Law Clerk to Judges of the Court (Associate Legal Officer)

Sally Kenney`s article on civil servants or legal secretaries on the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) provides a detailed point of comparison (2000). There are big differences between CJEU officials and their US counterparts, mainly due to the structure of the CJEU. [14] A key difference is that CJEU employees, while hired by individual judges, serve long sentences, as opposed to the one-year standard of legal internship at the U.S. Supreme Court. This gives CJEU staff considerable expertise and power. As the term of office of CJEU judges can be extended by six years and does not give individual opinions, the most important role of CJEU staff is to ensure consistency and continuity across chambers, Member States and over time. Typically, the second most sought-after federal clerk position is that of a judge of the U.S. District Court. Some U.S. district courts are more desirable than others because of the district`s popular location. There are also federal internships with other federal judges such as U.S. magistrate judges; judges of the United States Tax Court, senior judges, and special judges; judge of the Insolvency Appeal Board; and U.S.

bankruptcy judges. The work of trainee lawyer mainly consists of assisting judges in drafting judgments and decisions, keeping records at hearings and conducting judicial investigations. After about six months, the court registrar is responsible for deciding simpler and non-contentious matters (e.g. registration of marriages or granting of adoptions). After about a year, the registrar is responsible for evaluating simpler criminal and civil cases (before ordinary courts) such as petty theft or civil proceedings involving small sums of money. Federal appellate judges tend to recruit primarily from the most prestigious and prestigious law schools in the United States. Justice Clarence Thomas is the biggest exception to the rule; He is proud to choose non-graduate school employees and has publicly noted that his employees have been attacked online as « third-class garbage. » [38] The basic salary of the ordinary courts is set by decree of the Minister of Justice and since June 2016 is 3000 to 4200 PLN per month (about 695 to 975 € gross). [27] [34] In the case of administrative courts, the salary of assistants is regulated by the President of the Republic of Poland,[35] ranging from PLN 1600 to PLN 5200, depending on whether or not the assistant is a senior assistant. The remuneration rules of the Supreme Court of Poland and the Constitutional Court are governed by their respective internal regulations. A similar system exists in the administrative courts[16], including the Council of State.

Legal internships in state courts of appeals are similar to those in federal courts of appeals, but focus primarily on state law rather than federal law issues. [53] Some state courts also use the title « Staff Attorney » for professionals and employees who assist all judges. [54] For law students who wish to practice in a particular state or geographic region after their articling period, state call rotations or court rotations can often be more useful than federal articling in getting to know judges, lawyers, and firms in the field and seeing litigators at work. [55] The Law Firm of the Supreme Court of India solicits applications for legal research assistant positions at colleges and universities associated with the firm in January of each year. Universities nominate/recommend their students to the register, which reviews applications and shortlists candidates. Shortlisted candidates will be interviewed by a distinguished panel of sitting Supreme Court justices during the first week of June. The final list of merits will be drawn up and the selected candidates will be offered positions from July who will be able to work under the guidance of the sitting judges of the Supreme Court. Eligible candidates will receive offers throughout the year as soon as vacancies in judicial chambers become vacant. Normally, each judge is assigned two trainee lawyers for one year, although it is known that some judges sometimes employ one or more trainee lawyers at the same time.

Although most trainee lawyers typically begin their one-year period of service in July of each year, shortly after graduating from the LL.B. degree, although there have been cases of trainee lawyers working after gaining work experience. At the Federal Supreme Court (see Justice) and the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland, the tasks of trainee lawyers are carried out by academic staff. With few exceptions, they are judges or public servants assigned to the relevant Federal Court for a period of three years, and their articling periods serve as a qualification for a senior judicial function. However, some judges of the Federal Constitutional Court (who have the right to personally choose their academic staff) prefer clerks or civil servants, especially those who are or have been law professors and often hire people from academia (sometimes even young law professors). The clerks of the Federal Constitutional Court are considered very influential and are therefore called the third (unofficial) Senate, unlike the two official « Senates » of 8 judges each, which form the Court. The Tax Court of Canada hires 12 clerks each year. [9] The employment profile of trainee lawyers varies depending on the judges under whom they work.

Generally, this involves preparing summary notices and pleadings for special leave requests listed for the different days (i.e. Monday and Friday). On days without miscellaneous, this includes attending court hearings and taking notes for defense attorneys` arguments on the listed topics. They also assist judges in drafting judgments and orders by supplementing them with research and case analysis. In France, trainee lawyers are called judicial assistants. They typically go through a competitive appointment and interview process to be accepted as trainee lawyers. Most French courts accept applications for judicial internships from law students. Students in their final year of law can apply, although most law clerks have a PhD.

Law candidates or candidates for the bar exam or an entrance exam for the French civil service, such as the École nationale de juridiction Français, the École nationale des finances publiques Français or the École nationale des greffes Français. Former federal law articling students are often in high demand at large law firms. Companies consider these individuals to have excellent legal research and drafting skills and to be proficient in the Federal Code of Civil Procedure and the Code of Criminal Procedure. Law firms are even more interested in a former trainee lawyer if the law firm usually appears before the former clerk`s judge.