Giving your law clerks an awesome experience

Recently I traveled to a neighboring state to talk to state appellate judges about maximizing their law clerks’ experience. This invitation stemmed in part from my recent book, The Short & Happy Guide to Judicial Clerkships. While that book largely focuses on how to apply for clerkships, I do briefly talk about how law clerks can get the most out of their clerkship year.

In preparing for the talk, I found that there is not a lot written on the topic of maximizing the clerk experience.  Well several articles and books exist about how law clerks can be good clerks (like my brief discussion)–there is less instruction for judges on how to ensure that their clerks have a positive experience. I have decided to spend some time this summer writing an essay to help fill this gap. 

Specifically, I am going to look at three topics:

(1) What can judges do to make the clerk experience positive? 

(2) How can judges best mentor law clerks?

(3) What can judges do to help their clerks learn how to research and write effectively?  

There are a few articles on this last topic, notably this excellent, short piece by Sara Warf.

I would like to invite readers of this blog, both judges and former (or current) clerks to reach out to me with their thoughts on this topic.  I am interested in the perspectives of both trial and appellate judges and clerks. Thanks!