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Several of my professors have offered to put in calls on my behalf if I interview with a judge. I wanted to get a sense of how accepted this is? If the professor/former judge from an internship makes an unsolicited call to a judge he/she doesn't even know, is that helpful? Do interviewing judges welcome such calls? Should I ask the prof to call before or after my interview? I may sound paranoid, but I just don't want to break any unspoken rules.

Totally accepted and incredibly valuable - it can be the only thing that makes you stand out in the crowd of applications, and a half (3/4? 95%) of the battle is getting your application looked at. It's most helpful if the professor knows the judge, but it's still fine if the professor doesn't know the judge (and especially so if it's another judge calling your judge - professional colleagues!). Judges are fine with this - it helps them decide, too, and if they don't want to talk about you they'll just tell the person that. I would have them call before the interview (actually, I'd have them call after you apply but before you even get an interview, because personal calls should increase the numbers of interviews you'd get. But if you already have an interview lined up, they should call before the interview).

A. Nony Mouse wrote:Totally accepted and incredibly valuable - it can be the only thing that makes you stand out in the crowd of applications, and a half (3/4? 95%) of the battle is getting your application looked at. It's most helpful if the professor knows the judge, but it's still fine if the professor doesn't know the judge (and especially so if it's another judge calling your judge - professional colleagues!). Judges are fine with this - it helps them decide, too, and if they don't want to talk about you they'll just tell the person that. I would have them call before the interview (actually, I'd have them call after you apply but before you even get an interview, because personal calls should increase the numbers of interviews you'd get. But if you already have an interview lined up, they should call before the interview).

This. Professor calls are extremely helpful even if they don't know the judge. A professor speaking effusively on your behalf is one of the best weapons you can have in the clerkship application battle. Take them up on their offer and don't look back.

I tend to think that the timing of the call (before vs. after you are offered an interview) is a tough question and depends on how likely you are to get an interview in the first place. If your stats are compelling for a particular judge, you may want to have the professor call immediately before your interview. If not, your best return on investment, so to speak, is to have the professor call soon after your application is received so as to increase your chances of getting an interview from slim to not-so-slim. If you're not sure, err on the side of earlier calls. Effusive praise is effusive praise no matter when it arrives, and for the vast majority of applicants getting an interview is the biggest hurdle.

You have to picture the situation in chambers. They are getting hundreds, if not over a thousand applications for every clerkship spot. Many of those can be eliminated immediately based on a combination of school, grade, and other academic cutoffs. But even after that process there are still likely over 100 applications that all meet the academic criteria. Professor calls are one of the best ways to get your application picked out from that pile.

I would caution against too many calls though. My judge does not like to take these calls but prefers the clerks take them and relay the info back to the judge. One candidate had too many professors call and it really turned the judge off on this candidate. It was one of the key reasons that this candidate did not get the position.

Any thoughts on professors calling on my behalf for a law firm interview? One of mine has offered to do it, but I have no idea how common it is.

SHS104 wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 03, 2021 10:55 pm

Any thoughts on professors calling on my behalf for a law firm interview? One of mine has offered to do it, but I have no idea how common it is.

I had a professor offer to do the same. I never took him up on the offer. But that was because I wanted him to call judges, and I didn't want to ask too much. My two cents is that it would be more useful if the professor knows who he is calling or spent a lot of time in private practice. However, I can't really see how it would hurt your application regardless.

Related question: I'm applying for 2022-23 CoA clerkships. I am a graduating student, so I'm no longer bound to OSCAR dates. However, I think in part due to COVID, judges are a lot mushier on their normal hiring schedules. For example, I know of a couple of judges who usually hire around January who have yet to start interviewing. So, my question is when should I ask professors to call chambers on my behalf if I don't know when a judge will start actually looking at applications?

I would ask them to contact the judge around the same time you submit the app. If you’re not subject to the hiring plan, it’s viewable now.

My top recommender emailed my COA judge the same afternoon. My COA judge called my district judge within 24 hours and I had an interview offer by the end of the week. This was before their listed interview timeframe on OSCAR.

During my district process (pre-hiring plan), a different recommender (who had better district connections than my COA recommender above) also sent emails same day. Most judges responded, either to say they had pulled my app or to say that they had not begun the process but would pull my app when they did.

I would time it to have your professors contact chambers right when you app comes in. I think it is important for the professors to talk with chambers while they are still forming an opinion of your application. If the professor reaches out too late, the judge may have tossed your app or put you on hold already.