Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application? Forum

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Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Apr 05, 2022 8:02 pm

I posted about this in the Ask Law Clerks thread, but figured it'd get more responses here:

I interviewed for a clerkship in February that would require me to move my family 6 hours away. The judge seemed great though, and said he'd get back to me in two weeks. Still heard nothing.

Today, I got an offer to interview for a clerkship in my hometown (1.5 hours away), which I'd greatly prefer because it's less of a move and my son would be near his grandparents for a year.

I'm worried, however, about the small possibility that I get a call between now and the interview next week from the first judge with an offer. The clerkship terms don't overlap (the former is 2023-24 and the latter is 2022-23), so technically I could do both. However, I don't really want to do two district court clerkships.

Do you all think it'd make sense to withdraw my application from the first one? I guess it'd suck then if I didn't get the one I'm about to interview for, but I don't even know what I'd say if the first judge called me up and gave me an offer sometime over the next week. I'd be so conflicted/confused.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Skool » Tue Apr 05, 2022 9:25 pm

Definitely don’t withdraw. If Judge 1 calls before Judge 2’s interview, just thank him, and tell him that as a courtesy to Judge 2, you want to keep your appointment with him and interview but you’re excited to potentially clerk for him and you look forward to getting back in touch soon. Judge 1 will only have themselves to blame for waiting two months and they won’t want to offend a judicial colleague. Hide behind Judge 2.

To me, the only question is when should you update Judge 1 with the fact that you have interviewed/will interview with Judge 2. That is tricky and I wonder what others here think.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Apr 05, 2022 10:27 pm

Skool wrote:
Tue Apr 05, 2022 9:25 pm
Definitely don’t withdraw. If Judge 1 calls before Judge 2’s interview, just thank him, and tell him that as a courtesy to Judge 2, you want to keep your appointment with him and interview but you’re excited to potentially clerk for him and you look forward to getting back in touch soon. Judge 1 will only have themselves to blame for waiting two months and they won’t want to offend a judicial colleague. Hide behind Judge 2.

To me, the only question is when should you update Judge 1 with the fact that you have interviewed/will interview with Judge 2. That is tricky and I wonder what others here think.
Thanks for the response. I figured that it'd only make sense to update Judge 1 if he were my preferred judge. Otherwise, there's really no rush on my end to hear back from him. Perhaps if Judge 2 gives me an offer and I accept, Judge 1 would be annoyed that I didn't give him warning about the interview. But, I don't know if that's truly a big concern. I agree I'd like to hear others' thoughts.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Apr 05, 2022 11:12 pm

I don’t think you have to update Judge #1 unless/until you get an offer from Judge #2; I don’t think you have tell Judge #1 about interviews unless they asked you to keep them updated (some judges will but it sounds like Judge #1 hasn’t). Judge #1 may be disappointed if you get/take an offer with #2, but I don’t think there’s a clear enough expectation that you have to update them that they can hold it against you without having said something to you already. (Others should speak up if their experience is different, though, different judges and courthouse cultures can differ.)

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Skool » Wed Apr 06, 2022 6:20 am

My thought on Judge 1 wasn’t that you have an obligation to check in with him—just that him knowing you are interviewing with Judge 2 might encourage him to make a decision one way or another. But what you say makes sense, no use updating judge 1 if he’s not your first choice and you don’t actually want to encourage him to pick you before you interview with Judge 2.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Apr 06, 2022 7:40 am

Skool wrote:
Wed Apr 06, 2022 6:20 am
My thought on Judge 1 wasn’t that you have an obligation to check in with him—just that him knowing you are interviewing with Judge 2 might encourage him to make a decision one way or another. But what you say makes sense, no use updating judge 1 if he’s not your first choice and you don’t actually want to encourage him to pick you before you interview with Judge 2.
(Non OP anon from above.) Oh, got it, I misunderstood. I agree that how to tell a judge you’d rather work for about an interview with another judge is tricky. If you knew for certain that the second judge gave exploding offers, that would be a basis to tell the first one, and if you knew for certain that the second judge doesn’t give exploding offers, you wouldn’t need to worry about it. It is possible to approach the first judge saying something like you wanted them to know about the interview because if the second judge makes an offer you feel obligated to accept it, but it’s not at all clear which judges expect you to take the first offer these days so it’s a little awkward. But also moot for this OP’s purposes, thankfully.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Anonymous User » Fri Apr 15, 2022 6:11 pm

Welp, just got an offer from Judge 1. My deadline to decide is the 18th. Judge 2's interview went great but said he wouldn't get back to me until the 22nd. Judge 1 is for 2023-24 and Judge 2 is for 2022-23. I emailed Judge 2's career clerk and was very upfront and honest. Said I received the offer and would greatly appreciate a decision by the 18th if possible, but that I'd still be happy to wait until the 22nd if needed since I could technically do both clerkships (would just be nice to avoid back-to-back district court clerkships in different parts of the country).

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Anonymous User » Fri Apr 15, 2022 8:45 pm

Ugh, can't help but feel like I made a mistake by asking Judge 2 to consider making his decision by Monday. I don't want them to think "this asshole is really trying to rush me just because he doesn't feel like doing two district court clerkships?"

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by lavarman84 » Sat Apr 16, 2022 12:24 am

Anonymous User wrote:
Fri Apr 15, 2022 8:45 pm
Ugh, can't help but feel like I made a mistake by asking Judge 2 to consider making his decision by Monday. I don't want them to think "this asshole is really trying to rush me just because he doesn't feel like doing two district court clerkships?"
You're overthinking things.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Skool » Sat Apr 16, 2022 7:07 am

It was appropriate for you to explain to judge 2 that he is your first choice but that you have an offer potentially disappearing on Monday.

Can you get more time from judge 1? How firm were they on Monday as a deadline?

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Anonymous User » Sat Apr 16, 2022 7:52 am

Skool wrote:
Sat Apr 16, 2022 7:07 am
Can you get more time from judge 1? How firm were they on Monday as a deadline?
He was pretty firm. He sounded surprised that I asked for any time, and said that I was only slightly ahead of the other candidates so he'd like to extend an offer to one of them ASAP if I'd prefer to hold out for Judge 2. It was a pretty awkward exchange, which sucks cause I know based on my interview and conversations with others that he's a really kind judge and pleasant to work for (plus we have a lot of mutual interests). Guess he just really wants his clerks lined up.

Not sure what to do if Judge 2 won't get back to me until the 22nd. I guess I'd have to accept Judge 1's offer because I want to clerk (my grades are meh so I'm not in a position to just turn down an offer without another one guaranteed), and if Judge 2 then gives me an offer, I'll have to consider if doing two district court clerkships is worth my time. I'm not looking to practice, and plan to apply to academic fellowships/VAPs within a couple years. But, I'd like to teach CivPro if I'm lucky enough to get into legal academia, so I guess spending two years in the district courts wouldn't be the worst way to spend my time.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by nixy » Sat Apr 16, 2022 8:24 am

It depends of course on the court/judge, but you’ll likely have more time to write articles in a clerkship than in biglaw.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Anonymous User » Sat Apr 16, 2022 9:10 am

nixy wrote:
Sat Apr 16, 2022 8:24 am
It depends of course on the court/judge, but you’ll likely have more time to write articles in a clerkship than in biglaw.
Yes, also a very solid consideration. I've published one and want to get a couple more under my belt. If I accept the Ohio clerkship, I'd need to fill the gap year, so the PA clerkship might be better for that than working at a firm for a year (even if I didn't care about working too hard at the firm). I wish my current PI fellowship would just be extended for a year, but they won't do it due to various internal politics.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Skool » Sat Apr 16, 2022 3:13 pm

It sounds like, unless Judge 2 expedites their decision, you have to accept Judge 1 on Monday. And short of reneging on Judge 1, you’ll have to turn down Judge 2 or do both clerkships.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Anonymous User » Sat Apr 16, 2022 8:45 pm

Skool wrote:
Sat Apr 16, 2022 3:13 pm
It sounds like, unless Judge 2 expedites their decision, you have to accept Judge 1 on Monday. And short of reneging on Judge 1, you’ll have to turn down Judge 2 or do both clerkships.
Yea, this sucks. I wish I could just be happy about getting a clerkship. Instead it has to turn into another issue.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Anonymous User » Sun Apr 17, 2022 10:55 am

Good news on my end: Judge 2's chambers says he will likely be able to give me a decision tomorrow morning because "circumstances have changed" (wonder if that means the other candidate who was supposed to interview this coming Friday withdrew). So, I guess my anxiety got the best of me for no reason.

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Re: Should I Withdraw From Clerkship Application?

Post by Anonymous User » Sun Apr 17, 2022 3:59 pm

It can be a nerve-wracking process, but do your best to dial down the neuroticism

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