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Does anyone know or have much data on how much a judge's hiring criteria might change when they're elevated from D.Ct to COA? I want to apply to a judge that has historically interviewed students from my school with a similar background as mine, but don't know if I still have a shot if they're elevated. I was also wondering if this is a situation where having a professor call would be especially helpful, do you usually just ask a professor up front if they will call?

Anonymous User wrote: ↑

Wed May 18, 2022 1:22 am

Does anyone know or have much data on how much a judge's hiring criteria might change when they're elevated from D.Ct to COA? I want to apply to a judge that has historically interviewed students from my school with a similar background as mine, but don't know if I still have a shot if they're elevated. I was also wondering if this is a situation where having a professor call would be especially helpful, do you usually just ask a professor up front if they will call?

COA judges can generally be more selective, but this also depends a lot on the district court and the particular judge. I wouldn't expect much of a change for judges who are elevated from district courts that are highly desirable. For example, SDNY judges who sit in Manhattan are already about as selective as most COA judges. You should definitely apply to this judge. Some judges might not change their hiring criteria much at all even if they could theoretically get more credentialed clerks anyway.

Professor calls are always a plus. Directly asking a professor to call a specific judge is pretty aggressive, but I suppose it depends on your relationship with the professor. You might want to consider just letting your Professor know which judges you are particularly interested in and asking if the professor knows any of them or has any specific advice.

Calls from people the judge knows are always helpful, in my experience. I don't see elevation affecting hiring criteria that dramatically. If the judge has had good experiences with students from your school in the past, I see no reason for them to throw all that out the window because now they have a bigger pond in which to fish. Especially if they have a relationship with someone who funnels clerks to them, either officially through a clerkship office or unofficially through a professor at the school who has taken on that role.