Researching Specific Judges

After you determine the court and city in which you would like to work, you need to determine which judges to apply to. Some questions to ask yourself about the judge include:

• Do you and the judge share the same political viewpoint? Not all judges require that you share their viewpoint, but it may be helpful to consider. There are judges, however, who like to know they have differing opinions in their chambers.
• Is the judge respected by his or her peers? This may be very important. For example, some well-respected circuit court judges are considered "feeder" judges. They "feed" many clerks into U.S. Supreme Court clerkships after one year. The Almanac of the Federal Judiciary , located behind the library reference desk and in the CSO, contains biographical sketches of federal judges, significant decisions, and lawyers' comments about the judge. The American Bench Book , in the law library, contains short biographical sketches of state and federal judges.
• What is the judge's managerial style? You can learn more about working with a judge by calling past law clerks. They may be able to give you an idea of how much autonomy clerks are allowed, how involved the clerk is in the daily workings of the court and the general atmosphere of the chamber.
• How recently was the judge appointed? You may have a better chance of success by applying to recently appointed judges. Finding courts and judges can take time, but is not too difficult.