Continuation II: The Judges
I recently discovered a resource called "The Almanac of the Federal Judiciary" (described here). It features lengthy descriptions of the federal judges based on attorney surveys, which include the general question "how would you rate this judge?" When I first started reading, it seemed like a useless question. LIke a system that only gives out A's (couldn't help myself, see discussion below), all of the judges are "praised" or "very good" or "outstanding." Only after reading 20 or 30 did I notice that a pattern exists. No one wants to speak badly of a judge, but they will speak of judges in different flavors of greatness. From what I could discern, the best a judge could receive is "Attorneys' raved about Judge ____." So, without further ado, two to three hours of sweatwork converted into a list of the "raved about" federal district judges in the districts I checked (which was not all). I hope you enjoy the list, but remember the source (also consider reading the source if you care about judge's political leanings, interests, sentencing practices, senior judge docket composition, etc.).
D.Mass: Young (CJ), Gertner, Zobel
D.N.H: Barbadero
D.Conn: Chatigny (CJ), Underhill (note on Boalt's new faculty hires clerked for Underhill)
S.D.N.Y.: Chin, Cote, Lynch (merely "excellent" in S.D.N.Y.: Mukasey (CJ), Kaplan (KPMG hero), Koeltl, Pauley, Scheindler, Stein, Wood)
E.D.N.Y.: Korman, Gleeson, Weinstein
D.N.J.: Hayden, Pisano, Wolfson
E.D.Pa: Bartle, Dalzell, McLaughlin, Pollak
D.Md: Blake, Chasanow
D.D.C: Bates, Friedman, Robertson
N.D.Cal: Walker (CJ), Breyer, Whyte
E.D.Cal: Levi, Wanger
C.D.Cal: Collins, King, Manella, Morrow, Tevrizian
D.Ariz: Teilborg
D.Idaho: Lodge
D.Nev: Pro (CJ)
S.D.Tex: Kazen, Lake, Rosenthal
N.D.Ga: Murphy
E.D.N.C.: Howard
W.D.N.C.: Thornburg
D.S.C.: Anderson, Norton
I've also been asking around at work about which type of clerkship, district or appellate, is best for a future attorney. Either is obviously beneficial, but the appellate clerkship is best for people interested in academia, policy, appellate practice, politics, etc. The consensus has been that a district court clerkship is more immediately useful for a young trial lawyer.
Has anybody stumbled on any other information? July 28 is the deadline for our lists. Also, any thoughts on writing samples?
PS: The Garrison Keillor Independence Day Performance is amazing; it's closing out now with "America the Beautiful." Wow. I love you PBS, even more than Civ Pro.
D.Mass: Young (CJ), Gertner, Zobel
D.N.H: Barbadero
D.Conn: Chatigny (CJ), Underhill (note on Boalt's new faculty hires clerked for Underhill)
S.D.N.Y.: Chin, Cote, Lynch (merely "excellent" in S.D.N.Y.: Mukasey (CJ), Kaplan (KPMG hero), Koeltl, Pauley, Scheindler, Stein, Wood)
E.D.N.Y.: Korman, Gleeson, Weinstein
D.N.J.: Hayden, Pisano, Wolfson
E.D.Pa: Bartle, Dalzell, McLaughlin, Pollak
D.Md: Blake, Chasanow
D.D.C: Bates, Friedman, Robertson
N.D.Cal: Walker (CJ), Breyer, Whyte
E.D.Cal: Levi, Wanger
C.D.Cal: Collins, King, Manella, Morrow, Tevrizian
D.Ariz: Teilborg
D.Idaho: Lodge
D.Nev: Pro (CJ)
S.D.Tex: Kazen, Lake, Rosenthal
N.D.Ga: Murphy
E.D.N.C.: Howard
W.D.N.C.: Thornburg
D.S.C.: Anderson, Norton
I've also been asking around at work about which type of clerkship, district or appellate, is best for a future attorney. Either is obviously beneficial, but the appellate clerkship is best for people interested in academia, policy, appellate practice, politics, etc. The consensus has been that a district court clerkship is more immediately useful for a young trial lawyer.
Has anybody stumbled on any other information? July 28 is the deadline for our lists. Also, any thoughts on writing samples?
PS: The Garrison Keillor Independence Day Performance is amazing; it's closing out now with "America the Beautiful." Wow. I love you PBS, even more than Civ Pro.
Labels: Idaho, Kevin Smith
posted by Tom Fletcher at 7:31 PM
7 Comments:
Thanks, Tom, for wading through those reviews and sharing your results with us. I'm working with a guy this summer who clerked at both levels and confirms the greater practical utility of working at the district court. He also says that year was a lot more fun, although it sounds like he got along very well with both of his judges.
I don't know if anyone out there is considering clerking for a magistrate judge, but I learned something about that the other day, too. My impression is that some of the magistrate judges in N.D. Cal. are outstanding (indeed, I tried--and failed--to get externships with Magistrate Judges Spero and Brazil), but I recently learned that the calendaring system for these judges can vary dramatically from court to court. My understanding is that in the Northern District they have direct calendaring, where the Magistrates handle all kinds of matters, including civil and criminal trials, from beginning to end (with the consent of the parties, that is). In the First Circuit, however, at least in the District of Massachusetts, magistrates are assigned to individual district judges, who treat them in essence like what California state courts would call "special masters," delegating supervision of the dreariest, most boring tasks. Thus, while I still think working for a magistrate judge COULD be a great job, it appears that it makes a lot of sense to ask detailed questions about calendaring and the role of the magistrate in a particular district.
Hi all,
thanks for the info on clerkships. I'm wondering about clerkship cover letters. The sample one that CDO has seems to be really short. ("I am interested in a clerkship, I have included a writing sample and a resume.") Does anyone know how much info usually goes into a clerkship cover letter? Do people typically tailor them to the individual judge? Do judges care?
hi all,
thanks for the info on clerkships. does anyone have any ideas about what goes into a clerkship letter - the CDO samples look like they're not personalized at all to the particular judge, but that seems strange. do judges really want a form letter?
oops slightly diff. versions of my comment posted twice, sorry
The thing I've found the most helpful is asking the attorneys I work with this summer. One attorney went through a list of ninth circuit judges and highlighted the ones she thought would be good to work with and which ones she knew personally (and thus could put in a good word). It seems worthwhile to inquire of the attorneys around you--especially partners--because you never know if they might have a personal relationship with someone and could recommend you.
re: cover letter length - short and sweet is best. the boalt model is very good. most of the top 10 schools also recommend a very short letter. i also heard from friend who clerked on 9th that in many chambers letters aren't looked at (unless there's a glaring typo), and long, gushy letters are frequently the subject of clerk ridicule.
+1 on district court clerkships.
Even better is a district court judge who sits by designation on appellate courts. That way you get just enough of a taste of the appellate world to appreciate it, yet you experience all the fun parts of the district court world.
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