A Day in the Life of a Federal Law Clerk

Presented by the ABA National Conference of Federal Trial Judges & the ABA Law Student Division Panelists

R. Jonathan Shirts (Moderator), J.D. Candidate for the Class of 2018 at the University of Idaho College of Law

The Honorable J. Michelle Childs, United States District Judge, District of South Carolina

Deborah Morgan, Career Law Clerk to the Honorable Margaret B. Seymour, United States District Judge, District of South Carolina

Ethan Bercot, Term Law Clerk to the Honorable J. Michelle Childs

Leslie Su, Law Clerk to the Honorable Frank J. Bailey, United States Bankruptcy Court, District of Massachusetts GO PREMIUM www.abaforlawstudents.com/gopremium

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Preparing For Your Clerkship Webinar Replay: Demystifying the Judicial Clerkship Application Process and Experience

Available at: abaforlawstudents.com/2015/12/02/webinar-demystifying-judicial-clerkships Responsibilities of Federal Law Clerks

• Research complex legal issues

• Draft bench memos and orders

• Work closely with the Clerk of Court

• Prepare for hearings and trials • Hearings and trials are rare in Federal District Court • Criminal hearings are most common Expectations of Federal Law Clerks

• Generalists • Master a wide array of legal issues • Isolation • A vast majority of a clerk’s day involves sitting at a desk • Reading, researching, and writing • Independence • Produce quality work product with little guidance • Do not interact with counsel • Time Constraints • No set schedule • Work effectively to meet deadlines Qualities of Successful Law Clerks Keys to Success

• Independence • Judge will not hold your hand • Make decisions on your own • Quality Work Product • Clear and concise writing style • Careful explanations of procedural history and legal authority • Communication • Communicate with your judge when you run into a problem, especially if you expect the issue to cause a delay • Research your Judge • Read opinions and orders authored by your judge • Adapt your writing style so that it compliments your judge’s writing style • Do not apply to clerk for a judge if you fundamentally disagree with his or her values Why Pursue a Federal Clerkship? Benefits of Clerking for a Federal Judge

• Improve your research and writing skills • Observe attorneys in action • Learn from their successes and failures • Learn more about specialized practice areas • Learn to be objective and intellectually honest • Create a reputation for yourself in the legal community • Build relationships with federal judges, fellow law clerks, and attorneys Ethics For Law Clerks Your professional and personal actions reflect on your judge and the judiciary as a whole.

• Most common ethical issues • Confidentiality • Conflicts of interest • Outside legal activities • Dealings with prospective employers • Outside professional, social, and community activities • Receipt of gifts and honoraria • Political activity • Code of Conduct for Judicial Employees is applicable to law clerks • Respect • Always respect your judge • Respect is not subservience – do not be afraid to express an opinion contrary to your judge’s opinion when asked. Your judge values your input. Clerkship Opportunities ABA Judicial Clerkship Program (Contact-Sharon Tindall, [email protected])

• A joint effort of the ABA Council for Racial & Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline and the ABA Judicial Division. • Three day program that brings together up to 100 minority law students from around the country with judges and former law clerks, at the ABA Mid-Year Meeting held in various cities around the country. • Activities • Panel Discussions • Research and Writing Exercise • Informal Social Events • Many students obtain clerkships and internships as a result of their participation ABA Section of Litigation Judicial Intern Opportunity Program (JIOP – www.ambar.org/jiop)

• Provides opportunities to students who are members of traditionally underrepresented racial and ethnic groups as well as students with disabilities, economic disadvantages or who identify as LGBT. • Full time summer internship program (32 hrs./week and 6 week minimum) open to all first- or second-year diverse law students. • Participating judges from: • Phoenix, AZ • Miami, FL • Philadelphia, PA • New York, NY • Seattle, WA • Several cities in California, Illinois, and Texas • Summer 2017 Judicial Intern Opportunity Program: • According to ABA website, as of today, March 22, the application process for the Summer 2017 Program is still open • Summer 2018 deadline unavailable at this time Just the Beginning – A Pipeline Organization Summer Judicial Intern Diversity Project (www.JTB.org)

• This project is to assist judges in placing highly-qualified minority, under-represented, and economically disadvantaged law students in chambers of federal judges for summer internships. • The cornerstone of the project is to develop a prescreened pool of highly qualified, diverse law school students to serve in federal judicial internship positions. • The experience should foster a mentor-mentee relationship for all involved. • Generally, there are no stipends for these positions provided by J.T.B. Foundation, but some courts may offer stipends. Questions?