SDNY judges to avoid Forum

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Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:58 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:04 pm
Are Komittee and/or Kovner good to clerk for
They're so newly appointed that they don't have established reputations yet.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Oct 19, 2022 1:41 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:58 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:04 pm
Are Komittee and/or Kovner good to clerk for
They're so newly appointed that they don't have established reputations yet.
But Gujurati (confirmed at the same time) apparently does...which suggests Kovner and Komittee at least aren't as outwardly bad!

Kovner appears to be a gunner who tries to hire SCOTUS-caliber candidates.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Oct 19, 2022 4:22 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 1:41 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:58 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:04 pm
Are Komittee and/or Kovner good to clerk for
They're so newly appointed that they don't have established reputations yet.
But Gujurati (confirmed at the same time) apparently does...which suggests Kovner and Komittee at least aren't as outwardly bad!

Kovner appears to be a gunner who tries to hire SCOTUS-caliber candidates.
I've heard good things about both, and Kovner does try to hire SCOTUS caliber clerks

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Oct 19, 2022 4:26 pm

Anyone have intel on the Central Islip judges particularly Gary Brown, Joan Azrack and Joanna Seybert?

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Oct 19, 2022 6:39 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 4:22 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 1:41 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:58 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:04 pm
Are Komittee and/or Kovner good to clerk for
They're so newly appointed that they don't have established reputations yet.
But Gujurati (confirmed at the same time) apparently does...which suggests Kovner and Komittee at least aren't as outwardly bad!

Kovner appears to be a gunner who tries to hire SCOTUS-caliber candidates.
I've heard good things about both, and Kovner does try to hire SCOTUS caliber clerks
Kovner is a good boss but her clerkship involves biglaw+ hours.

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Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Oct 19, 2022 7:10 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 6:39 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 4:22 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 1:41 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:58 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:04 pm
Are Komittee and/or Kovner good to clerk for
They're so newly appointed that they don't have established reputations yet.
But Gujurati (confirmed at the same time) apparently does...which suggests Kovner and Komittee at least aren't as outwardly bad!

Kovner appears to be a gunner who tries to hire SCOTUS-caliber candidates.
I've heard good things about both, and Kovner does try to hire SCOTUS caliber clerks
Kovner is a good boss but her clerkship involves biglaw+ hours.
Komitee has insane hours. I’ve heard Kovner is actually quite relaxed — she hires extremely well credentialed clerks and trusts them to just get the job done.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Oct 19, 2022 7:21 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 7:10 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 6:39 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 4:22 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 1:41 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:58 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:04 pm
Are Komittee and/or Kovner good to clerk for
They're so newly appointed that they don't have established reputations yet.
But Gujurati (confirmed at the same time) apparently does...which suggests Kovner and Komittee at least aren't as outwardly bad!

Kovner appears to be a gunner who tries to hire SCOTUS-caliber candidates.
I've heard good things about both, and Kovner does try to hire SCOTUS caliber clerks
Kovner is a good boss but her clerkship involves biglaw+ hours.
Komitee has insane hours. I’ve heard Kovner is actually quite relaxed — she hires extremely well credentialed clerks and trusts them to just get the job done.
That’s not what I was told by a Kovner clerk, but it’s possible more recent clerk classes have had different experiences as she’s settled into the role.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Oct 19, 2022 9:23 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 7:21 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 7:10 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 6:39 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 4:22 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 1:41 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:58 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:04 pm
Are Komittee and/or Kovner good to clerk for
They're so newly appointed that they don't have established reputations yet.
But Gujurati (confirmed at the same time) apparently does...which suggests Kovner and Komittee at least aren't as outwardly bad!

Kovner appears to be a gunner who tries to hire SCOTUS-caliber candidates.
I've heard good things about both, and Kovner does try to hire SCOTUS caliber clerks
Kovner is a good boss but her clerkship involves biglaw+ hours.
Komitee has insane hours. I’ve heard Kovner is actually quite relaxed — she hires extremely well credentialed clerks and trusts them to just get the job done.
That’s not what I was told by a Kovner clerk, but it’s possible more recent clerk classes have had different experiences as she’s settled into the role.
There were some reports from her early time on the bench on here that she works her clerks very very hard. EDNY hours are generally lower than SDNY hours though. Komittee and Kovner are both very selective, especially the latter (though not all of her clerks have SCOTUS prospects).

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Oct 19, 2022 11:02 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 9:23 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 7:21 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 7:10 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 6:39 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 4:22 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 1:41 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:58 pm


They're so newly appointed that they don't have established reputations yet.
But Gujurati (confirmed at the same time) apparently does...which suggests Kovner and Komittee at least aren't as outwardly bad!

Kovner appears to be a gunner who tries to hire SCOTUS-caliber candidates.
I've heard good things about both, and Kovner does try to hire SCOTUS caliber clerks
Kovner is a good boss but her clerkship involves biglaw+ hours.
Komitee has insane hours. I’ve heard Kovner is actually quite relaxed — she hires extremely well credentialed clerks and trusts them to just get the job done.
That’s not what I was told by a Kovner clerk, but it’s possible more recent clerk classes have had different experiences as she’s settled into the role.
There were some reports from her early time on the bench on here that she works her clerks very very hard. EDNY hours are generally lower than SDNY hours though. Komittee and Kovner are both very selective, especially the latter (though not all of her clerks have SCOTUS prospects).
I've heard very good things about Kovner's chambers from a direct source. Hours didn't sound too bad for EDNY. I've heard worse things about Komittee's hours, but don't know much about what the clerkship is like beyond the hours.

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Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Oct 20, 2022 1:08 am

Putting together the pieces of information provided above--that Judge Kovner trusts her clerks to get the job done and works them very hard--my guess, based on my own experience clerking, is that she does the bare minimum work herself and relies on her clerks to do virtually everything.

I'm sure if you have an astronomically high IQ and an unbending work ethic, this would the dream job for you. It truly is an honor and privilege to be able to work on challenging, interesting, and high-profile matters. But expect to do all the work yourself and to have little to no guidance along the way.

I sincerely hope I'm wrong, but this may be a reason to avoid a judge, even if she's the nicest and smartest person in the world.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Oct 20, 2022 9:39 am

Anonymous User wrote:
Thu Oct 20, 2022 1:08 am
Putting together the pieces of information provided above--that Judge Kovner trusts her clerks to get the job done and works them very hard--my guess, based on my own experience clerking, is that she does the bare minimum work herself and relies on her clerks to do virtually everything.

I'm sure if you have an astronomically high IQ and an unbending work ethic, this would the dream job for you. It truly is an honor and privilege to be able to work on challenging, interesting, and high-profile matters. But expect to do all the work yourself and to have little to no guidance along the way.

I sincerely hope I'm wrong, but this may be a reason to avoid a judge, even if she's the nicest and smartest person in the world.
Given that Kovner’s clerks revere her, I think your “guess” is a a yoga-down-dog level stretch of an assumption. EDNY has a ginormous docket; of course everyone is grinding, including the judges.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Oct 20, 2022 11:32 am

Anonymous User wrote:
Thu Oct 20, 2022 9:39 am
Anonymous User wrote:
Thu Oct 20, 2022 1:08 am
Putting together the pieces of information provided above--that Judge Kovner trusts her clerks to get the job done and works them very hard--my guess, based on my own experience clerking, is that she does the bare minimum work herself and relies on her clerks to do virtually everything.

I'm sure if you have an astronomically high IQ and an unbending work ethic, this would the dream job for you. It truly is an honor and privilege to be able to work on challenging, interesting, and high-profile matters. But expect to do all the work yourself and to have little to no guidance along the way.

I sincerely hope I'm wrong, but this may be a reason to avoid a judge, even if she's the nicest and smartest person in the world.
Given that Kovner’s clerks revere her, I think your “guess” is a a yoga-down-dog level stretch of an assumption. EDNY has a ginormous docket; of course everyone is grinding, including the judges.
As a former EDNY clerk, I can promise you that "challenging, interesting, and high-profile matters" are few and far between. Half the docket is extremely boring and tedious stuff (pro se cases and the like). The other half requires thoughtful analysis and occasionally you might get presented with a novel legal issue or question that you have to resolve. It's a district court clerkship. You apply precedent to facts. That's pretty much it.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Oct 20, 2022 11:59 am

Anonymous User wrote:
Tue Oct 18, 2022 6:23 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Sat Oct 15, 2022 7:53 pm
Whose good and who should be avoided in EDNY
Good: Brodie, Chen, Donnelly, DeArcy Hall, Amon, Ross, Garaufis, Matsumoto, Amon

Avoid: Kuntz, Irizarry, Mauskopf
As someone currently clerking in EDNY, I would revise as follows from the reputations of the judges:

Good: Chen, Donnelly, Amon, Ross, Garaufis, Komitee, Kovner, Cogan, Dearie

Avoid: Block, Kuntz, Irizarry, Brodie, Mauskopf (when she comes back), DeArcy Hall, Gujarati, Azrack, Gershon

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Anonymous User
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Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Oct 20, 2022 12:05 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Tue Oct 18, 2022 6:23 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Tue Oct 18, 2022 6:23 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Sat Oct 15, 2022 7:53 pm
Whose good and who should be avoided in EDNY
Good: Brodie, Chen, Donnelly, DeArcy Hall, Amon, Ross, Garaufis, Matsumoto, Amon

Avoid: Kuntz, Irizarry, Mauskopf
Not familiar with all those judges, but I have basically universally been told to avoid DeArcy Hall if I can afford it.

Anonymous User
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Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Oct 20, 2022 8:06 pm

Block had a "reputation" for years, but I could never figure out what the reputation actually was for. The people I know who clerked for him recently say nothing but good things; maybe he mellowed.

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Oct 20, 2022 8:21 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Thu Oct 20, 2022 12:05 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Tue Oct 18, 2022 6:23 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Tue Oct 18, 2022 6:23 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Sat Oct 15, 2022 7:53 pm
Whose good and who should be avoided in EDNY
Good: Brodie, Chen, Donnelly, DeArcy Hall, Amon, Ross, Garaufis, Matsumoto, Amon

Avoid: Kuntz, Irizarry, Mauskopf
Not familiar with all those judges, but I have basically universally been told to avoid DeArcy Hall if I can afford it.
Hadn’t heard this. On what basis?

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Oct 20, 2022 9:41 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Thu Oct 20, 2022 1:08 am
Putting together the pieces of information provided above--that Judge Kovner trusts her clerks to get the job done and works them very hard--my guess, based on my own experience clerking, is that she does the bare minimum work herself and relies on her clerks to do virtually everything.

I'm sure if you have an astronomically high IQ and an unbending work ethic, this would the dream job for you. It truly is an honor and privilege to be able to work on challenging, interesting, and high-profile matters. But expect to do all the work yourself and to have little to no guidance along the way.

I sincerely hope I'm wrong, but this may be a reason to avoid a judge, even if she's the nicest and smartest person in the world.
To be clear: most COA cases aren't "challenging, interesting, and high-profile matters," let alone most of the bullshit district courts deal with that never makes its way up

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Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Oct 20, 2022 9:47 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 7:10 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 6:39 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 4:22 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 1:41 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:58 pm
Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 12:04 pm
Are Komittee and/or Kovner good to clerk for
They're so newly appointed that they don't have established reputations yet.
But Gujurati (confirmed at the same time) apparently does...which suggests Kovner and Komittee at least aren't as outwardly bad!

Kovner appears to be a gunner who tries to hire SCOTUS-caliber candidates.
I've heard good things about both, and Kovner does try to hire SCOTUS caliber clerks
Kovner is a good boss but her clerkship involves biglaw+ hours.
Komitee has insane hours. I’ve heard Kovner is actually quite relaxed — she hires extremely well credentialed clerks and trusts them to just get the job done.
Komitee works very hard, and not all of his clerks have had positive experiences, but his work product is very good

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Fri Oct 21, 2022 1:43 pm

Anyone know how Rearden was as a Partner at Gibson? Figure that can be a decentish approximation for how she'd be as a judge.

Anonymous User
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Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Oct 26, 2022 12:36 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Wed Oct 19, 2022 4:26 pm
Anyone have intel on the Central Islip judges particularly Gary Brown, Joan Azrack and Joanna Seybert?
Heard good things about Seybert

Anonymous User
Posts: 428105
Joined: Tue Aug 11, 2009 9:32 am

Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Oct 27, 2022 6:29 am

Same question but SDNY mags?
interested particularly in active / recent appointees who will be around for a while

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Anonymous User
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Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Jun 08, 2023 7:04 pm

Anyone know what Gardephe is like to work for?

Anonymous User
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Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Fri Jun 09, 2023 4:23 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Thu Jun 08, 2023 7:04 pm
Anyone know what Gardephe is like to work for?
I am interested in this as well, if anyone has any info!

Anonymous User
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Re: SDNY judges to avoid

Post by Anonymous User » Fri Jun 09, 2023 5:15 pm

No firsthand knowledge, but a friend described their clerkship experience with him as a nightmare due to the hours. I don't recall them having had any other issues with him personally, but they described the hours expectation as brutal and unnecessary.

This doesn't say anything about the clerkship experience (though it does make the excessive hours ironic), but for what it's worth, he is the slowest judge I've ever litigated before. Work product is solid, but not noticeably different from any other SDNY judges and takes orders of magnitude longer.

Seriously? What are you waiting for?

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