However, judicial clerkship applicants should not apply to geographic locations that are not feasible even in the short term. There are several different options when applying to a federal court. While there are differing levels of competitiveness, it is a generally accepted fact that all federal clerkships are incredibly competitive.

Applicants seeking a clerkship should apply in early September and not before in accordance with the Federal Hiring Plan. Ask an OPD staff member for more information. Federal judges will then observe a reading period in mid-September.

Then judges can begin interviewing candidates and making offers. It is critical that applicants assemble application packets over the summer before third year and have them ready to mail for the early September due date. That means that applicants should start the research and application preparation process in late June or early July. Applicants who begin the process late and are not ready to send applications pursuant to the Hiring Plan will risk losing out on the opportunity.

With just 14 days between the opening of the application period and the date that judges can make offers, the process will move quickly. The following is a breakdown of the courts at the federal level:. These clerkship positions are obviously the most competitive. In fact, U. Supreme Court clerks are not hired while the clerk is in law school.

In order to be considered for a clerkship with the U. Supreme Court, applicants must almost always have completed a clerkship at the federal Court of Appeals level.

Certain courts, such as the Court of Appeals for the D. Circuit are considered most likely to lead to a U. Supreme Court clerkship. The credentials of individuals selected for such positions are almost always extraordinary. Find more information on the U. Supreme Court. There are 12 regional circuit courts of appeal. Each judge at the Court of Appeals level has two or three clerks. With a limited number of positions available and with the complexity of legal issues presented, these clerkships are incredibly competitive, although certain circuits are more competitive than others.

The D. Circuit, the Second Circuit, and the Ninth Circuit are generally considered the most competitive. See a map of circuits and links to circuit court websites. There are 94 judicial districts in the United States. There are two different clerkship options at the federal trial court level.

First, there are several hundred active U. District judges across the country, most of whom have two law clerks. Second, U. District magistrate judges frequently hire judicial clerks.

Magistrates handle pre-trial matters for trials before the District Court and handle trials for petty offenders. Judicial clerks at the Bankruptcy Court are responsible for reviewing cases, writing memoranda of law, and answering attorney questions regarding court procedures and policies.

There are 19 judges appointed to the Tax Court each with approximately three judicial clerks. Clerks receive the experience of a trial court within the specialized field of tax.

The court's trials involve controversies regarding deficiencies in income, estate, and gift taxes, among other things. Students interested in positions should be sure to take and excel in tax courses and be ranked in the upper third of their class. Tax Court. This specialized court sits in Washington, D. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. This court has 18 judges and approximately 19 law clerks. The judges hear cases dealing with suits against the United States.

This court has nine judges, most of whom have two law clerks. The jurisdiction of this court is over civil actions against the United States arising from federal laws governing import transactions. Find more information about the court. Many students from Indiana University Robert H. Each justice has two clerks with the exception of the chief justice who has three. Clerks are primarily responsible for reviewing the trial record, researching the applicable law, and drafting legal memoranda and court opinions.

Clerks also attend oral arguments before the court. Students interested in a clerkship opportunity should apply during the fall semester of their second year. Find more information on the Indiana Supreme Court and on the justices.

There are 15 judges on the Indiana Court of Appeals. The courtroom and all judges' offices are located in Indianapolis. The courtroom and nine offices occupy a portion of the fourth floor of the State House. Six offices and the administrative offices are housed on the twelfth floor of the National City Center in downtown Indianapolis. Some judges select their clerks during the fall and some wait until the spring semester.

Students should apply during the second year of law school. Find more information on the Indiana Court of Appeals and on the judges. Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law students can clerk at any state court in the country and are not limited to the Indiana state court system. The deadlines and procedures for individual state courts vary widely.

The National Center for State Courts has more information about state courts across the country. A judicial clerkship application generally includes a cover letter, resume, writing sample, law school transcript, and three to four letters of recommendation. Bring completed clerkship application packets to the Office of Professional Development in addressed, but unsealed envelopes. Please see the section below regarding letters of recommendation for instructions on including letters in application packets.

An applicant's cover letter is extremely important because this is the first opportunity the judge has to evaluate writing ability. A poorly written cover letter or a cover letter with errors will result in the applicant not receiving an interview. Cover letters should be no more than one page.

It is important that a member of the Professional Development staff review judicial clerkship cover letters before they are sent. A cover letter should indicate the applicant's interest in a judicial clerkship during a specific hiring cycle including the month and year the applicant is available to begin work and should include information that the judge will need to evaluate such as academic success including the ability to research and write , interest in or connection to a particular geographic area, and availability for interviews, including any trips planned to the area.

District courts consider a wide range of civil and criminal matters. There are 94 U. Since district courts are trial courts, a law clerk at this level is involved in the many decisions that take place at every stage of the litigation process.

Briefs submitted tend to be shorter than at the appellate level. Decision making is fact oriented. A clerk may assist with discovery disputes, settlement conferences, pretrial, trial, and post-trial motions, and, in criminal cases, sentencing. Trial court clerks, in general, have substantial contact with attorneys and witnesses. District court opinions are published only when the trial judge elects. Each federal district court has magistrate judges attached to it.

Each district establishes its own rules regarding the assignments that may be made to magistrate judges. Generally, these judicial officers perform many functions similar to those performed by district court judges, but they do not have the authority to make final decisions. Magistrate judges typically have a great deal of responsibility in handling the pretrial stages of cases: issuing arrest warrants, handling discovery matters, and making recommendations on motions for dismissal and motions for summary judgment.

Magistrate judges can try individuals accused of minor criminal offenses and may also conduct all of the proceedings in civil cases upon the consent of all parties. Each federal district court has an associated bankruptcy court. The volume of cases and proceedings in bankruptcy court is generally greater than in other trial courts. Law clerks can expect to work on disputes involving the interface between bankruptcy law and most other areas of civil law, such as contract law, labor law and tax law.

Most trials are bench trials. Titles and duties vary somewhat from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, but in general it can be said that staff attorneys and pro se law clerks perform many of the same tasks performed by law clerks for individual judges, but they work for the court as a whole or for a particular panel of judges. These tasks include legal research and the preparation of memoranda, opinions, and orders in various areas of federal law.

Typically, at least one-half of the cases handled by a staff attorney are cases in which one party is proceeding pro se. Some courts, especially the circuit courts, handle a large number of pro se matters and, therefore, have pro se clerks who handle these cases exclusively. A demonstrated interest in and commitment to public interest law is a big plus for positions involving a substantial number of pro se cases.

Other courts classify these positions as permanent. While most of these positions are available to recent law school graduates, a few of the jurisdictions require several years of practice experience. The jurisdiction of the U. Court of Federal Claims extends to actions against the United States government. About one-third of the cases involve tax refund suits, an area in which the Court exercises concurrent jurisdiction with the district courts.

Other areas of jurisdiction include inverse condemnation suits under the Fifth Amendment and claims by Indian tribes for unfair dealing by the U. This court hears cases involving the customs laws of the United States. The court rarely hears cases involving public international law, but most of the law clerks hired have studied international law in law school.

Tax Court has jurisdiction over controversies involving deficiencies determined by the Commissioner of Internal Revenue in income, estate, and gift taxes, and other cases involving federal tax law. The principal office of the Tax Court is in Washington, D. Although the court holds sessions throughout the country, clerks do not travel with the judges. Information on the U. The summer between your 2L and 3L years is typically a good time to apply for a U.

Tax Court clerkship. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, formerly known as the Court of Military Appeals, exercises appellate review of court-martial convictions.

Located in Washington, D. Its decisions prior to were final, but now are subject to review by the Supreme Court. For people who are unsure about a permanent job, or who are looking for a public interest or public sector job, a clerkship can keep you clothed and fed while you await bar results and search for a job.

A clerkship, however, is not right for everyone. If you are not interested in legal research and writing, are eager to get started in a job with more permanence, or are more comfortable in a role of more forthright advocacy, you might consider other alternatives.

Play Icon Play icon in a circular border. Take charge. Explore the possibilities. What To Expect Clerking entails a good deal of legal research and writing, though it can also involve administrative responsibilities. Back to the Top.