What do judicial interns do

Judges often hope to mentor a new attorney who will practice and get involved in the local legal community. Ties to a geographic locale may include family, friends or significant others in the area, a college or other school experience in the area, previous work experience, or even a visit that introduced you to the place you hoped to be your future home.

Competitiveness of Court: If your dream is to land a federal clerkship or an appellate court clerkship in a particular state, you may want to consider applying to less competitive jurisdictions in addition to the more competitive metropolitan areas that may be your first choice. California is a close second Ninth Circuit. Think about applying for federal clerkships in other areas, such as the Mid-West, Northeast and Southern states.

All of this background may lead you to certain commonalities that you share with particular judges, and may give you an edge in the application process. Personality: According to judges, personality is often a key factor in determining which candidate will become their next clerk.

As with any other job, judges' personalities vary widely and you may prefer a certain personality type in your supervisors. The application process for judicial clerks is decentralized, so you must apply to each individual judge. Federal judges accept applications in one of two ways:. To determine what each judge requires in terms of an application, you may need to call the individual chambers. Whether the application process is decentralized or not, depends on the individual state court.

To determine each state's process, students are encouraged to do the following:. Overview If you are offered an interview, be prepared to schedule the earliest available interview appointment with the judge. Many judges hire clerks on a "rolling basis," meaning that if a judge likes the first three applicants he or she interviews, the judge would often much rather extend an offer to one of those applicants than interview every other candidate on the list.

Keep in mind that a clerkship with a judge involves a close working relationship. Personal chemistry between employer and employee is usually far more important in this setting than in other employment settings. The interview itself can last anywhere from 15 minutes to two hours. Often the current clerk or administrative assistant is included in the interview process. Remember that they are interviewing you, too.

Treat everyone you meet at the courthouse as if they have the power to deny you an offer - because they may. Preparing for the Interview Know your judge! I hope to build a career around helping children, the world's most innocent individuals. Judicial Internship: Judicial Intern with Hon. Each day of my judicial internship I would sit in on trials or motions, observing and later discussing the case or matter with the judge.

Afterwards, the judge would assign me a research project relating to the case at hand. Often he would ask my opinions and reasons why I chose the result I did. This internship boosted my research and writing skills because I was dealing with real-life memoranda of law.

What this basically entailed was helping the judge craft his written decisions. In addition, I would assist the judge in summarizing witness testimonies, as well as work beside the clerk to better understand how matters are organized in the Superior Court. Judicial internships are great hands-on experiences law students should take advantage of if they possibly can!

You will definitely learn how to communicate with attorneys, judges, clerks, and laypeople navigating the legal world. It is an eye-opening experience. And if your judge is as personable as mine was, you may even get a few laughs in! If you want a judicial internship in law school, just go for it and ask lots of questions. You will not regret an opportunity to work alongside a judge and their staff. Once you make a connection and prove you are able to do excellent work, you will start making your name in the legal community while growing your network alongside other successful legal professionals.

The scholarship I received also played a part in easing the financial burden that comes along with law school. Upon completing law school, I would like to work as in-house counsel for a company or firm. My interests include business, corporate, tax, compliance, and regulatory law, although I am very open-minded to all genres!

While interning for Middlesex Probate and Family Court, I conducted legal research and prepared memoranda for judges. I also would sit in the courtroom and observe trials, motion sessions, pre-trial conferences, and contempt hearings. My typical day varied depending on my schedule and the tasks assigned to me.

If I had research to do, I would be at my desk reading through case law. If I was observing a courtroom that day, I would sit off to the side during the session. Definitely go after a judicial internship! Adjust your law school schedule to make it work. It is a unique opportunity to get to know judges. Also, judicial internships are a great opportunity to observe how a courtroom really works. On one of my last days, a court officer pulled me aside and said, "If you learn anything in this internship, it is what not to do in a courtroom.

I chose New England Law because I wanted a small, close-knit community. I was looking for a school where students would work together rather than against each other.

I hope to go into family law , where I can work directly with the clients and help them through the processes they face. Learn more about judicial internship opportunities in law school. In This Section. The Program offers a compelling study experience and valuable exposure to work in a professional environment.

Special enrichment opportunities include attending Court sessions as well as seminars organized by the Supreme Court Fellows. Interns have responsibilities wholly distinct from the case work of the Supreme Court and do not work directly with the Justices or on cases pending before the Court.

Some administrative support duty, such as answering phones and responding to inquiries from members of the public, is required. The Supreme Court Internship Program is unpaid. Interns are encouraged to pursue academic credit through their institutions of study and in consultation with the Supreme Court Internship Program.

Internship opportunities are available in the following offices:. Congress created the statutory position of the Counselor to the Chief Justice in to aid in the increasingly complex planning and leadership duties of the Chief Justice. Outside of the Court, the Counselor supports the Chief Justice in his broad-ranging responsibility as head of the federal judiciary, including in his roles as presiding officer of the Judicial Conference of the United States, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Federal Judicial Center, and Chancellor of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution.

Each intern is assigned to work with a staff member on curatorial projects, such as Visitor Programs, Collections Management, and Digital Assets Management. In addition to their individual projects, all interns gain valuable public speaking and interpersonal skills by conducting tours and Courtroom Lectures and staffing a visitor desk.