 yet?

[Anonymous User]

Worth noting that Merryday on MD FL seems to now be getting some forum-shopped conservative impact lit like many Texas judges do

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/202 ... eedom.html

[Anonymous User]

Worth noting that Merryday on MD FL seems to now be getting some forum-shopped conservative impact lit like many Texas judges do

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/202 ... eedom.html

I don’t understand this comment. Forum shopping is possible in Texas because some divisions only have 1 judge, so you’re guaranteed to get them by filing there. Tampa has a dozen judges so you can’t forum shop for a particular one. The clerk randomly assigns cases. Isn’t that how it works?

[lavarman84]

Worth noting that Merryday on MD FL seems to now be getting some forum-shopped conservative impact lit like many Texas judges do

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/202 ... eedom.html

I don’t understand this comment. Forum shopping is possible in Texas because some divisions only have 1 judge, so you’re guaranteed to get them by filing there. Tampa has a dozen judges so you can’t forum shop for a particular one. The clerk randomly assigns cases. Isn’t that how it works?

As far as I know, it is random. Unless Merryday can put his thumb on the scale as the most senior judge of that division, there's no guarantee you get a conservative. Four of the six active judges are conservative. But there are a good number of left-leaning senior judges in Tampa. Plus, Scriven is a moderate, and Honeywell is left leaning.

If you wanted to pick a forum in Florida where you were guaranteed a Republican appointee, you'd pick Pensacola. Although, I'm not familiar with Rodgers, so I don't know if she's a moderate or conservative.

[Anonymous User]

Worth noting that Merryday on MD FL seems to now be getting some forum-shopped conservative impact lit like many Texas judges do

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/202 ... eedom.html

I don’t understand this comment. Forum shopping is possible in Texas because some divisions only have 1 judge, so you’re guaranteed to get them by filing there. Tampa has a dozen judges so you can’t forum shop for a particular one. The clerk randomly assigns cases. Isn’t that how it works?

As far as I know, it is random. Unless Merryday can put his thumb on the scale as the most senior judge of that division, there's no guarantee you get a conservative. Four of the six active judges are conservative. But there are a good number of left-leaning senior judges in Tampa. Plus, Scriven is a moderate, and Honeywell is left leaning.

If you wanted to pick a forum in Florida where you were guaranteed a Republican appointee, you'd pick Pensacola. Although, I'm not familiar with Rodgers, so I don't know if she's a moderate or conservative.

Stunned to discover Mark Joseph Stern doesn't understand basic aspects of the legal system

[lavarman84]

Stunned to discover Mark Joseph Stern doesn't understand basic aspects of the legal system

Mark has a good understanding of the legal system. At most, he implied some things that aren't totally true. But that's not atypical of the media.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know if Judge Newsom has finished hiring for 2023-24? If so, is he actively hiring for subsequent terms? Any info appreciated.

[Prosecutor]

Does anyone know if Judge Newsom has finished hiring for 2023-24? If so, is he actively hiring for subsequent terms? Any info appreciated.

He is hiring for 24, and not sure if he's finished.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know if Judge Newsom has finished hiring for 2023-24? If so, is he actively hiring for subsequent terms? Any info appreciated.

He is hiring for 24, and not sure if he's finished.

I know he's either currently hiring for 24-25, or about to start.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know if Judge Newsom has finished hiring for 2023-24? If so, is he actively hiring for subsequent terms? Any info appreciated.

He is hiring for 24, and not sure if he's finished.

I know he's either currently hiring for 24-25, or about to start.

Good to know -- thanks to you both for this information.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone hear about Marcus 2023 or 2024 (or 2025?).

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know how Lagoa hires? Can't find much information on her or where to send apps, which I guess tends to imply that her process is very connection based, but I am unsure.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know how Lagoa hires? Can't find much information on her or where to send apps, which I guess tends to imply that her process is very connection based, but I am unsure.

Bingo - it's very connection driven. Having actual Florida ties helps.

[Anonymous User]

Has anyone heard anything from Ruiz (S.D. Fla.) interviewed last Monday and wondering if I should give up hope.

[Anonymous User]

What are the Trump judges like as bosses? Brasher, Lagoa, Newsom, Grant, and others?

[Anonymous User]

Newsom has a ping pong table in chambers. Fun boss. Fun-to-read opinions.