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Judicial clerkship for international LLM students

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L&E-pil

Joined: 08 Nov 2007
Posts: 113
Judicial clerkship for international LLM students
Sun Nov 11, 2007 07:31 PM
I wonder if anyone knows, if it is possible for a foreigner to arrange a judicial clerkship in the US after the completion of the LLM degree? Are judicial clerkships limited only to American citizens? One is allowed to clerk only if he/she has a JD?
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jballer

Joined: 01 Nov 2007
Posts: 19
Judicial clerkship for international LLM students
Sun Nov 11, 2007 08:51 PM
I wonder if anyone knows, if it is possible for a foreigner to arrange a judicial clerkship in the US after the completion of the LLM degree? Are judicial clerkships limited only to American citizens? One is allowed to clerk only if he/she has a JD?


Generally you have to be an American citizen, but this can be waived. However, you're probably not going to find a Judge that will hire you as his/her clerk because you don't have a JD. You will not have the type of knowledge of American law that will be necessary to succeed in a clerkship. You're the judge's right hand man, and if you don't know something simple like the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, you're useless to him/her.

Put yourself in the American Judge's position. Why should a judge hire a foreigner who only has a year's worth of instruction of American law when he's got several hundred other candidates who have at least 3 years worth of instruction of American law? Sorry, but you're not going to get a clerkship unless you have a JD.
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hannenyh


Joined: 02 Jan 2006
Posts: 219
Judicial clerkship for international LLM students
Mon Nov 12, 2007 02:25 AM
Actually, you are wrong. One LLM (non-JD holder) at my school got a clerkship. Though I think it is at state level, so not as prestigious, but she got one. You can try to check out NJ clerkships, I don't think they require citizenship. However, she was an American citizen, which might be necessary, because the OPT wont last the whole 12 months, because you will probably start in August, and your OPT will start in July at the latest, thus your visa will expire before you finish your clerkship. Maybe there is a way around it, but it wont look good on your application. Bottom line, some places you don't need a citizenship or a JD, but it would be damn helpful ;)
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jballer

Joined: 01 Nov 2007
Posts: 19
Judicial clerkship for international LLM students
Mon Nov 12, 2007 10:37 PM
I guess I shold have said "generally".

Bottom line: It's going to be extremly difficult.

Is that better?
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ricey

Joined: 12 Mar 2006
Posts: 58
Judicial clerkship for international LLM students
Tue Nov 13, 2007 01:27 AM
Hi, I can definitively say that you can do judicial clerkships in the US but it depends from which country you come from. There is a list for that. It might be difficult though. It largely depends on the judge. i do know someone who got a really good clerkship but then his contacts from his home country was instrumental in that.
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hannenyh


Joined: 02 Jan 2006
Posts: 219
Judicial clerkship for international LLM students
Tue Nov 13, 2007 01:24 PM
I guess I shold have said "generally".

Bottom line: It's going to be extremly difficult.

Is that better?


I didn't mean to bash you, but I thought your arguments were made on the wrong assumption. I think not being a citizen is more of a problem than not having a JD. Thus, I saw the need to give the initial poster a more nuanced view on it.
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nriattorney

Joined: 12 Nov 2007
Posts: 231
Judicial clerkship for international LLM students
Thu Nov 22, 2007 03:55 PM
In fact it is extremely difficult for any international student to enter any position in a Government office as a regular employee without first getting at least "immigrant" visa. I doubt if anyone has entered as Clerk with a Judge on regular visa as LL.M student or post degree (OPT) holding F-1 visa
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