COA - what am I doing wrong? Forum

[agnele101]

I probably applied to 100 COA. Had only one interview but it was most likely because I argued before that judge and won the case.
Went to a State school (ranked between 54-60), graduated in the top 7%, no law review.
Was a staff attorney for the 11th Cir. for 2 years, worked for 7 years at a small firm, and now just started district court clerkship.
Argued before the 11th Cir. twice, and won one case (habeas). It was recently though vacated, and not will be reheard en banc (I will not be able to argue it since I am clerking now).
Am I just too old to be considered for the clerkship? By the way, English is my second language and it is obvious that I was not born in the USA (should I try and mask it from my resume)?
Thank you!

[A. Nony Mouse]

I think mostly it's just that COA hiring is extremely competitive, so competitive that nothing is guaranteed, and it can just be hard to predict who will/won't get a position. So it's probably not that you're doing anything wrong, it's just that the stars haven't aligned quite right.

I have seen people here suggest that COA judges are less interested in alumni applicants/applicants with work experience than DCt judges are, so while I wouldn't say you're too "old" (no idea what your age is), you might have more experience than some of them want? I doubt being a non-native speaker would make a difference since your resume makes clear you have no problems actually doing the work.

Also, your credentials are very good, but your school pedigree may be having some effect (depending on whether the judges you've applied to have regularly hired from that school) - anecdotally, I've seen people talk about COA judges going no deeper than the top 1-2 students from T2 schools. Some COA judges may also eliminate people without LR.

That said, obviously you can do the work given your previous work experience, so those criteria would be sort of silly, but judges have to narrow their pool somehow. So I would say that either you're running into judges who use something arbitrary like school pedigree/LR membership just to weed people out, or judges who want someone earlier in their law career. Have you been applying within the 11th Circuit, or the circuit where you're clerking now (if that's different)? Do you know if the judges have ever hired someone from your law school? Is your DCt judge willing to go to bat for you?

[agnele101]

Thank you. Yes, I suppose my law school may be a problem. I do not think any of our alumni had a COA clerkship. I am in d.c. in the 11th Circuit now. ALso, forgot to add that my current judge is a senior district court judge. Also, so far I feel uncomfortable asking him for a LOR as I have been clerking for him for less that 2 months.

[A. Nony Mouse]

I don't think you need to go so far as ask him for a LOR (though I had a judge volunteer to be a reference after about 6 weeks of work), but I think even after only working for him for a short time, you could go to him and say that you're very interested in doing a COA clerkship, and does he have any advice or any suggestions for judges who would be particularly good to work for (something along those lines).

Out of curiosity, though... why do you want to do a COA clerkship? What do you hope to do next? (You don't have to answer, of course, just wondering.)

[elipad]

Thank you. Yes, I suppose my law school may be a problem. I do not think any of our alumni had a COA clerkship. I am in d.c. in the 11th Circuit now. ALso, forgot to add that my current judge is a senior district court judge. Also, so far I feel uncomfortable asking him for a LOR as I have been clerking for him for less that 2 months.

This is probably one of the biggest factors going against you. Appellate clerkships are so incredibly competitive that coming from a school without any precedent would be a huge hurdle. There are many top 10% students from Tier 1 schools (with a history of placement) that do not obtain appellate clerkships. Though bumps like Law Review are somewhat flexible with Tier 1 schools, I would have to agree with Nony that it would probably take someone ranked #1/#2 to snatch that first circuit clerkship.

I would suggest trying to perform your absolute best for this district judge and to build a strong relationship with him. I think your best shot at this looking forward would likely come from his help. Thus, even if it takes you longer to get that rec/help, you could land something from a connection your judge has for a later year. Good luck!