Top Law Schools

I am aware that I shouldn't put my eggs in one basket, but there is one judge for whom I'd really love to clerk. He is the only district court judge in my hometown, which is a small southern city of about 100,000 in what is generally referred to as a flyover district. We are matches in many ways (same undergrad, grew up in the same part of town, similar progressive leanings). I was wondering how I should go about reaching out to him now during my 1L summer. I am not working in the area, but I will be back home for a week in August.

Any tips would be greatly appreciated. I'd give you cupcakes if I could.

Have you ever interacted with him before? And do you have any personal connections other than what you listed? Any people you both know, for example.

KD35 wrote:Have you ever interacted with him before? And do you have any personal connections other than what you listed? Any people you both know, for example.

Barring this, you could always call chambers, explain that you will be in town for a week, and that you'd appreciate the chance to meet the judge if he'd have any interest. Keep in mind that most judges will only start considering candidates after three or four semesters of law school though.

Anonymous User wrote:

KD35 wrote:Have you ever interacted with him before? And do you have any personal connections other than what you listed? Any people you both know, for example.

Barring this, you could always call chambers, explain that you will be in town for a week, and that you'd appreciate the chance to meet the judge if he'd have any interest. Keep in mind that most judges will only start considering candidates after three or four semesters of law school though.

Yeah, I would probably not do this. At this point in time it seems very unlikely that he would be willing to even "soft" interview a rising 2L (no one does this, except maybe Kozinski). I think what you want is a mutual connection--someone who knows the judge and would be willing to ask him if he'd be willing to sit down with you for coffee, not to discuss clerkships but to discuss life, law school, etc. If that goes well, he'll remember you, and it should be relatively easy to at least get an application read next year.

Anonymous User wrote:Yeah, I would probably not do this. At this point in time it seems very unlikely that he would be willing to even "soft" interview a rising 2L (no one does this, except maybe Kozinski). I think what you want is a mutual connection--someone who knows the judge and would be willing to ask him if he'd be willing to sit down with you for coffee, not to discuss clerkships but to discuss life, law school, etc. If that goes well, he'll remember you, and it should be relatively easy to at least get an application read next year.

This is my reaction, too. I can't point to any specific reason why, but I wouldn't cold-call the judge and try to make contact yourself - it just doesn't feel right to me. I mean, if there are people out there who've done this and it's worked out well, that's totally cool and I'm happy to believe it. But the above is my gut reaction.

My reaction is the same as above.

That being said . . . judges are judges, but they're also people. If you think of him like--for example--a biglaw partner, then it makes a little more sense to contact chambers and see if he's willing to have coffee or lunch. Considering your hometown is fairly small and in the south and it appears that you've got a number of things in common, it might not be completely out of the question. It's the specific circumstances in this case that makes me think contacting the chambers might be fruitful.

lolwat wrote:My reaction is the same as above.

That being said . . . judges are judges, but they're also people. If you think of him like--for example--a biglaw partner, then it makes a little more sense to contact chambers and see if he's willing to have coffee or lunch. Considering your hometown is fairly small and in the south and it appears that you've got a number of things in common, it might not be completely out of the question. It's the specific circumstances in this case that makes me think contacting the chambers might be fruitful.

I'm the first anon above to suggest not contacting the judge.

This makes sense to me, though. There might be some value in reaching out to see if he'd be interested in chatting--I just wouldn't frame it as a chat about clerking for him.

lolwat wrote:My reaction is the same as above.

That being said . . . judges are judges, but they're also people. If you think of him like--for example--a biglaw partner, then it makes a little more sense to contact chambers and see if he's willing to have coffee or lunch. Considering your hometown is fairly small and in the south and it appears that you've got a number of things in common, it might not be completely out of the question. It's the specific circumstances in this case that makes me think contacting the chambers might be fruitful.

Yeah, this is why I'm not definitive above - context is important, it might work in this case.

Careful about putting so much detail in your post. You likely put enough to identify the judge you're talking about. Just out of curiosity, I spent 5 minutes looking up all the district judges in one southern circuit. There are only 2 that meet all your criteria (only judge in their town, town of about 100k, grew up in said town, democratic appointee). Just a friendly suggestion!