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Not that many judges on the court, so I know its tough, but here is my situation. I realistically only have a chance at this specialty federal court (although please correct me if I'm wrong about that). I'm doing exclusively that specialty in a fairly prestigious position this summer, I should be right on the cusp of top 25% from a T30-40 school, on a journal 2L but no position 3L, no note published although I'm finishing up one now, and I did an internship for a judge at the same specialty court. Also, the judge at the court really liked me and offered to call other judges for me to recommend me, and I will definitely take the judge up on the offer. How much effect do you think the phone call will have, and what do you think my chances are?

Note: I really cant give any more information... I don't want to out myself.

Does it matter what your chances are?

If you don't have a job and the judge encouraged you to apply you better apply.

I have a good chance at a job where I'm working now. As for why it matters.... I suppose it doesn't, I'm just curious to hear the thoughts of people lurking on TLS

Anonymous User wrote:I have a good chance at a job where I'm working now. As for why it matters.... I suppose it doesn't, I'm just curious to hear the thoughts of people lurking on TLS

I don't think it's really possible to even speculate without at minimum knowing what court it is

I think the judge calling up to recommend you is a huge bonus (generally, judges hate the hiring process and if a colleague can say "this person is great" and spare them the agony of going through piles of applications, they will be very well-disposed to you), though of course it depends on who has openings. If you're talking bankruptcy, the consensus seems to be that demonstrated interest in BK and success in BK courses/jobs/internships is more important than overall grades/school rank. If it's something else, I have no idea.

When do you think I should call in the favor? I should have everything ready in about 1 1/2-2 weeks, slightly before the new OSCAR deadline. I'm not sure if I should have the judge call before judges get my application, or right when they do, or the day of the deadline, etc.

Anonymous User wrote:When do you think I should call in the favor? I should have everything ready in about 1 1/2-2 weeks, slightly before the new OSCAR deadline. I'm not sure if I should have the judge call before judges get my application, or right when they do, or the day of the deadline, etc.

Do you know for sure these judges are following the plan? My inclination would be to send in a paper app early and have the judge call right before/right when it gets there, but I'm purely guessing. The instances when I've seen this happen have mostly involved alums.

A. Nony Mouse wrote:I think the judge calling up to recommend you is a huge bonus

I've always wondered whether this was actually that big of a bonus when the judges are on the same level of court, especially if they're on exactly the same court in the same location. Wouldn't the second judge wonder, "If the applicant is so great, why didn't you hire him as a clerk yourself?"

nevdash wrote:

A. Nony Mouse wrote:I think the judge calling up to recommend you is a huge bonus

I've always wondered whether this was actually that big of a bonus when the judges are on the same level of court, especially if they're on exactly the same court in the same location. Wouldn't the second judge wonder, "If the applicant is so great, why didn't you hire him as a clerk yourself?"

True, that might happen. But people hire on different schedules, or might have permanent clerks or something.

OP here. She has a policy of not hiring interns.

Anonymous User wrote:OP here. She has a policy of not hiring interns.

Ah ok, good. You might want to make sure that her colleagues know that or ask her to tell them when she recommends you.