Law Clerk Addict's Blog
* The Associated Press reports on President Barack Obama's efforts to transform the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.
* Affected by the economic downturn? Justice Sonia Sotomayor is also a victim.
* Is the Supreme Court irrelevant? One law professor thinks so.
* Justice Clarence Thomas comments on his silence during oral arguments.
* Eleven attorneys, judges, and law professors are hoping to replace Judge Terence Evans (7th Cir.), who will be assuming senior status in January 2010.
Appellate Judges
VanAntwerpen, Franklin (3d Cir.)
Location: Easton, PA
Term: 9/13/2010 to 9/9/2011
District Judges
Ditter, J. (E.D. Pa.)
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Term: 8/25/2010 to 8/20/2012
McDade, Joe (C.D. Ill.)
Location: Peoria, IL
Term: 8/23/2010 to 9/2/2011
Hamilton, David (S.D. Ind.)
Location: Indianapolis, IN
Term: 9/1/2010 to 9/1/2011
Note: Judge Hamiltion has been nominated to the Seventh Circuit and will likely be confirmed by the time this clerkship starts.
Armijo, M. (D.N.M.)
Location: Albuquerque, NM
Term: 8/17/2009 to 8/18/2010
Note: This is a 2009-10 clerkship.
Marra, Kenneth (S.D. Fla.)
Location: West Palm Beach, FL
Term: 9/7/2010 to 9/2/2011
Caldwell, Karen (E.D. Ky.)
Location: Lexington, KY
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2011
Pfaelzer, Mariana (C.D. Cal.)
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Term: 10/1/2009 to 10/1/2010
Notes: The Judge handles almost exclusively securities, antitrust, and medical patent (biotech, pharmaceutical, and medical device) cases. She also has some general business litigation and some engineering- and computer-related patent cases. The Judge takes a small number of cases, but those cases are large and complex. The Judge does not generally take criminal cases.
Gardephe, Paul (S.D.N.Y.)
Location: New York, NY
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2011 and 10/1/2010 to 9/30/2011
Gertner, Nancy (D. Mass.)
Location: Boston, MA
Term: 8/3/2010 to 8/8/2011
Magistrate Judges
Pitman, Henry (S.D.N.Y.)
Location: New York, NY
Term: 9/1/2010 to 9/1/2011
Levy, Robert (E.D.N.Y.)
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Term: 8/16/2010 to 8/10/2012
Love, John (E.D. Tex.)
Location: Tyler, TX
Term: 8/2/2010 to 8/5/2011
Bankruptcy Judges
Stone, William (Bankr. W.D. Va.)
Location: Roanoke, VA
Term: 8/9/2010 to 8/12/2011
Agresti, Thomas (Bankr. E.D. Pa.)
Location: Erie, PA
Term: 9/1/2009 to 8/31/2010
The Chicago Tribune reports that a blogger has been arrested for making death threats against three Seventh Circuit judges. The judges? Chief Judge Frank Easterbrook, Judge Richard Posner, and Senior Judge William Bauer.
Appellate Judges
Pooler, Rosemary (2d Cir.)
Location: Syracuse, NY
Term: 8/24/2011 to 8/25/2012
Straub, Chester (2d Cir.)
Location: New York, NY
Term: 7/1/2010 to 7/1/2011
Posner, Richard (7th Cir.)
Location: Chicago, IL
Term: 8/24/2011 to 8/25/2012
District Judges
Davis, Leonard (E.D. Tex.)
Location: Tyler, TX
Term: 8/16/2010 to 8/12/2011
Damich, Edward (Fed. Cl.)
Location: Washington, DC
Term: 9/7/2010 to 8/31/2012
Braden, Susan (Fed. Cl.)
Location: Washington, DC
Term: 9/2/2010 to 9/7/2011
Davis, Leonard (D.N.H.)
Location: Concord, NH
Term: 8/30/2010 to 8/26/2011 or 9/10/2010 to 9/10/2011
Notes: Two positions available, with different term dates.
Magistrate Judges
Brown, Joe (M.D. Tenn.)
Location: Nashville, TN
Term: 10/8/2009 to 10/8/2010
Bankruptcy Judges
None.
The past couple of days have seen some additional movement on the circuit court clerk hiring front. Some highlights:
* Based on notifications, comments, and other tips, the early hiring list has been updated to indicate that Judges Roger Gregory (4th Cir.) and Arthur Alarcon (9th Cir.) are done, while Rosemary Barkett (11th Cir.), Amalya Kearse (2d Cir.) and Jane Roth (3d Cir.) have partially hired.
* An observant tipster on our Ninth Circuit comments page notes that Judge Marsha Berzon (9th Cir.) updated her OSCAR profile to narrow her class rank requirement from top 10% to top 5%. Perhaps this sudden change is another sign that Dan Filler's prediction about very bad days for 2010-11 clerkship applicants will indeed come to pass.
* Commenters on the Fourth Circuit and Seventh Circuit comment pages have indicated that Judge Paul Niemeyer (4th Cir.) will begin interviewing in July and that Judge Diane Sykes (7th Cir.) will begin reviewing applications later this month. However, given that these tips are anonymous, feel free to take them with a grain of salt.
In belated judicial nomination news, Judges Andre Davis (D. Md.) and David Hamilton (S.D. Ind.), President Obama's respective nominees to the Fourth Circuit and Seventh Circuit, have been voted out of the Senate Judiciary Committee and referred to the full Senate.
Appellate Judges
Smith, N. (9th Cir.)
Location: Pocatello, ID
Term: 8/15/2010 to 8/15/2011
Easterbrook, Frank (7th Cir.)
Location: Chicago, IL
Term: 8/16/2010 to 8/12/2011
Norris, Alan (6th Cir.)
Location: Columbus, OH
Term: 8/16/2010 to 8/12/2011
Cabranes, Jose (2d Cir.)
Location: New Haven, CT
Term: 7/11/2010 to 7/12/2011
Edmondson, J. (11th Cir.)
Location: Atlanta, GA
Term: 7/1/2010 to 6/30/2011 or 8/1/2010 to 7/31/2011 or 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2011
Notes: Three positions available, with different term dates.
Cook, Deborah (6th Cir.)
Location: Akron, OH
Term: 8/15/2010 to 8/15/2011
District Judges
Carmon, Gregory (C.I.T.)
Location: New York, NY
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2012
Lamberth, Royce (D.D.C.)
Location: Washington, DC
Term: 8/31/2010 to 9/3/2011
Fallon, Eldon (E.D. La.)
Location: New Orleans, LA
Term: 8/31/2010 to 9/3/2011
Gibson, Kim (W.D. Pa.)
Location: Johnstown, PA
Term: 6/15/2010 to 6/15/2011
Parker, James (D.N.M.)
Location: Albuquerque, NM
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2011
Magistrate Judges
Barfield, W. Leon (E.D. Ga.)
Location: Augusta, GA
Term: 8/31/2010 to 9/3/2011
Davis, Ivan (E.D. Va.)
Location: Alexandria, VA
Term: 9/27/2010 to 9/27/2011
Bankruptcy Judges
Teel, S. (Bankr. D.D.C.)
Location: Washington, DC
Term: 8/31/2009 to 8/31/2012
Appellate Judges
Michael, M. Blane (4th Cir.)
Location: Charleston, WV
Term: 8/16/2010 to 8/15/2011
Paez, Richard (9th Cir.)
Location: Pasadena, CA
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2011
Randolph, A. (D.C. Cir.)
Location: Washington, DC
Term: 8/1/2010 to 8/1/2011
Rawlinson, Johnnie (9th Cir.)
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Term: 8/15/2010 to 8/15/2011
Ripple, Kenneth (7th Cir.)
Location: South Bend, IN
Term: 8/9/2010 to 8/8/2011
Rymer, Pamela (9th Cir.)
Location: Pasadena, CA
Term: 8/1/2010 to 8/31/2011
District Judges
Messitte, Peter (D. Md.)
Location: Greenbelt, MD
Term: 8/15/2010 to 8/15/2011
Messitte, Peter (D. Mont.)
Location: Missoula, MT
Term: 8/30/2010 to 8/24/2012
Morrow, Margaret (C.D. Cal.)
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Term: 8/2/2010 to 8/5/2011
Mosman, Michael (D. Or.)
Location: Portland, OR
Term: 9/7/2010 to 9/6/2011
Nickerson, William (D. Md.)
Location: Baltimore, MD
Term: 9/7/2010 to 9/6/2011
Oliver, Solomon (N.D. Ohio)
Location: Cleveland, OH
Term: 8/15/2010 to 8/15/2012
Pratt, Robert (S.D. Iowa)
Location: Des Moines, IA
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/1/2012
Pro, Philip (D. Nev.)
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Term: 8/15/2010 to 8/15/2011
Quarles, Williams (D. Md.)
Location: Baltimore, MD
Term: 8/30/2010 to 8/29/2011
Robart, James (W.D. Wash.)
Location: Seattle, WA
Term: 9/10/2010 to 9/10/2012
Sammartino, Janis (S.D. Cal.)
Location: San Diego, CA
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2011
Saris, Patti (D. Mass.)
Location: Boston, MA
Term: 9/7/2010 to 8/31/2011
Notes: Two positions available, with different term dates.
Magistrate Judges
Guave, Susan (D. Md.)
Location: Baltimore, MD
Term: 8/16/2010 to 8/26/2011
Robinson, Deborah (D.D.C.)
Location: Washington, DC
Term: 8/16/2010 to 8/19/2011
Bankruptcy Judges
None.
Appellate Judges
Morris, Arnold (8th Cir.)
Location: Little Rock, AK
Term: 9/1/2010 to 9/1/2011
Beezer, Robert (9th Cir.)
Location: Seattle, WA
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2011
Benton, Duane (8th Cir.)
Location: Kansas City, MO
Term: 8/16/2010 to 8/12/2011
Berzon, Marsha (9th Cir.)
Location: San Francisco, CA
Term: 6/14/2010 to 6/10/2011 and 8/16/2010 to 8/12/2011
Notes: Two positions available, with different term dates.
Brown, Janis Rogers (D.C. Cir.)
Location: Washington, DC
Term: 8/1/2010 to 7/31/2011
Carnes, Ed (11th Cir.)
Location: Montgomery, AL
Term: 8/1/2010 to 8/1/2011 or 8/15/2010 to 8/15/2011
Notes: Two positions available, with different term dates.
Colloton, Steven (8th Cir.)
Location: Des Moines, IA
Term: 9/7/2010 to 9/2/2011
Cudahy, Richard (7th Cir.)
Location: Chicago, IL
Term: 9/7/2010 to 9/6/2011
Dennis, James (5th Cir.)
Location: New Orleans, LA
Term: 8/1/2010 to 8/1/2012
Dyk, Timothy (Fed. Cir.)
Location: Washington, DC
Term: 9/1/2010 to 9/1/2011
Fisher, D. Michael (3rd Cir.)
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Term: 8/23/2010 to 8/19/2011 or 8/30/2010 to 8/26/2011
Notes: Two positions available, with different term dates.
Garwood, William (5th Cir.)
Location: Austin, TX
Term: 8/3/2010 to 7/31/2011
District Judges
Allegra, Francis (U.S. Court of Federal Claims)
Location: Washington, DC
Term: 8/30/2010 to 9/1/2011
Anderson, S. Thomas (W.D. Tenn.)
Location: Memphis, TN
Term: 8/15/2010 to 8/15/2011
Arterton, Janet (D. Conn.)
Location: New Haven, CT
Term: 8/9/2010 to 8/7/2012
Barbier, Carl (E.D. La.)
Location: New Orleans, LA
Term: 6/15/2010 to 6/15/2011 and 8/15/2010 to 8/15/2011
Notes: Two positions available, with different term dates.
Baylson, Michael (E.D. Pa.)
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2011
Brack, Robert (D.N.M.)
Location: Las Cruces, NM
Term: 9/7/2010 to 9/8/2011
Cardone, Kathleen (N.D. Tex.)
Location: El Paso, TX
Term: 9/7/2010 to 9/2/2011 or 9/7/2010 to 8/31/2012
Notes: Two positions available, with different term dates.
Carney, Cormac (S.D. Cal.)
Location: Santa Ana, CA
Term: 8/2/2010 to 8/27/2011
Cauthron, Robin (W.D. Okla.)
Location: Oklahoma City, OK
Term: 9/1/2010 to 9/1/2012
Chatigny, Robert (D. Conn.)
Location: Hartford, CT
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2011
Chesney, Maxine (N.D. Cal.)
Location: San Francisco, CA
Term: 9/1/2010 to 9/1/2011
Cohn, James (S.D. Fla.)
Location: Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Term: 8/25/2010 to 8/31/2012
Copenhaver, John (S.D. W.Va.)
Location: Charleston, WV
Term: 8/23/2010 to 8/26/2011
Currie, Cameron (D.S.C.)
Location: Columbia, SC
Term: 9/7/2010 to 9/6/2011
Dalzell, Stewart (E.D. Pa.)
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Term: 8/23/2010 to 8/23/2012
Dimitrouleas, William (S.D. Fla.)
Location: Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2012
Downes, William (D. Wyo.)
Location: Casper, WY
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2012
Flanagan, Louise (E.D.N.C.)
Location: New Bern, NC
Term: 9/1/2010 to 9/1/2011 or 9/1/2010 to 9/1/2012
Notes: Two positions available, with different term dates.
Frizzell, Gregory (N.D. Okla.)
Location: Tulsa, OK
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2012
Magistrate Judges
Ashman, Martin (N.D. Ill.)
Location: Chicago, IL
Term: 8/16/2010 to 9/1/2011
Barfield, W. Leon (S.D. Ga.)
Location: Augusta, GA
Term: 9/1/2010 to 9/1/2012
Bankruptcy Judges
Barfield, W. Leon (Bankr. D. Ariz.)
Location: Phoenix, AZ
Term: 8/1/2010 to 8/12/2012
Davlis, John (Bankr. S.D. Ga.)
Location: Brunswick, GA
Term: 9/1/2010 to 8/31/2011
The OSCAR listing for Judge Ann Williams (7th Cir.) has recently been edited to remove three of the four previously-listed 2010-11 clerkship positions, and rumor has it that these positions were removed because the positions have been recently filled. Accordingly, I have tentatively added Judge Williams to the early hiring list. If anyone can confirm, debunk, or otherwise comment on this rumor please leave a comment or email lawfirmaddict@gmail.com.
Appellate Judges
Sykes, Diane (7th Cir.)
Location: Milwaukee, WI
Term: 8/16/2010 to 8/12/2011
Notes: Four positions available. Officing in Chicago chambers may be permitted.
District Judges
None.
Magistrate Judges
None.
Bankruptcy Judges
None.
Not surprisingly, speculation already abounds as to who President Barack Obama will select to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice David Souter. Here are some highlights from around the blogosphere:
* Orin Kerr guesses it will be Solicitor General and former Harvard Law School dean Elena Kagan, but he would prefer sitting judges Merrick Garland (D.C. Cir.) or Diane Wood (7th Cir.).
* Marc Randazza would like to see Alex Kozinski (9th Cir.), law professor (and former Kozinski clerk) Eugene Volokh, or former Jenner & Block partner Donald B. Verrilli.
* Scott Greenfield is hoping for Sonia Sotomayor (2d Cir.).
* Last but not least, several forum contributors (see, e.g., here and here) are fans of Kim McLane Wardlow (9th Cir.).
As I noted last night, this should make for a very interesting summer!
Appellate Judges
Barry, Maryanne (3d Cir.)
Location: Newark, NJ
Term: 9/1/2010 to 9/1/2011
Moore, Karen (6th Cir.)
Location: Cleveland, OH
Term: 8/1/2010 to 8/1/2011
Williams, Ann (7th Cir.)
Location: Chicago, IL
Term: 1/3/2011 to 12/31/2011
District Judges
Zloch, William (S.D. Fla.)
Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL
Term: 9/7/2010 to 8/31/2012
Magistrate Judges
Carter, Andrew (E.D.N.Y.)
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Term: 6/15/2009 to 6/15/2010
Notes: Newly appointed judge. Three years of civil litigation experience and bar admission required. Two positions available. Closes on May 7, 2009.
Bankruptcy Judges
None.