Clerkship Salary Post-Big Law Forum

[Anonymous User]

What will my salary be at an Article III clerkship if I work in Big Law for a year?

I need to decide between two Article III clerkships: one for the year immediately after graduation, and another for the year after my first year out. I can only accept one of the two, and if I accept the second one I'll have a one year gap between graduation and my clerkship start date. If I accept #2, I'll work for a Big Law firm for the year. The firm pays market.

I've looked at the clerkship pay grid, and I know clerks with one year of experience move from JS-11 to JS-12, but what step will I be as someone who made $160k + bonus the previous year? My understanding is that I'll go up at least a few steps. I'd like to know how many since there's a difference of about $20k between steps 1 and 10.

http://www.uscourts.gov/Careers/Compens ... /JSP00.pdf

Thank you, TLS people!!!

[Danger Zone]

My understanding is that entry level federal employees start at step 1 as a general rule, with few exceptions. The steps are geared toward permanent employees.

[Anonymous User]

My understanding is that entry level federal employees start at grade 1 as a general rule, with few exceptions. The steps are geared toward permanent employees.

OP here. Article III term clerks definitely start at grade 11, and clerks with one year experience definitely start at grade 12. The variable is the step, which I believe depends on pay. Here, take a look. From the Federal Courts' website:

"The Judiciary Salary Plan (JSP) provides the salary coverage for law clerks. The federal judiciary uses the same locality rates as the executive branch. Current locality rates for law clerks are available at Judiciary Salary Plan Pay Rates.

The hiring judge, as the appointing authority, assigns a selectee's grade and step, and thus sets the salary, at the time of appointment. A law clerk’s salary depends upon legal work experience subsequent to graduation from law school, bar membership, and applicable locality pay adjustments:

JSP-11, step 1 – Law school graduates with academic excellence and no legal work experience. Annual base salary is $50,790 (plus applicable locality rate).
JSP-12, step 1 – One or more years of post-graduate legal work experience and bar membership. Annual base salary is $60,877 (plus applicable locality rate).
JPS-13, step 1 – Two or more years of post-graduate legal work experience and bar membership. Annual base salary is $72,391 (plus applicable locality rate)."

https://oscar.uscourts.gov/qualificatio ... y_benefits

In the base table JS-12 step 1 is $60,877, while JS-12 step 10 is $79,138.

[Danger Zone]

I know. I edited it to say step. My bad for the initial slip, but that's how it works. You'll start at step 1. I suppose you could negotiate the step with the judge, but that seems to be more common, as I said, for permanent jobs.

[ClerkAdvisor]

What will my salary be at an Article III clerkship if I work in Big Law for a year?

I need to decide between two Article III clerkships: one for the year immediately after graduation, and another for the year after my first year out. I can only accept one of the two, and if I accept the second one I'll have a one year gap between graduation and my clerkship start date. If I accept #2, I'll work for a Big Law firm for the year. The firm pays market.

I've looked at the clerkship pay grid, and I know clerks with one year of experience move from JS-11 to JS-12, but what step will I be as someone who made $160k + bonus the previous year? My understanding is that I'll go up at least a few steps. I'd like to know how many since there's a difference of about $20k between steps 1 and 10.

http://www.uscourts.gov/Careers/Compens ... /JSP00.pdf

Thank you, TLS people!!!

Nope. At your judge's discretion, with one year of post JD experience, you can start at JS-12 step 1. The steps don't come into play for term clerks. For career clerks, they get promoted through the steps during their service as a federal clerk.

[A. Nony Mouse]

Yup, ClerkAdvisor's absolutely correct.

[Danger Zone]

Yup, ClerkAdvisor's absolutely correct.

Please also acknowledge my correctness, since ClerkAdvisor and I said the same thing. As a law student, I thrive on being told I am right.

[Anonymous User]

Yup, ClerkAdvisor's absolutely correct.

Please also acknowledge my correctness, since ClerkAdvisor and I said the same thing. As a law student, I thrive on being told I am right.

Ha. You're going to have to hold off for a bit. Two professors told me I'd get paid more at clerkship #2 if I worked at the firm as opposed to doing a fellowship, but they didn't specify the mechanism. I'm going to hunt down a clerk who is actually in that situation and ask them.

Also your initial confusion of steps and grades knocks you down a few rungs.

Thank you though!

OP

[A. Nony Mouse]

Yes, yes, Danger Zone was also right.

I don't think fellowship v. firm should make any difference - your salary is based purely on years of experience, not on your previous salary. No one cared what I'd done in the previous year, just that I had a year of experience. Now, it may be that the fellowship people weren't actually practicing law, and the court decided it didn't count as legal experience? Or that they hadn't been admitted yet? Because the bump in grade requires 1 year legal experience and being admitted to a bar somewhere. Or, shockingly, your professors were just wrong, or out of date. Under the current system, you'll get JS-12 step 1 if you have the legal experience/bar admission, just like everyone else who has 1 year of experience and bar admission.

[Anonymous User]

I can confirm that you would start at step 1 of JSP-12. SORRY DUDE.

[Anonymous User]

Nope. At your judge's discretion, with one year of post JD experience, you can start at JS-12 step 1. The steps don't come into play for term clerks. For career clerks, they get promoted through the steps during their service as a federal clerk.

Though rare, term clerks can get step increases. I'm a term clerk, and I am a JSP-13/2. I had a year of experience before my clerkship, plus have been clerking for three years. Since my co-clerk is a career clerk at JSP-14, I could not move up to grade 14, so I can only increase by steps if I chose to clerk for 4 years.