In the United States, a judicial intern (also commonly known as a "judicial extern" or "extern law clerk" ) is usually a
law student
Legal education is the education of individuals in the principles, practices, and theory of law. It may be undertaken for several reasons, including to provide the knowledge and skills necessary for admission to legal practice in a particular j ...
or sometimes a recent
law school
A law school (also known as a law centre/center, college of law, or faculty of law) is an institution, professional school, or department of a college or university specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for b ...
graduate who provides assistance to a
judge
A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...
and/or
law clerks
A law clerk, judicial clerk, or judicial assistant is a person, often a lawyer, who provides direct counsel and assistance to a lawyer or judge by researching issues and drafting legal opinions for cases before the court. Judicial clerks often p ...
in researching and writing issues before the court. Working as a judicial intern allows law students to gain practical legal experience and familiarity with the court operations.
Description
Many judicial interns subsequently choose to work full-time as judicial law clerks immediately after graduation. These judicial "clerkships" generally last one year in which the law clerk works closely with the judge in assisting various matters before the court. Judicial clerkships tend to be a valuable experience to an attorney's career because of the work involved in both substantive and procedural issues. In many cases, a clerkship is a critical stepping stone into real
practice
Practice or practise may refer to:
Education and learning
* Practice (learning method), a method of learning by repetition
* Phantom practice, phenomenon in which a person's abilities continue to improve, even without practicing
* Practice-based ...
. Most, if not all, major
law firm
A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise consumer, clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and Obligation, respon ...
s pay "clerkship" bonuses to new
associates who have completed a full one year clerkship term.
Among the most prestigious judicial internships are those in the
federal court of appeals,
federal district court
The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one feder ...
s, and in the
state's supreme court.
A judicial intern's selection process is similar to judicial clerkship positions. Grades, class ranking, and relevant
extracurricular activities
An extracurricular activity (ECA) or extra academic activity (EAA) or cultural activity is an activity, performed by students, that falls outside the realm of the normal curriculum of school, college or university education. Although approved ...
such as membership in the law school's
law review
A law review or law journal is a scholarly journal or publication that focuses on legal issues. A law review is a type of legal periodical. Law reviews are a source of research, imbedded with analyzed and referenced legal topics; they also provide ...
or being a member of the law school's
Moot Court Board are common criteria in selecting a judicial intern.
The
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary association, voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students in the United States; national in scope, it is not specific to any single jurisdiction. Founded in 1878, the ABA's stated acti ...
Section of Litigation accepts judicial internship applications
annually.
[The American Bar Association Judicial Intern Opportunity Program
{{cite web, url=http://www.abanet.org/litigation/jiop/overview.html , title=Program Overview | Judicial Intern Opportunity Program | Diversity & Public Service | ABA Section of Litigation , access-date=2006-12-30 , url-status=dead, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012140849/http://www.abanet.org/litigation/jiop/overview.html , archive-date=2007-10-12 ]
References
External links
The Judicial Internship Program at the Supreme Court of the United StatesLegal internship providers
Legal education
Legal professions
Internships