3L Public Defender Applications Forum

[Anonymous User]

I had a final round LAS interview with Tina Luongo. I didn't ask when we would hear back. Does anybody know when we'll know about LAS hiring? Seems like all the other offices are already in the process or finished hiring!

I had my final round with Tina earlier this month, and she told me that the LAS budget would be finalized sometime in late April/early May, and that they would be making hiring decisions at that point.

What! That's depressingly late. I don't even live in NY so I'd like to know whether to take the NY bar...

Is it safe to assume a final round is an offer? Should I just commit to the NY bar, or take 2 exams?

It is NOT safe to assume a final round is an offer. And EXPECT to hear from LAS even after the deadlines to sign up for the BAR EXAMS have passed. I was offered a spot early June last year - way after the NY Bar deadline. So I had to decline the offer because I ended up signing up for the bar for another jurisdiction. So if you really want to stay in NY, you should just sign up for the test. And hope for the best. haha. kidding. But not really. Good luck!

Thanks for the tip. I can't believe that, an offer all the way in June! If I may ask, when you apply/interview?

Of course. I had my final interview with Tina early January (the 6th?), 2015, (all the other ones in November, 2015). She said that they would have to wait a while before making decisions because of budget. Seems like this year people are hearing the same.

I would actually encourage you to send them an email as the deadline to sign up for the bar(s) approaches asking whether they anticipate making a decision on your file before, and of course, emphasizing your interest (this I did not do and I regret it). This is very understandable given that not all of their applicants live in NY - and maybe since they saw that happen with me last year, they'll be willing to let you know as soon as they can? lol. Or, as I mentioned, you can just sign up for NY and hope for the best. NY is, after all, the best city of them all .

Good luck, and happy 2016!

[Anonymous User]

Did anyone apply for the juvenile position at Maryland? If so, heard anything?

[Anonymous User]

anyone know of any NJ offers going out yet?

We are in the same boat. I am anxiously awaiting ANY news. Does anyone even know how the process for NJ OPD works?

My friend got an offer in early December if that helps. Haven t spoken to her since, but I know she was weighing her options and might not have accepted.

anyone know of any NJ offers going out yet?

Congrats to her. Do you know if it was a verbal or written offer? And did she find out in-person, by phone, or email/mail?



We are in the same boat. I am anxiously awaiting ANY news. Does anyone even know how the process for NJ OPD works?

they did around 15 panels in november and december, and i believe committed to around 3-5 of those people (if you agreed to participate in one of the panels, you had to agree to commit to NJ if you got an offer instead of shopping the offer around for something else you wanted). the others were pushed over to this semester to be considered, or were possibly rejected. i believe they'll conduct some more panels this semester and also consider those who were interviewed in the first batch. they'll determine how many they can hire when they get their funding info.

Thanks for the reply. Do you know how the people rejected were rejected? I'm still waiting on my ding email/call?

[Anonymous User]

anyone know of any NJ offers going out yet?

We are in the same boat. I am anxiously awaiting ANY news. Does anyone even know how the process for NJ OPD works?

My friend got an offer in early December if that helps. Haven t spoken to her since, but I know she was weighing her options and might not have accepted.

anyone know of any NJ offers going out yet?

Congrats to her. Do you know if it was a verbal or written offer? And did she find out in-person, by phone, or email/mail?



We are in the same boat. I am anxiously awaiting ANY news. Does anyone even know how the process for NJ OPD works?

they did around 15 panels in november and december, and i believe committed to around 3-5 of those people (if you agreed to participate in one of the panels, you had to agree to commit to NJ if you got an offer instead of shopping the offer around for something else you wanted). the others were pushed over to this semester to be considered, or were possibly rejected. i believe they'll conduct some more panels this semester and also consider those who were interviewed in the first batch. they'll determine how many they can hire when they get their funding info.

Thanks for the reply. Do you know how the people rejected were rejected? I'm still waiting on my ding email/call?

I know one person who was rejected after a screener via email. I had a panel in November and was notified in December via email that I'd been pushed over to this semester to be considered. If you haven't heard anything at all, it could mean you're still being considered for their second batch of panels.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone have any idea on what the timeline is like for Brooklyn Defender Services? Seems like Bronx Defenders is pretty done with their hiring. Whereas LAS could take forever. Does anyone have any insights into BDS?

Thanks.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone have any idea on what the timeline is like for Brooklyn Defender Services? Seems like Bronx Defenders is pretty done with their hiring. Whereas LAS could take forever. Does anyone have any insights into BDS?

Thanks.

they're still doing panel interviews

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone have any idea on what the timeline is like for Brooklyn Defender Services? Seems like Bronx Defenders is pretty done with their hiring. Whereas LAS could take forever. Does anyone have any insights into BDS?

Thanks.

they're still doing panel interviews

Great. Thanks a lot. Are there any other recent grads who applied in December still waiting to hear anything? Recent grad here.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone have any idea on what the timeline is like for Brooklyn Defender Services? Seems like Bronx Defenders is pretty done with their hiring. Whereas LAS could take forever. Does anyone have any insights into BDS?

Thanks.

they're still doing panel interviews

Great. Thanks a lot. Are there any other recent grads who applied in December still waiting to hear anything? Recent grad here.

no problem. If I hear anything further about a timeline, I'll report back here.

[Anonymous User]

anyone know of any NJ offers going out yet?

We are in the same boat. I am anxiously awaiting ANY news. Does anyone even know how the process for NJ OPD works?

My friend got an offer in early December if that helps. Haven t spoken to her since, but I know she was weighing her options and might not have accepted.

anyone know of any NJ offers going out yet?

Congrats to her. Do you know if it was a verbal or written offer? And did she find out in-person, by phone, or email/mail?



We are in the same boat. I am anxiously awaiting ANY news. Does anyone even know how the process for NJ OPD works?

they did around 15 panels in november and december, and i believe committed to around 3-5 of those people (if you agreed to participate in one of the panels, you had to agree to commit to NJ if you got an offer instead of shopping the offer around for something else you wanted). the others were pushed over to this semester to be considered, or were possibly rejected. i believe they'll conduct some more panels this semester and also consider those who were interviewed in the first batch. they'll determine how many they can hire when they get their funding info.

Thanks for the reply. Do you know how the people rejected were rejected? I'm still waiting on my ding email/call?

I know one person who was rejected after a screener via email. I had a panel in November and was notified in December via email that I'd been pushed over to this semester to be considered. If you haven't heard anything at all, it could mean you're still being considered for their second batch of panels.

Ok, thanks. That's good to know that I may still be in the running. I'm very interested in what the process for for someone that got an offer. Who gave the offer, etc.?

[Anonymous User]

Anyone receive offers from Maryland (or know of someone that has been offered) for the spring or fall class?

[Anonymous User]

Maryland called today to let me know they are checking references... Hopefully this means an offer is forthcoming. Fingers crossed!

[Poe kitty]

Maryland called today to let me know they are checking references... Hopefully this means an offer is forthcoming. Fingers crossed!

Cool! I bet you will get one! How did your panel go?

[Anonymous User]

Anyone receive offers from Maryland (or know of someone that has been offered) for the spring or fall class?

Hey there,

I know of a recent graduate (not a 3L) who received and accepted a Maryland spring class offer in mid-December about 2.5 weeks ago.

Good luck to those still waiting!

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone have any idea on what the timeline is like for Brooklyn Defender Services? Seems like Bronx Defenders is pretty done with their hiring. Whereas LAS could take forever. Does anyone have any insights into BDS?

Thanks.

they're still doing panel interviews

Great. Thanks a lot. Are there any other recent grads who applied in December still waiting to hear anything? Recent grad here.

Yep, same boat--recent grad, applied in November and have heard nothing since they confirmed receipt of my materials.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone hear from fdsd (San diego)? Had a second round but have yet to hear back.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone hear from fdsd (San diego)? Had a second round but have yet to hear back.

Congrats on the FDSD interviews! I went through the cycle last year - interviewed at career fair in NY (early Feb), then went to their "callback" in their office (which is supposed to be the last part of the process, and thinking about it makes me still nervous, hahaha) sometime in March. BUT, did not get an offer.

If you haven't gone through the call back process yet, I'll be happy to give you insights into the half-day interview/process/torture. Congrats again, and good luck!

[ThisMan]

Anons who had interviews at FDSD, mind posting/pm'ing your stats? How competitive is the process? What were the interviews like?

[Anonymous User]

Got an offer from Maryland! So pumped!!

[Anonymous User]

Got an offer from Maryland! So pumped!!

Spring or Fall? And Congrats!!

[Anonymous User]

Anons who had interviews at FDSD, mind posting/pm'ing your stats? How competitive is the process? What were the interviews like?

FDSD is very, very competitive. They tend to look for top school grads - look through their bios and that will become apparent.

With that said, I did NOT go to a top 25 school, and was given the chance to interview.

It is a pretty rigorous process. The first interview was at a career fair, and was with about 4-5 attorneys. Just a normal convo about my interest in indigent defense, etc. Then, a few weeks later, I got an email asking me to go to their SD office for a call back. This meant:

Going on in the morning for an interview with the executive board; going around the floor talking to attorneys (junior, senior, etc.); then they gave us some time to read through cases and prepare a closing argument AND a cross examination on your own (they lock you in a room and you work on that nonstop until time is up), then you present the closing argument AND the cross in front of, I would say, every attorney in the office. It's like having 20+ judges watching you. Unlike other PD offices, they do not give you any materials to study/prep before hand. It's like the real deal, on the go. That's why I said earlier that thinking about it still makes me nervous. haha.

This was last year. Not sure if they do the same every year, or if they change it.

Hope that helps.

[Anonymous User]

just got a call to schedule a first round interview with BDS. i'm a recent grad (graduated 2015). anyone know what you're generally asked to do?

[eaternation]

Anons who had interviews at FDSD, mind posting/pm'ing your stats? How competitive is the process? What were the interviews like?

FDSD is very, very competitive. They tend to look for top school grads - look through their bios and that will become apparent.

With that said, I did NOT go to a top 25 school, and was given the chance to interview.

It is a pretty rigorous process. The first interview was at a career fair, and was with about 4-5 attorneys. Just a normal convo about my interest in indigent defense, etc. Then, a few weeks later, I got an email asking me to go to their SD office for a call back. This meant:

Going on in the morning for an interview with the executive board; going around the floor talking to attorneys (junior, senior, etc.); then they gave us some time to read through cases and prepare a closing argument AND a cross examination on your own (they lock you in a room and you work on that nonstop until time is up), then you present the closing argument AND the cross in front of, I would say, every attorney in the office. It's like having 20+ judges watching you. Unlike other PD offices, they do not give you any materials to study/prep before hand. It's like the real deal, on the go. That's why I said earlier that thinking about it still makes me nervous. haha.

This was last year. Not sure if they do the same every year, or if they change it.

Hope that helps.

Thanks for the info

[Anonymous User]

I just had my philly panel. I think they're interviewing for a few more weeks.

[Anonymous User]

Re: updates, I know somebody with an LAS panel in a few weeks. I'm personally still waiting to hear back since my screener w/ LAS.

[eaternation]

How late did people interview for fdsd in recent years?

Anons who had interviews at FDSD, mind posting/pm'ing your stats? How competitive is the process? What were the interviews like?

FDSD is very, very competitive. They tend to look for top school grads - look through their bios and that will become apparent.

With that said, I did NOT go to a top 25 school, and was given the chance to interview.

It is a pretty rigorous process. The first interview was at a career fair, and was with about 4-5 attorneys. Just a normal convo about my interest in indigent defense, etc. Then, a few weeks later, I got an email asking me to go to their SD office for a call back. This meant:

Going on in the morning for an interview with the executive board; going around the floor talking to attorneys (junior, senior, etc.); then they gave us some time to read through cases and prepare a closing argument AND a cross examination on your own (they lock you in a room and you work on that nonstop until time is up), then you present the closing argument AND the cross in front of, I would say, every attorney in the office. It's like having 20+ judges watching you. Unlike other PD offices, they do not give you any materials to study/prep before hand. It's like the real deal, on the go. That's why I said earlier that thinking about it still makes me nervous. haha.

This was last year. Not sure if they do the same every year, or if they change it.

Hope that helps.

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