The Judicial Clerkship Program 10th Anniversary Brochure

ABA Council for Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline

— and the — ABA Judicial Division

The materials contained herein represent the opinions of the authors and the editors and should not be construed to be those of either the American Bar Association or the ABA Council for Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline unless adopted pursuant to the bylaws of the Association. Nothing contained herein is to be considered as the rendering of legal advice for specific cases, and readers are responsible for obtaining such advice from their own legal counsel. These materials and any forms and agreements herein are intended for educational and informational purposes only.

Copyright 2010 American Bar Association

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Table of ConTenTs

Introduction 6

Celebrating Its 10th YearThe ABA Judicial Clerkship Program Celebrates Its 10th Anniversary 7

By Justice Frank Sullivan, Jr., Indiana Supreme Court, Indianapolis, IN

Conference of Chief Justices Resolution 6 16Adopted as proposed by the CCJ Access to and Fairness in the Courts

Committee at the Midyear Meeting on January 28, 2009

JCP Metrics...The Clerks 17

Congratulatory Letters from ABA Leadership 20

Perspectives & Commentaries 26 What judges, students and law schools really think about JCP

ABA Entities Collaborate 31

Acknowledgements 33

6 | JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP PROGRAM AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION

baCkground


The aba JudiCial Clerkship program CelebraTes iTs 10Th anniversary


In 2000, following the publication of a study showing that mi-norities have made little progress in obtaining judicial clerk-ships, the then–president of the American Bar Association

William (Bill) Paul announced a new initiative designed to increase the number of minority clerks at the state and federal level.

Speaking at a news conference during the Association’s Midyear Meeting in Dallas, President Paul said the joint study, released by the ABA and the National Association for Law Placement, under-scores the need for action.

The study showed that just 15 percent of all judicial clerkships were held by minorities, despite the fact that minorities make up 30 percent of the population and 20 percent of the law student popula-tion. In addition, although the number of minority judicial clerks had increased from 388 to 509, the number of clerkships also in-creased. Therefore, by percentage, minority representation in clerk-ships had only risen from 13 to 15 percent. In six of the twelve federal circuits, the percentage of clerkships held by minorities ac-tually dropped.

In discussing the trends identified in the study, Paul noted that, “the legal profession is 92 percent white and only 8 percent minori-ties. In contrast, the U.S. population is 70 percent white and 30 percent minorities. If we are to maintain our justice system as the

best in the world, we need to address issues of ethnic and racial diversity in the legal profession.”

Many law schools have also recognized the ominous nature of this trend. Without fair access to judicial clerkships, both law schools and their graduates lose significant opportunities. For re-cent law school graduates, serving as a judicial law clerk is a mark of distinction and honor that will advance their career opportuni-ties. Former law clerks generally have an advantage when pursu-ing careers in academia, in government as high level appointees, as litigators in prestigious areas of the private sector, and in securing appointments to the bench.

In response to the study, the ABA launched the Judicial Clerk-ship Program (JCP) at the ABA Midyear Meeting in San Diego, California, in February 2001. JCP was designed to bring judges and minority law students together through “structured networking” – within small group team-building exercises that allow the students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills.

JCP increases minority law students’ exposure to clerking and provides judges an opportunity to meet a wider, more diverse clerk-ship pool by encouraging minority students to consider law clerk positions and encouraging judges to consider minority students as law clerks.

By Justice Frank Sullivan Jr.

This article is dedicated to the memory of Rob-ert E. Wone, pictured above, who brought en-ergy and inspiration to the ABA Judicial Clerk-ship Program in its early years. He clerked for Hon. Raymond A. Jackson, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, and was a leader of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association.

On the eve of President Obama’s inauguration, Linda Greenhouse of the New York Times reflected on the two Harvard Law School magna cum laude

law review editors who were about to meet, in her words, “across a Bible.” Among the dissimilarities between the two: Chief Justice Roberts had clerked following his gradu-ation, whereas President Obama had pursued community organizing and electoral politics.

No one begrudges President Obama’s career choices. But the divergent paths the president and chief justice took as to clerking are interesting because these track research that indicates that minority law students seek judicial clerkships in percentages far below their Caucasian counterparts. This research, prompted by public outcry over the absence of law clerks of color at the U.S. Supreme Court, served as the genesis for the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program, which will celebrate its tenth anniversary in February 2010. The program has put clerking on the radar screen of hundreds of minority law students, dozens of whom have successfully pursued clerkships.

baCkground

Many of the leading figures in American law are former clerks. Indeed, three current members of the Supreme Court are former Supreme Court clerks, and two others clerked in lower federal courts. Former ABA President Dennis W. Archer is not only a former clerk for a most distinguished judge, but he was also an employer of law clerks during his tenure on the Michigan Supreme Court.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor bluntly says, “I don’t have many regrets about my career . . . [b]ut I did one thing really wrong— I didn’t clerk after I left law school. . . . [H]aving become a judge, I recognized the mistake I had made. In a year of clerking, you see more about the practice of law than you’ll see in 10 years of practice.”

Given this value placed on clerking by judges, clerks, and the legal community at large, it is not surprising that

inTroduCTion

AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP PROGRAM | 98 | JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP PROGRAM AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION

mission and formaT

Although the structure and size of the Clerkship Program have changed somewhat over its decade of existence, its core mission remains the same:

The ABA Judicial Clerkship Program brings minority law students, judges, and former law clerks together at the ABA Midyear Meeting in an effort to introduce and then reinforce reasons for pursuing a judicial clerkship:

1. allowing a new lawyer to develop a close personal working relationship with a judge;

2. improving a new lawyer’s legal research, analytical, and writing skills;

3. enhancing a new lawyer’s career opportunities; and

4. permitting a new lawyer to participate directly in the process of shaping the law.

The Clerkship Program convenes over lunch on Thurs-day of the ABA Midyear Meeting with a welcome from the top leadership of the ABA—in most years, the president has greeted the students—as well as the chairs of the Com-mission (later Council) and JD, and a senior representative from LexisNexis. The program then gets down to business with students and judges working together for the next 48 hours in a combination of panel discussions and an exten-sive research exercise.

During each of the nine Clerkship Programs, the panel discussions have included a presentation from judges of courts with differing jurisdictions—federal and state, ap-pellate and trial—who describe the work that clerks do

in their chambers. In addition, lawyers from a variety of practice areas, who were themselves law clerks, have dis-cussed their experiences in panel discussions. A third type of panel discussion has focused on the “nuts and bolts” of obtaining judicial clerkships—resume writing, identifying and contacting judges, and the like.

The last panel discussion is called “The Students Ques-tion the Judges.” Judges participating in the program array themselves across the front of the room and respond to ques-tions from students, questions that tend to focus on broad topics like the judges’ jurisprudence and life experiences.

The most ambitious part of the Clerkship Program is the research exercise. In an effort to acquaint students with the working relationship between judge and law clerk, students convene in small groups of six or seven with several judges assigned to each group. Once in the groups, the students are asked to assume that they are judicial clerks and that the judge for whom they work has been assigned to write an opinion on a case of great interest. After discussing the assignment with their respective judges, the students use the computers and software provided by LexisNexis to re-search the case. Following several periods of both research and discussion, the students prepare outlines of opinions deciding the case.

The cases are selected by the Clerkship Program orga-nizing committee from closely watched cases then pending before the Supreme Court. For example, in 2002, the issue was based on Zelman v. Simmons-Harris, which concerned whether a state’s school voucher program violates the Establishment Clause; in 2009, the students looked at Pleasant Grove City v. Summum to consider whether a city with a display of the Ten Commandments in a public park must

there is concern that the opportunity to clerk be avail-able to all. This concern boiled over into public contro-versy when a substantial amount of attention was given to the small number of minority lawyers clerking for Su-preme Court justices in 1998. In fact, the president of the NAACP and 18 others were arrested that fall after they peacefully crossed a police line at the High Court in an at-tempt to deliver resumes of minority law students to Chief Justice William Rehnquist.

This controversy contributed to the commissioning of a comprehensive study of the clerkship situation by the National Association for Law Placement (NALP) and the

American Bar Association. According to Professor Debra Strauss, the “study found that minority representation in clerkships was generally lower than in law school popula-tions, although this did vary somewhat by ethnic group.” Overall, only 15 percent of all judicial clerkships were held by minorities, despite the fact that minorities made up 30 percent of the general population and 20 percent of law students. “However,” Professor Strauss points out, “this dis-crepancy did not result from a difference in the success of their applications, but rather a lower application rate of the minority students.”

These findings and conclusions were of particular con-cern to the ABA, which has as one of its goals the promo-tion of “the full and equal participation in the legal pro-fession by minorities.”* Clearly minority lawyers were not fully and equally participating in judicial clerkships. And just as clearly, at least part of the problem was that not enough minority law students were applying for clerkships.

In 2000, informed by the NALP study, the ABA’s Com-mission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity set out to try to increase the number of minority lawyers serving as judicial clerks at both the trial and appellate levels of state and fed-eral courts. It recruited the ABA Judicial Division (JD), the JD Standing Committee on Minorities in the Judiciary, and LexisNexis as partners in this effort. Under the leader-ship of co-chairs Judge Ellen F. Rosenblum and Judge Ei-leen A. Kato, and with ABA staff support led by Sandra Yamate, Luke Bierman, Cie Armstead, and Aimee Skrze-kut, the first Judicial Clerkship Program was launched at the ABA Midyear Meeting in San Diego in February 2001. Not enough credit is given to the members of the Com-mission, Standing Committee, and ABA staff who had the vision to conceive of and initiate the Clerkship Program.

During the next five years, the Clerkship Program be-came an acclaimed fixture at the ABA Midyear Meeting under the cosponsorship of the Commission and the JD, with continuing strong support from LexisNexis. Starting at the Midyear Meeting in 2007, cosponsorship for the pro-gram was passed from the Commission to the ABA Council on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline (formerly the Presidential Advisory Council on Diversity in the Profession). The Council worked in seamless tran-sition with the JD and LexisNexis to produce an equally successful Clerkship Program in that year and each of the two succeeding ones.

H. Thomas Wells, Jr. Former American Bar Association President

* The American Bar Association adopted a new mission August 2008, with co-equal goals and objections—Goal III, “Eliminate Bias and Enhance Diversity”.


In addition, the Council on Legal Education Opportu-nity (CLEO), which administers the congressionally man-dated Thurgood Marshall Legal Educational Opportunity Program, annually selects and finances the participation of six law students from different law schools in the Clerkship Program. (CLEO was founded in 1968 as a nonprofit project of the ABA Fund for Justice and Education to expand op-portunities for minorities and low-income students to attend law school and become mem-bers of the legal profession by providing prelaw recruitment, counseling, placement assis-tance, and training.)

Over the nine years of the program’s existence, students from 54 law schools have at-tended the Clerkship Program, including students sponsored by CLEO. While each school and CLEO can determine its own method for selection of participating students, the program recommends consid-eration of students who have

strong credentials for clerkships but who have not been considering clerking.

One student from the first year of the program, David P. Avila, writes today that “had I never participated in the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program, I would never have

clerked. Eight years ago, when I was a third-year student at the Uni-versity of Michigan Law School, clerking was far from my mind. . . . Clerking has helped me to un-derstand how some judges think about and approach legal issues, it has given me a common bond with colleagues who have clerked, and I now have a lifetime friend and mentor in the judiciary. Without a doubt, the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program launched my legal career and for this I am truly thankful.” Avila now works for the U.S. De-partment of Justice.

At the second Clerkship Pro-gram in Philadelphia in 2002, Commission Chair Lillie and new JD Chair Judge Diarmuid O’Scannlain convened a much larger group of students (42 from

allow other religious groups to display comparable monuments.

The research exercise is struc-tured to replicate the judge-clerk working relationship, not to test students’ research and writing skills. As such, the judges use the meetings to discuss topics in ad-dition to the research exercise itself. The exercise is, in other words, meant to simulate to the maximum extent possible the kind of judge-clerk personal in-teraction characteristic of judicial clerkships.

The Clerkship Program is not all work. There are a series of in-formal social events for students and judges during the three days they spend together. And the Clerkship Program concludes each year with students and judges attending the “Spirit of Excellence Awards” luncheon of the ABA Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Profession. This inspiring event honors

men and women who have made dra-matic contributions to the cause of justice and racial and ethnic diversity throughout their careers.

The early years

At the first Clerkship Program in San Diego in 2001, Commission Chair Charisse R. Lillie, JD Chair Judge Da-vid Horowitz, and program co-chairs Rosenblum and Kato welcomed 30 students from six law schools. Law schools nationwide had been invited to make the following commitments to the Clerkship Program: first, pay an an-nual participation fee for a minimum of three years; second, select a racially and ethnically diverse group of stu-

dents to participate; and, third, pay the travel and lodging expenses of sending their selected students. Schools began by sending six students to the program but, as it has grown over the years, it has been necessary to limit participation to four students per school.

The Clerkship program has been a quieT forCe for CreaTing an environmenT in whiCh opporTuniTies, even for The highesT offiCe in The land, Can be afforded regardless of gender, Color, raCe, religion, or eThniCiTy

54 law sChools parTiCipaTe in aba JudiCial Clerkship program

One or more students from each of the following 54 law schools have participated in the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program since its inception in 2001. In most cases, the schools listed provided the financial support necessary for the students to attend. However, the national CLEO program provided financial support for a number of the students from the law schools listed to attend in most years of the program.

Akron, American, Arizona State, Boston College, Boston University, California Western, Charleston, Connecticut, Cornell, DePaul, Detroit Mercy, District of Columbia, Drexel, Duke, Florida A&M, Fordham, Georgetown, Harvard, Hofstra, Howard, Indiana Maurer-Bloomington, Indiana-Indianapolis, Iowa, Kentucky, Mercer, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina Central, North Dakota, Northeastern, Northwestern, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Seattle, SMU Dedman, South Texas College of Law, Southwestern, St. Louis, St. Thomas, Stanford, Suffolk, Syracuse, Tennessee, Texas, Texas Southern, Texas Wesleyan, Tulane, Tulsa, Valparaiso, Vanderbilt, Villanova, Washington, William Mitchell, Yale.

Robert J. Grey, Jr. Former American Bar Association President


13 law schools). Following the San Diego program in 2001, Judge O’Scannlain asked me to chair the program in 2002, which I did along with a member of the Commis-sion, Judge Vicki Miles-LaGrange.

A student attending the program in Philadelphia, Ajay K. Mago, says that “attending the program was a watershed moment in both solidifying my interest in, and giving me the resolve to apply for, judicial clerkships at the end of my law school career.” The University of Texas at Aus-tin graduate observes that initiatives like the “Clerkship Program have been a part of the quiet force that has cre-ated an environment in which opportunities, even for the highest office in the land, can be afforded to anyone re-gardless of gender, color, race, religion, or ethnicity.” Mago now practices in a major Chicago firm.

As will be discussed in greater detail shortly, a relatively small number of judges participated in the Clerkship Pro-gram during its first two years. However, the work of the judges in the early years of the program was supplemented by a cadre of former law clerks who volunteered their time to assist. Most deeply involved among the former clerks was Robert E. Wone, who helped organize the Clerkship Program during its first three years and also assisted at each of them. Wone himself had clerked for Judge Raymond A. Jackson and, as a leader of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association, had a particular passion for encouraging mi-nority law students to seek judicial clerkships. For many of us involved at the time, the 2002 program was particularly noteworthy because, during the program, Wone became acquainted with Katherine Ellen Yu, a most able lawyer on the staff of the Commission. A year later, they married.

The third Clerkship Program was held in Seattle in

2003, attended by 38 students from 13 law schools. New Commission Chair Lawrence R. Baca and new JD Chair James Scott Sledge were upstaged when ABA President-Elect Dennis Archer made an unscheduled appearance during the opening session. This marked the beginning of a subsequently uninterrupted annual practice of the top leadership of the ABA welcoming students to the pro-gram. Commission member J. Cunyon Gordon assisted me in co-chairing the 2003 program.

The biggest development at the Seattle program, how-ever, was in terms of judicial participation. During the first program in San Diego, responsibility for recruiting judges fell primarily to the JD Standing Committee on Minori-ties in the Judiciary; 14 judges participated. During the second program in Philadelphia, responsibility for recruit-ing judges was shifted to the JD Appellate Judges Confer-ence; 13 judges participated. But in asking me to chair the program for a second time in 2003, Judge Sledge directed me to recruit judicial participation from throughout the JD—from the appellate, general jurisdiction, specialized jurisdiction, and administrative benches, and from both federal and state courts. The number of judges participat-ing began to grow markedly, this time to 24.

The program maTures

The fourth Clerkship Program convened in San Antonio in 2004, with a record 51 students from 13 law schools and a record 30 judges participating. ABA President Archer and President-Elect Robert J. Grey Jr. joined Commission Chair Baca and new JD Chair Richard N. Bien in welcom-ing the students. This was the third year that I chaired

the program, and the second year that I did so along with Commission member J. Cunyon Gordon.

Among the students attending the program in San Antonio was Robyn N. Carr from the Indiana Univer-sity Maurer School of Law–Bloomington. “When I finally began to interview with judges for a position,” she writes today, “I never felt nervous—in part because I had inter-acted with several during the Judicial Clerkship Program. I knew what to expect completely, and I credit the program for that preparation. I’m now working at a large firm in Washington, D.C., after finishing a two-year clerkship on the federal district court in Houston, Texas. The program was the impetus for it all and I am grateful to have had the opportunity to participate.”

The fifth Clerkship Program was held in Salt Lake City in 2005, and the somewhat remote location saw the number of students participating drop to 35 but judicial participation remained a strong 31. The tradition of the ABA’s top leaders greeting the students remained intact with attendance of the opening session by ABA President Grey, ABA President-Elect Michael S. Greco, and Imme-diate Past President Archer. Utah Chief Justice Christine M. Durham, Commission Chair Baca, and new JD Chair Judge Louraine C. Arkfeld also welcomed the students. This was to be my fourth and final year as chair of the pro-gram, along with Commission member Jacqueline Regis.

The great innovation of the Salt Lake City program was the opportunity for the students to witness an appel-late argument. At the suggestion and invitation of Judge Harris L. Hartz, the students traveled to the local federal courthouse. There they watched two oral arguments be-fore a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth

Circuit consisting of Circuit Judges Robert H. Henry, Mi-chael W. McConnell, and Hartz. Following argument, the three judges and their clerks had lunch with the students and answered their questions.

The sixth Clerkship Program convened in Chicago in 2006, following the relocation of the ABA Midyear Meet-ing that had originally been scheduled for New Orleans. The program was attended by a record-number 56 stu-dents. A substantial contingent of Cook County judges pushed judicial participation to a still-record 69. The students received greetings from ABA President Greco, ABA President-Elect Karen J. Mathis, and Immediate Past President Grey. William J. Caprathe, Justice George P. Hanks Jr., and Commission member Reuben A. Shelton together chaired the 2006 program at the appointment of new Commission Chair Kay H. Hodge and new JD Chair Judge Jodi B. Levine.

The Chicago program followed the precedent estab-lished in Salt Lake City when students visited the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and viewed an oral argument before Circuit Judges Richard A. Posner, Kenneth F. Ripple, and Michael S. Kanne. Following the arguments, Circuit Judge Diane P. Wood, her clerks, and Judges Ripple and Kanne met with the students and an-swered their questions. The judges, clerks, and students subsequently had lunch together.

The program grows To reCord levels

The seventh Clerkship Program in Miami in 2007, as noted at the outset of this article, was one in which the cospon-sorship of the program was passed from the ABA Commis-sion on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Profession to

aT leasT 41 of The 310 sTudenTs aTTending The program from 2001–07 seCured Clerkships. dozens more CompleTed JudiCial inTernships.


the ABA Council on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline (then known as the Presidential Ad-visory Council on Diversity in the Profession). The transi-tion could not have gone more smoothly, with a record 74 students from a record 19 law schools attending. Judicial participation was strong as well with 47.

The students were welcomed by ABA President Ma-this, President-Elect William H. Neukom, and a number of other ABA leaders, along with Council Chair Evett L. Simmons and new JD Chair Judge Leslie B. Miller. Judge Caprathe and Justice Hanks continued to chair the program, along with Council member Daisy Hurst Floyd.

Continuing the practice of courthouse visits established in the two previous years, the stu-dents traveled to the federal court-house where U.S. District Court Judge Jose E. Martinez conducted an argument on a motion to dis-miss in a case pending before his court. Following the arguments, Judge Martinez, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit Judge Rosemary Barkett, several of Judge Martinez’s fellow district court judges, and Judge Martinez’s clerks met with the students and answered their questions over lunch.

The eighth Clerkship Program in Los Angeles in 2008 saw continued growth in the number of students, with 80 attending from 23 different law schools. Continuing the tradition, ABA President Neukom and President-Elect H. Thomas Wells Jr. welcomed the students. Joining them was National Bar Association President Vanita Banks, new Council Chair Ruthe C. Ashley, and new JD Chair Judge James A. Wynn Jr. Judge Caprathe chaired the pro-gram for the third year, this time with the assistance of Judge Terri F. Love.

The logistics of Los Angeles made it impracticable to travel off-site, and so the program innovated to give students the opportunity to view an appellate argument. The research exercise for the 2008 program focused on whether a state law violated the First and Fourteenth

Amendments if it required would-be voters to show a government-issued photo identification prior to voting.Using this topic, a panel of five appellate judges from the 45 participating in the program conducted a mock oral argument. Judge Caprathe acted as petitioner’s counsel, arguing that the photo ID requirement was unconsti-tutional; attorney Bennett Evan Cooper argued for its constitutionality.

Judge Caprathe’s three years of dis-tinguished service as co-chair of the Clerkship Program came to an end at the conclusion of the 2008 program. He describes it as “a fundamental ac-tion program to help accomplish the important goal of diversity in the le-gal profession.” He says that he has heard from “so many attorneys and judges that it is a great experience to work with these enthusiastic, intelli-gent law students for the three days, and many would like to hire them in the future.”

The ninth Clerkship Program in Boston in 2009 shattered attendance records, with 110 students from 27 law schools attending. Welcom-ing the students was ABA President

Wells, ABA President-Elect Carolyn B. Lamm, Council Chair Ashley, and new JD Chair Judge Barbara M.G. Lynn. The chair of the program itself was Judge Ramona G. See, assisted by Judge Love; 51 judges participated.

The opening panel of the program was particularly exciting, as it was chaired by former ABA President Archer and included Massachusetts Chief Justice Margaret H. Marshall. The Massachusetts appellate ju-diciary contributed to the Boston program in another major way when Massachusetts Appeals Court Justice Fernande R.V. Duffly made it possible to reinstate the previous practice of the students traveling to view an ap-pellate oral argument. The students watched oral argu-ments in two separate cases at the Massachusetts Appeals Court and then listened as a panel of justices and cur-rent law clerks described their experiences with or as law clerks. The justices, clerks, and students subsequently had lunch together.

ConClusion

With the tenth anniversary of the ABA Judicial Clerk-ship Program to take place in February 2010, I think that the ABA Judicial Division, ABA Council on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline, and the ABA Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Profession can be extremely proud of their cospon-sorship of the program. In 2002, the Judicial Clerkship Program was honored by the ABA with its Section Of-ficers’ Conference “Meritorious Service Award,” which recognizes each year a single program or activity of an ABA member entity for significant contributions to the work of the Association. But beyond that award, the true measure of the program is the fact that it has ac-quainted approximately 500 minority law students from throughout the country with the opportunity and benefits of clerking.

Judge Rosenblum says that she is “confident that this program has increased the level of interest in and num-ber of applications for judicial clerk positions from mi-nority lawyers.” The data show that at least 41 of the 310 students attending the program from 2001 through 2007 secured clerkships with appellate and trial court judges. Dozens more completed judicial internships as part of their legal studies.

As one who has been involved in the Clerkship Pro-gram since its outset, I want to acknowledge several indi-viduals, some of whom are not mentioned in the forego-ing paragraphs, for their considerable contributions to the program.

First and foremost, each year’s program requires an enor-mous amount of effort from the ABA staff members as-signed to it—recruiting students, recruiting judges, arrang-ing logistics, and providing on-site administration for the program itself. Each of these tasks is complicated and diffi-cult; and each year they have been performed flawlessly. A number of men and women have been responsible for that achievement, but most notable among them have been Gilda Fairley, Regina Smith, and Sharon Tindall. The three of them in particular have truly made the program what it is today.

Second, Judges Caprathe, Kato, Love, Rosenblum, and See, along with Justice Hanks, and the other co-chairs of the programs all gave generously of their time and tal-ent and made each program a memorable experience for

the students and judges who participated. A special word of praise is due to Judge Rosenblum, who, in addition to chairing the first Clerkship Program and serving as its great champion at the highest levels of the ABA, hosted for many years a late-evening cheesecake dessert reception for the students.

Several additional judges have participated in a sub-stantial number of the annual programs, contributing their expertise, their enthusiasm, and their inspiration to both the program and the students: Judges Margarita Solano Bernal, Danny J. Boggs, Arthur L. Burnett, Charles N. Clevert Jr., Herbert B. Dixon Jr., Donald D. Haley, Barbara M.G. Lynn, Joel D. Medd, William D. Missouri, Rosemary Shaw Sackett, Berle M. Schiller, Calvin L. Scott Jr., and Justice Patricia Timmons-Goodson.

And LexisNexis has been a wonderful partner. As the program has grown from 30 students at the start to over 100 this year, LexisNexis has provided more and more comput-ers, software, and printers—and on-site technical support—to meet the needs of the program’s ambitious agenda.

Judge Lynn has observed, “It is a wonderful experience to see minority students, many of whom thought a judicial internship or clerkship was out of their reach, learn what opportunities are available and internalize what skills are required to succeed.” Judge Caprathe adds, “The program is a great opportunity for us as judges, and lawyers, and law students to improve the justice system in this country.” Mo-tivated by the ABA’s commitment to “the full and equal par-ticipation in the legal profession by minorities,” the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program looks ahead with hope and an-ticipation to encouraging and assisting ever more minority law students to seek and secure judicial clerkships.

Justice Frank Sullivan Jr. has been a justice on the Indiana Supreme Court since 1993. He is chair of the Nominating Committee of the ABA Judicial Division’s Ap-pellate Judges Conference (AJC); he is immediate past chair of the AJC’s Executive Committee, and he is a member of the Nominat-ing Committee of the Judicial Division. He can be reached at [email protected].


ConferenCe of Chief JusTiCes

resoluTion 6in supporT of diversiTy of JudiCial law Clerks working for sTaTe CourT Judges

WHEREAS, the public looks to the courts above other governmental institutions for fairness and neutrality and must have confidence in the courts and the judicial process; and

WHEREAS, significant segments of society continue to believe that minorities are treated unfairly by the courts and that racial and ethnic prejudice impedes fair and equal access to the courts; and

WHEREAS, the courts have an important responsibility to take a leadership role in eliminating racial and ethnic bias in the courts and should better mirror the racial and ethnic make-up of the communities they serve; and

WHEREAS, educational and mentoring programs that support students of color and other underrepresented groups increase the diversity of law clerks within the judiciary and the legal profession; and

WHEREAS, the purpose of such programs is to foster racial and ethnic diversity among law clerks serving in the federal and state judiciary.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Conference of Chief Justices:

• Endorses the principles and strategies established by two notable programs: the ABAJudicial Clerkship Program and the Just the Beginning Foundation’s Judicial Externship/Clerkship Program; and

• Strongly encourages each chief justice and chief judge to make a personal commitment to promote and recom-mend to the judges in their jurisdiction that they participate in these programs and consider minority applicants that may be referred for either internship or clerkship opportunities.

Adopted as proposed by the CCJ Access to and Fairness in the Courts Committee at the Midyear Meeting on January 28, 2009.


The Clerks

Sahar F. Aziz (Texas) Hon. Andre M. Davis (U.S. Dist. Ct. for D. Maryland)

(Appointed to the U.S. Ct. of Appeals for the Tenth Cir. November 2009)

David P. Avila (Michigan) Hon. Frank Sullivan, Jr. (Indiana Supreme Ct.)

Joi S. Belfon-Valentine (Howard) Hon. Marcella A. Holland, (Baltimore City Cir. Ct.) and

Hon. Janet J. Mahon (U.S. DC Office of Administrative Hearings)

Zana Z. Bugaighis (Washington) Hon. David Alan Ezra (U.S. Dist. Ct. for D. Hawaii)

Carl W. Butler (Indiana) Hon. Frank Sullivan, Jr. (Indiana Supreme Ct.)

Edward Cantu (Texas) Hon. Federico A. Moreno (U.S. Dist. Ct. for S.D. Florida) and

Hon. Micaela Alvarez (U.S. Dist. Ct. for S.D. Texas)

Robyn N. Carr (Indiana) Hon. Vanessa D. Gilmore (U.S. Dist. Ct. for S.D. Texas)

Mario K. Castillo (Indiana) Hon. Felix Recio (U.S. Dist. Ct. for S.D. Texas)

Denise M. Chanez (New Mexico) Hon. Edward L. Chavez (New Mexico Supreme Court)

The following law students who participated in the American Bar Association Judicial Clerkship Program from 2001 through 2009 went on to clerk following their graduation from law school for the judges listed next to their names. This list does not purport to be comprehensive, it does not include dozens of additional students who completed judicial externships/internships while in law school.


Kirk C. Chavez (New Mexico) Hon. Lynn Pickard (New Mexico Ct. of Appeals)

Eric K. Chiu (Duke) Hon. William C. Bryson (U.S. Ct. of Appeals for the Fed. Cir.)

Jason M. Clarke (Indiana) Hon. Rhonda Reid Winston (District of Columbia Superior Ct.)

Waldemar Colon (Cornell) Hon. Amy J. St. Eve (U.S. Dist. Ct. for N.D. Illinois)

Isaac T. Connor (Tennessee) Hon. Thomas W. Brothers (Tennessee Cir. Ct.)

Forrest J. Deegan (Duke) Hon. George P. Kazen (U.S. Dist. Ct. for S.D. Texas)

Parisa Fatehi (Texas) Hon. Bill Vance (Tenth Ct. of Appeals of Texas)

Robert Henry Ford (Texas) Hon. Philip R. Martinez (U.S. Dist. Ct. for W.D. Texas) and

Hon. Lavenski Smith, U.S. Eighth Circuit Ct. of Appeals (Little Rock, Arkansas)

Phyllisia Juanette Gant (Indiana) Hon. Gary C. Giguere, Jr. (Kalamazoo Cnty. Ninth Cir. Ct.)

Mauricio A. González (Cornell) Hon. Kermit E. Bye (U.S. Ct. of Appeals for the Eighth Cir.)

Katina Grays (Cornell) Hon. U.W. Clemons (U.S. Dist. Ct. for N.D. Alabama)

Dione Greene (Indiana) Hon. Duane Benton (U.S. Ct. of Appeals for the Eighth Cir.)

Jessica M. Hernandez (New Mexico) Hon. James O. Browning (U.S. Dist. Ct. for D. New Mexico)

Merisa Heu-Weller (Washington) Hon. Mary E. Fairhurst (Washington Supreme Ct.)

Shalonda L. Jones (Tennessee) Hon. William C. Koch, Jr. (Tennessee Ct. of Appeals)

Natalie LaMarque (Duke) Hon. Malcolm J. Howard (U.S. Dist. Ct. for E.D. North Carolina) and

Hon. Ann Claire Williams (U.S. Ct. of Appeals for the Seventh Cir.)

Sophia Alexis Lecky (Texas) Hon. Stephen William Smith, M.J. (U.S. Dist. Ct. for S.D. Texas)

Yara Lorenzo (St. Thomas) Hon. James Lawrence King (U.S. Dist. Ct. for S.D. Florida)

Ajay K. Mago (Texas) Hon. Sam A. Lindsay (U.S. Dist. Ct. for N.D. Texas)

Karla M. McKanders (Duke) Hon. Damon J. Keith (U.S. Ct. of Appeals for the Sixth Cir.)

Reginald McKnight (Duke) Hon. Karen J. Williams (U.S. Ct. of Appeals for the Fourth Cir.)

Christopher Mendoza (Cornell) Hon. Virginia A. Phillips (U.S. Dist. Ct. for C.D. California)

Markeisha Miner (Michigan) Hon. Anna Diggs Taylor (U.S. Dist. Ct. for E.D. Michigan) and

Hon. Ivan L. R. Lemelle (U.S. Dist. Ct. for E.D. Louisiana)

Marlon Moffett (Duke) Hon. Adalberto Jordan (U.S. Dist. Ct. for S.D. Florida)

Christopher Moody (Michigan) Hon. Victoria Roberts (U.S. Dist. Ct. for E.D. Michigan)

Nancy Morrisseau (Cornell) Hon. George B. Daniels (U.S. Dist. Ct. for S.D. New York)

Sarita Nair (New Mexico) Hon. Lynn Pickard (New Mexico Ct. of Appeals)

Amanda C. Sanchez (New Mexico) Hon. Pamela B. Minzner (New Mexico Supreme Court)

Renée N. Sewchand (Duke) Hon. F. S. Van Antwerpen (U.S. Dist. Ct. for E.D. Pennsylvania)

Addisah D. Sherwood (Cornell) Hon. Solomon Oliver, Jr. (U.S. Dist. Ct. for N.D. Ohio)

Freedom S. N. Smith (Indiana) Hon. Andrew S. Effron (U.S. Ct. of Appeals for the Armed Forces)

Cristina Velez (Cornell) Hon. Denny Chin (U.S. Dist. Ct. for S.D. New York)

Benjamin C. Wei (Duke) Hon. William J. Holloway, Jr. (U.S. Ct. of Appeals for the Tenth Cir.)

Delphina Yuen (Syracuse) Hon. William C. Carpenter, Jr. (U.S. Superior Court of Delaware)

CongraTulaTory leTTers from aba leadership

20 | JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP PROGRAM AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP PROGRAM | 21


CHAIR HOUSE OF DELEGATES

William C. Hubbard Nelson Mullins et al

1320 Main Street Floor 17

PO Box 11070 Columbia, SC 29211-1070

[email protected]

AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION 321 North Clark Street Chicago, Illinois 60654-7598 (312) 988-5157 FAX: (312) 988-5153

December 18, 2009

Dear Colleagues:

I am pleased to extend my congratulations to the Council for Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline and the Judicial Division on the 10th anniversary of the Judicial Clerkship Program. The American Bar Association has an obligation to continue to promote full and equal participation in the profession by all persons. A diverse judiciary is a vital component in ensuring that the public has confidence in the justice system. The Judicial Clerkship Program is an invaluable tool in creating diversity within the judiciary.

I applaud the Council and the Division for being visionaries in developing this program to bring together promising young law students with members of the judiciary, exposing both judges and students to the possibilities of working together.

I commend you on the past success of the Program and wish you continued success in the efforts to ensure a diverse profession and judiciary.

Sincerely,

William C. Hubbard, Chair ABA House of Delegates


Dear Colleagues:

On behalf of the ABA Council on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline, I welcome you to the Tenth Annual Minority Judicial Clerkship Program! The Pipeline Council is so pleased to serve as a co-sponsor with the ABA Judicial Division of this important program. We are especially excited to celebrate a decade of this valuable pipeline diversity initiative, and we extend a particular thank you to all of the schools who send their students and who have supported us over the years.

For the next three days, students, judges and former clerks will come together in a variety of educational, professional networking, and social settings. Over the years, the JCP has developed into a program that offers invaluable experiences and unique opportunities to all participants, ones that will stay with every person for a lifetime.

The Judicial Clerkship Program is one of the finest of the American Bar Association’sMidyear Meeting activities. We are honored to be a part of this special event.

Sincerely,

Ruthe C. Ashley ChairpersonABA Council for Racial and EthnicDiversity in the Educational Pipeline


February, 2010

Welcome to the 10th Anniversary of the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program. On behalf of the Judicial Division, I congratulate everyone who makes the Program a success.

In just three days, the Judicial Clerkship Program strengthens the law student’s legal research, analysis, drafting and editing skills. It gives them a rare opportunity to briefly experience the judicial decision-making process and the working relationship between a judge and a law clerk. The Clerkship Program is an honorable addition to the student’s resume and qualifies them as a priority applicant for the ABA Section of Litigation’s Judicial Intern Opportunity Program; a program that places minority and financially disadvantaged law students in courts across the United States.

This momentous occasion is attributable to the staff of the ABA Judicial Division and the ABA Council on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline (formerly the Presidential Advisory Council on Diversity in the Profession). It flourishes thanks to Judicial Division judges and members of the Educational Pipeline working with staff to plan exciting, yet challenging programs year after year. The Clerkship program continues to have a lasting effect by reason of the Judicial Division judges maintaining contact, mentoring, hiring and referring students to colleagues. Numerous students have received clerkships as a result of the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program.

Lastly, I would like to thank LexisNexis® for their generous, enthusiastic and ongoing support that has been invaluable since the Program’s inception.

The Judicial Division looks forward to future programs that enhance the lives and careers of minority law students and to doing our part to diversify the profession.

Best regards,

Jack L. Brown, Esq. Chair, ABA Judicial Division

CHAIRJack L. Brown

Jones Gotcher et al 3800 First Place Tower

15 E. 5th Street, Suite 3800 Tulsa, OK 74103-4309 Phone: (918) 581-8211

Fax: (918) 583-1189 [email protected]

CHAIR-ELECTHon. G. Michael Witte

Senior Judge, State of Indiana 20374 Rosemeade Lane Lawrenceburg, IN 47025

Phone: (812) 637-1481 Fax: (812) 637-1481

[email protected]

VICE-CHAIRHon. Richard Goodwin

US Department of Transportation

326 E. Buckingham Way Fresno, CA 93704-4144 Phone: (559) 260-6865


IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIR Hon. Barbara M.G. Lynn

United States District Court 1100 Commerce Street, Suite

1572Dallas, TX 75242

Phone: (214) 753-2420 Fax: (214) 753-2422

[email protected]

BOARD OF GOVERNORS LIAISON

Hon. Leslie Miller Superior Court of Arizona 2225 E. Ajo Way, 85713 Tucson, AZ 85701-1317 Phone: (520) 740-4470


COUNCILHon. Christine M. Durham

L. Neal Ellis Lisa Marie Gomes

Hon. Karl B. Grube Hon. R. Bryan McDaniel Hon. J. Matthew Martin

Matt PotempaHon. Gary B. Randall

Hon. Delissa A. Ridgway Hon. Frederic B. Rodgers

Hon. Martha C. Warner

DELEGATE TO THE ABA HOUSE OF DELEGATES

Richard N. Bien Lathrop & Gage LLP

2345 Grand Boulevard, Suite 2800

Kansas City, MO 64108 Phone: (816) 460-5520


AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION Judicial Division 321 N. Clark Street

Chicago, Illinois 60654 Phone: (312) 988-5705 Fax: (312) 988-5709 Email: [email protected] Website: www.abanet.org/jd



perspeCTives & CommenTaries The Judges

“It’s a great program and I’ve enjoyed having all Philadel-phia area participants as interns in the Federal District Courts in Philadelphia.”Hon. Berle M. Schiller US District Court, Eastern District Philadelphia, PA

“2009 was my first year being involved but I found the experience rewarding probably as much for me as the stu-dents. I have remained in contact with several students, provided mentoring throughout the year and assisted in stu-dents obtaining clerkships and summer intern positions.”Hon. Allen J. Webster LA County Superior Court Compton, CA

“I enjoy discussing the judge/law clerk relationship with these bright students. I know that diversity is crucial to our justice system that serves a diverse population. I am pleased to take part in this program that helps bring mi-norities and minority perspectives to the table.”Hon. William J. Caprathe Bay County Circuit Court Bay City, MI Co-Chair of ABA Judicial Clerkship Program 2006, 2007 and 2008

“I participated one time in the program and it is an excel-lent way to connect law students and judges! I enjoyed my experience and plan to participate in the future.”Hon. Adrienne Nelson Multnomah Judges Portland, OR

“This is a great program — I highly recommend it. I have recruited one law school to participate, have sent an extern to the program, and have hired an extern that I met in the program.”Hon. Samuel L. Bufford U.S. Bankruptcy Court Los Angeles, CA

“I hired my present law clerk based upon our interaction during the Judicial Clerkship Program…..what a great op-portunity for students to meet judges who are looking for future clerks.”Hon. William C. Carpenter, Jr. Superior Court of Delaware Wilmington, DE

“As a participant, I have found the ABA Judicial Clerkship program personally and professionally rewarding to me as a state trial judge. I have enjoyed hearing and learning each law student’s perspectives on important issues cur-rently being considered by our U.S. Supreme Court. I have equally enjoyed re-directing and re-focusing these students to have them target relevant research areas to assist them in developing these issues for their future employers.”Hon. Stephanie Domitrovich NCSTJ Chair-Elect Erie County Courthouse Erie, PA

“What a great experience! I felt I provided information to law students from the real world of courts as well as some non traditional roles for attorneys in courts. With one stu-dent, I was able to facilitate a meeting in her hometown with others who were already working in her field of interest.”Hon. Elizabeth R. Finn Presiding Judge Glendale City Court Glendale, AZ

“I have received emails and calls from law students that I have met during the Judicial Clerkship Program. Their questions and comments convince me that the program in-spires the participants to prepare themselves for a judicial clerkship. In turn, I am inspired to reach out to such students and to provide clerkship opportunities in my chambers.”Hon. Charles N. Clevert, Jr. Chief Judge U.S. District Court, E.D. Wisconsin Milwaukee, WI


“I have participated from the beginning of the program. It has been a rewarding experience for me and the students. I have received messages from students afterwards express-ing their appreciation. One was a card saying that there are heroes among us willing to help to make the world a better place and that I was one of those for helping with the program.”Hon. Joel D. Medd North East Central Judicial District Grand Forks, ND

“I have worked with the Judicial Clerkship Program for several years and have found the interaction with the stu-dents very rewarding and enjoyable. I have consistently hired outstanding minority clerks.”Hon. Terri F. Love 4th Circuit Court of Appeal New Orleans, LA Co-Chair of ABA Judicial Clerkship Program 2008.

“Wonderful experience. I think the judges get as much from the clerks as they do from us. Their enthusiasm is contagious!”Hon. Marguerite D. Downing Edelman Children’s Court Monterey Park, CA

“I’ve been a member of the State Trial Judges Conference for 12 years, I remember when JCP was started, I remember I thought it sounded like a good idea, but I didn’t plan to be involved. 2 years ago I got involved! It is one of the most significant and rewarding experiences I have had in JD. The students are bright, eager and energetic. It’s a pleasure to work with these great kids. You won’t be disappointed.”Hon. Gary B. Randall Chair, ABA Judicial Division National Conference of State Trial Judges District Court Douglas County Nebraska Omaha, Nebraska

“The Judicial Clerkship Program has been one of the most rewarding projects I have participated in during my 25-year career as a judge. Working with these talented minor-ity law students reminded me of when I served as third-year student intern and my first job as staff attorney for the Indiana Civil Rights Commission. It has given me a re-newed sense of purpose to help educate students and young lawyers.”Hon. W. Terry Ruckriegle Chief Judge, Fifth Judicial District Breckenridge, CO

“As we celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the ABA’s Judicial Clerkship Program, I want to say a word of tribute to Rob-ert E. Wone who brought energy and inspiration to the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program in its early years. He clerked for Hon. Raymond A. Jackson, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, and was a leader of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association. Wone was the victim of a homicide in August, 2006. Without Robert Wone’s work on the first three Clerkship Programs in 2001, 2002, and 2003, the Program would not be what it is today.”Hon. Frank Sullivan, Jr. Indiana Supreme Court Indianapolis, IN Co-Chair of ABA Judicial Clerkship Program 2002, 2003, 2004 & 2005.

“Serving as a judicial law clerk was one of the most re-warding experiences of my life. The Judicial Clerkship Pro-gram not only provides students with the necessary tools to successfully obtain a clerkship but also with the insight to make the very most of their clerkship experience.”Justice George C. Hanks, Jr. Texas Court of Appeals, 1st District Houston, TX Co-chair of ABA Judicial Clerkship Program 2007

sent students to participate in the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program for the past 10 years. We had no-ticed a sentiment among minority students that judicial clerkships “weren’t for them.” By participat-ing in JCP, UT Law assures these students that clerkships are for them, and gives them self-confi-dence in their ability to be com-petitive for these positions. JCP has been especially beneficial for our students because of the direct contact and interaction it affords them with judges. We believe that every opportunity students have to meet with judges contributes to their interest in clerkships and increases their comfort level with the judges. UT Law looks forward to many more years of participa-tion in this terrific program.

villanova universiTy sChool of law

Villanova is proud to have participated in this program since its inception. We have stayed with the program because it is rigorous, because it is relational, and because judges have remained so committed to its success. Our student consis-tently share that the Judicial Clerkship Program exceeded their expectations in every way. Our students always return from the JCP highly energized about our judicial system and the prospect of clerking. After engaging with members of the bench in highly collegial and challenging programs, our students develop a more sophisticated appreciation for

the talent and humanity of our na-tion’s judges. Judges frequently stay in touch with our students and in some cases have become treasured professional mentors. Most impor-tant, our students bring their learn-ing and experience back to the class-room and community at Villanova Law. Whatever future career path our participants have taken, all have expressed the value of this program to their development as lawyers.

william miTChell College of law William Mitchell College of Law is a proud supporter of the American Bar Association Judicial Clerkship Pro-gram. For 110 years, William Mitch-ell has been a national leader in pro-viding legal education that focuses on both theory and practical skills.

William Mitchell’s goal is to provide students with a prac-tical legal education. Our students have the opportunity to learn from leading scholars and practitioners, includ-ing lawyers, business leaders, and judges. We understand the importance of studying the law in the classroom, and the opportunities for mentors in and out of the classroom. We also understand that it’s equally important for students to get real-world experience, and that the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program provides students the opportunity to network with judges and former law clerks throughout the country, and is an excellent complement to Mitchell’s practical curriculum.

perspeCTives & CommenTaries The sChools


California wesTern sChool of law

California Western School of Law participates in the ABA’s Judicial Clerkship Program because it allows us to offer our students of diverse back-

grounds uniquely valuable professional development opportunities. There are few programs available to law students that so consistently engage students while intro-ducing them to a broad and powerful network of respected jurists. Our students practice the analytical and research skills needed for successful practice. They engage with peers, judges, and other legal professionals from around the country on a professional and personal level, devel-oping relationships that will serve them throughout their careers. Assistant Dean for Career Services Lou Helmuth says, “Our students return empowered, with able mentors eager and willing to serve their professional interests over the long haul. They learn that there are many paths to a rewarding career in the law and, that with attention and professionalism, they can choose their own path. The pro-gram is outstanding.”

indiana universiTy maurer sChool of law

Students who attended the ABA Judicial Clerkship Conference often felt like they were returning with “insider information” as each of the participants were provided with access to judges from throughout the legal spectrum. The personal interaction the conference afforded partici-pants provided them with insight difficult to find in any one setting. The knowledge with which they returned compelled the school to create a special workshop in our judicial clerkship series where the attendees were able to share the information garnered at the conference with their colleagues.

universiTy of Tennessee College of law

The University of Tennessee College of Law has a strong commitment to promoting full and equal participation in the legal profession by it minority students. To this end, UT has partnered with state and local bar associations to sponsor mi-nority recruitment conferences and has participated in the ABA’s Judicial Clerkship Program. Our participation in the JCP supplements our in-house judicial externship program, which provides students with the opportunity of working as clerks with members of the judiciary. While our in-house program pairs students with Tennessee state and federal judg-es, the JCP has given our minority students the opportunity to engage with judges from many different jurisdictions. Our students uniformly report that this networking opportunity and learning experience has helped increase their confidence, invigorate their legal studies, and inform their career plan-ning. A recent JCP alum, Brittany Gardner, Coordinator of UT’s Access to Justice and Mentoring Programs, attended the program in February 2008. Thereafter, Brittany worked with the Tennessee Supreme Court. She credits the JCP with pre-paring her for that position: “The JCP helped me learn what judges look for in memos and draft opinions. Not only did my participation in JCP help me to acquire a summer job with the Tennessee Supreme Court, it also helped me to be well-prepared for the tasks of that job.” The achievements of JCP and UT alums like Brittany convince us that participation in the JCP is an important dimension of our law school’s dedica-tion to assuring equal opportunities for minority lawyers in all aspects of the legal profession.

The universiTy of Texas sChool of law

The University of Texas School of Law values judicial clerkships and enthusiastically supports students interested in pursuing clerkships. It is for these reasons that we have


Dennis W. Archer Former American Bar Association President

perspeCTives & CommenTaries The sTudenTs


“My experiences at both of my externships were very re-warding. They both gave me a chance to work on and im-prove my legal research and writing, observe and learn from “the good the bad and the ugly” of effective oral and written advocacy (at all stages of litigation) and gain in-valuable insight into the inner workings of a judicial cham-ber. But perhaps, most rewarding, has been the opportunity to gain life-long mentors as a result of both of my judicial externships.”Charles Chineduh, JCP 2008 Participant

“Attending JCP provided me with an opportunity to net-work and interact with Judges from various jurisdictions throughout the United States. JCP’s Law Clerk simulation activity provided me with an opportunity to work with a Judge and serve as her Law Clerk. I was able to research a matter and give my opinion to the Judge on how she should make her ruling on the matter. My judicial internship expe-rience taught me the importance legal writing. I was able to learn techniques from my Judge over the summer that helped me improve my legal writing.”Reshaun M. Finkley, JCP 2009 Participant

“The ABA’s Judicial Clerkship Program undoubtedly con-tributed to my success in attaining two federal clerkships. The program afforded me unique insight into the world of clerking, and also enabled me to exchange invaluable in-formation and ideas with state and federal judges, former clerks, and fellow aspiring clerks.”Robert Ford, JCP 2007 Participant

“The judges were very interested in talking with the students about the merits of a clerkship, the application process, and other areas of interest. I was impressed by the number of non-minority judges who seemed genuinely interested in having minority law students clerk for them.”Katina N. Grays, JCP 2001 Participant

“Based on my participation in the program, I have decided my goal is to obtain a judicial clerkship. The ABA has given me an opportunity that a lot of students do not have, and I consider myself very fortunate.”Eronda Johnson, JCP 2001 Participant

“I am very thankful for the program because I had the chance to learn about the whole process and benefits of be-ing a judicial clerk. Through the program, I was able to re-evaluate and expand my career options and I am now seri-ously contemplating of starting my legal career as a judicial clerk. Moreover, the program game me the chance to meet and network with excellent people in the legal community.”Marc Aldwin M. Landoy, JCP 2009 Participant

“The ABA Judicial Clerkship Program (JCP) was instru-mental to my obtaining a fall externship with Justice Patri-cia Timmons-Goodson, Supreme Court of North Carolina. I learned a lot from the externship, the experience was in-valuable. However, I must say, I would not have thought of an externship or clerkship if it had not been for my JCP experience, which provided me with an overview of clerk-ing and introduced me to judges from across the country, including Justice Patricia Timmons-Goodson.”Diane Littlejohn, JCP 2009 Participant

“All of the programs were well organized, very informative, and extremely beneficial. After the program I used the new information and new skill set as I pursued a summer clerk-ship. With the help of this program and its participants, I am pleased to say I was offered a summer clerkship at the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.”David Michel Patin, Jr., JCP 2009 Participant

“Thank you so much for the wonderful learning experience. I so much enjoyed the Judges, Lawyers, and the ‘experi-ence’. The ABA did a great thing, and I am glad to be a student member. This definitely showed me how much I need to continue to be active in the ABA starting now.”Linda L. Smith, JCP 2009 Participant


ameriCan bar assoCiaTion enTiTies

The ABA Council on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline and the ABA Judicial Division collaborate with the ABA Business Law

Section and the ABA Section of Litigation to enhance the clerkship/internship experience for underrepresented law students. Students from the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program will have the opportunity to participate in the Business Law Section’s Diversity Clerkship Program and in the Section of Litigation’s Judicial Intern Opportunity Program. Together, these activities offer law students a full complement of training and experience in clerkships, as

well as exposure to a number of Association entities. The following are brief descriptions of the clerkship pro-

grams offered by the American Bar Association. For more details, please visit our websites.

aba JudiCial Clerkship program (JCp)is a joint effort of the ABA Council on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Educational Pipeline and the ABA Judicial Division. JCP is held annually at the ABA Midyear Meeting. The students participate in panel discussions, a research and writing exercise,

CollaboraTe To enhanCe The Clerkship experienCe

32 | JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP PROGRAM AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP PROGRAM | 33

aCknowledgemenTs

The aba CounCil on raCial and eThniC diversiTy in The eduCaTional pipeline and The

aba JudiCial division Express special thanks to …

LexisNexis®

Robert Half Legal

Participating Law Schools

Judges

Court Houses for Oral Arguments

Speakers

ABA Leadership

ABA Center for Racial & Ethnic Diversity

ABA Media Relations

ABA Business Law Section

ABA Section of Litigation

ABA Staff

and various networking sessions bringing law students and judges together from around the country. These ac-tivities are designed to introduce students to the ben-efits of pursuing a judicial clerkship. Numerous students have obtained clerkships and internships as a result of their participation in JCP. http://new.abanet.org/centers/ diversity/Pages/JudicialClerkshipProgram.aspx

aba business law seCTion diversiTy Clerkship

encourages students to pursue business court clerkship opportunities and to consider careers in the practice of business law. The mission of the Program is to ex-pose law students to the practice of business law and to provide them with work experience and foundations in business law that will further their careers. In con-sidering a student’s diversity, the Section gives special consideration to individuals who have overcome social

or economic disadvantages such as physical disability, financial constraints, or cultural impediments to be-coming a law student. http://www.abanet.org/buslaw/students/clerkship.shtml

aba seCTion of liTigaTion JudiCial inTern opporTuniTy program (Jiop)is a full-time, six-week minimum summer internship open to all first or second year law students of color, as well as financially disadvantaged law students who are interested in doing legal research and writing for federal and state judges in participating cities. Partici-pation in JCP qualifies students as priority applicants for JIOP. Celebrating its tenth year, JIOP is a landmark program and a key component of the Section initiatives to expand opportunities in the legal profession. http://www.abanet.org/litigation/jiop/


For More Information About the ABA Judicial Clerkship Program

Law Schools: ABA Council For Racial and Ethnic Diversity in Educational Pipeline

http://new.abanet.org/centers/diversity/pages/judicialclerkshipProgram.aspxJudges:

ABA Judicial Divisionhttp://www.abanet.org/jd/home.html

American Bar Association 321 N. Clark Street Chicago, IL 60654 312.988.5000

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The Judicial Clerkship Program 10th Anniversary Brochure

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