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CoA Chances

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Jun 15, 2017 10:57 am

2017 grad, looking for 2019 or 2020 term.

Currently have:
  • Top 5% mid-T2
    Law Review (not published) + Moot Court
    A+/A in Fed Courts/Con Law/Admin/Evidence/Civ Pro
Will have:
  • 1 year clerkship @ SSC
    1-2 years litigation @ NYC V20
I'm willing to take almost any CoA clerkship. If a D. Ct. is a necessary prereq (given my T2 background), I'd do that, but I much prefer appellate work. Also that would be 3+ years of clerking (SSC, D.Ct., CoA).

So, D.C. is definitely out, 2/9 are probably out too, but can you chance me at other CoAs?

Thanks!

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rpupkin

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by rpupkin » Thu Jun 15, 2017 12:37 pm

Low chance, but your chances will be best in the region in which your law school is located. Ask your Prof recommenders for help identifying judges whom they might know or whom they think would consider a grad of your law school. Also exploit any connections that your SSC judge has.

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Lincoln

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by Lincoln » Thu Jun 15, 2017 1:26 pm

Yeah, you need to figure out which specific judges to target. In most chambers (incl. my D.Ct.), your application wouldn't even get in front of the judge's eyes. You should target (1) judges who are alums, (2) judges who have previously hired clerks from your school, and (3) judges who have judged moot courts or have any other connection to your school.

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mjb447

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by mjb447 » Thu Jun 15, 2017 2:18 pm

Agree with the advice ITT - your credentials aren't going to get you a CoA position on their own, so you should discover and exploit any connections you can. (Of course, once you have your materials together you can always throw a few Hail Mary apps or blanket a circuit if you've got the time and money [and willing recommenders/clerkship office]).

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Jun 15, 2017 9:05 pm

Bummer. But necessary advice.

Thanks all.

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FloridaCoastalorbust

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by FloridaCoastalorbust » Thu Jun 15, 2017 9:25 pm

I think your chances are better than what some have led on. Think about clerkships in mega-flyover places like El Dorado, Arkansas (Bobby Shepherd), Cedar Rapids, Iowa (Jane Kelly), and Sioux Falls, South Dakota (Roger Wollman). These are judges just in the Eighth Circuit, and there are many other circuits with similar places. If you have two professors or a judge make a call, I think your credentials are enough to get at least one interview, and that's all it takes.

ETA: Accidental anon - floridacoastalorbust

timmyd

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by timmyd » Thu Jun 15, 2017 9:34 pm

Yea I think your chances are better than urged on this thread as well--especially with a ssc. This ssc could travel well in the circuit where that state court sits. But I only clerked at the federal district level so I guess I could be way off.

Maybe a district clerkship would help, but I'm not sure it would be any more valuable than the ssc clerkship

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Jun 15, 2017 10:14 pm

Anonymous User wrote:Think about clerkships in mega-flyover places like El Dorado, Arkansas (Bobby Shepherd), Cedar Rapids, Iowa (Jane Kelly), and Sioux Falls, South Dakota (Roger Wollman).
Perfect, actually. My short-term geographic preferences are virtually non-existent. Good to hear!

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by lolwat » Fri Jun 16, 2017 1:48 am

Any alums from your school a COA judge?
Any COA judges who have hired from your school before?
I know its been said before but these are likely your best shots
Mega flyover areas can still be tough -- those judges probably have developed some affinity for certain schools etc. shepherd hires from WUSTL often i believe for example. Definitely try, Tho

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Anonymous User
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Re: CoA Chances

Post by Anonymous User » Fri Jun 16, 2017 10:57 am

lolwat wrote:Any alums from your school a COA judge?
A fair number. Still in the single digits, but it's better than none. The issue is that they all sit in competitive circuits, so they likely have their pick of clerks.
lolwat wrote:Any COA judges who have hired from your school before?
Every few years or so.

At this point, I suppose my question has pivoted to, "would a district court clerkship substantially help my credentials?" Especially since the alumni factor alone may not be influential enough.

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Lincoln

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by Lincoln » Fri Jun 16, 2017 1:49 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
lolwat wrote:Any alums from your school a COA judge?
A fair number. Still in the single digits, but it's better than none. The issue is that they all sit in competitive circuits, so they likely have their pick of clerks.
lolwat wrote:Any COA judges who have hired from your school before?
Every few years or so.

At this point, I suppose my question has pivoted to, "would a district court clerkship substantially help my credentials?" Especially since the alumni factor alone may not be influential enough.
I'm a district court clerk and have never been interested in COA, so take this with a grain of salt. My guess is that the chances that a district court clerkship would make a material difference (in the form of a recommendation from your USDJ to a friendly COA judge) are too slim to make it worth it if you aren't interested. My judge, for example, is BFFs with a COA judge in our circuit, but has, to my knowledge, never recommended a clerk to that COA judge.

You are probably better off trying to leverage your SSC clerkship, hopefully through a recommendation from your SSC judge.

lolwat

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by lolwat » Fri Jun 16, 2017 2:20 pm

Ssc and 1-2 yr lit should be enough. Do not think district court will help significantly.

It could in the sense that the dct judge knows coa judges and can recommend, but that's hit or miss and a big risk to take considering the one year. Agree w lincoln above.

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by Anonymous User » Fri Jun 16, 2017 2:24 pm

Anonymous User wrote:I think your chances are better than what some have led on. Think about clerkships in mega-flyover places like El Dorado, Arkansas (Bobby Shepherd), Cedar Rapids, Iowa (Jane Kelly), and Sioux Falls, South Dakota (Roger Wollman). These are judges just in the Eighth Circuit, and there are many other circuits with similar places. If you have two professors or a judge make a call, I think your credentials are enough to get at least one interview, and that's all it takes.

ETA: Accidental anon - floridacoastalorbust
I'm a current CA8 clerk, and I would agree that OP's chances are good with certain Eighth Circuit judges if the T2 or the SSC is somewhere in the Eight Circuit or if OP has ties to the region, but otherwise I think it's too optimistic. These judges will hire from T2 schools, but usually only if they're local schools. For example, lolwat is correct about Shepherd: his current clerks are all from WUSTL and the University of Arkansas. I don't see them hiring anyone from a random T2 across the country just because two professors make a call, especially if the judge doesn't know them.

That said, OP should still apply broadly and see what happens.

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Re: CoA Chances

Post by Anonymous User » Thu Apr 30, 2020 5:29 pm

Anonymous User wrote:
Anonymous User wrote:I think your chances are better than what some have led on. Think about clerkships in mega-flyover places like El Dorado, Arkansas (Bobby Shepherd), Cedar Rapids, Iowa (Jane Kelly), and Sioux Falls, South Dakota (Roger Wollman). These are judges just in the Eighth Circuit, and there are many other circuits with similar places. If you have two professors or a judge make a call, I think your credentials are enough to get at least one interview, and that's all it takes.

ETA: Accidental anon - floridacoastalorbust
I'm a current CA8 clerk, and I would agree that OP's chances are good with certain Eighth Circuit judges if the T2 or the SSC is somewhere in the Eight Circuit or if OP has ties to the region, but otherwise I think it's too optimistic. These judges will hire from T2 schools, but usually only if they're local schools. For example, lolwat is correct about Shepherd: his current clerks are all from WUSTL and the University of Arkansas. I don't see them hiring anyone from a random T2 across the country just because two professors make a call, especially if the judge doesn't know them.

That said, OP should still apply broadly and see what happens.
I'm resurrecting a very old thread (not much about the Eighth Circuit on here), but Cedar Rapids isn't that small. The Cedar Rapids/Iowa City belt has nearly half a million people and the University of Iowa; it's much, much more urban than Sioux Falls or El Dorado (from experience) and more comparable to a smaller version of Des Moines, Madison, or Omaha.

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