Judicial Law Clerks

Assist judges in court or by conducting research or preparing legal documents.

What They Do

Judicial law clerks work behind the scenes to support judges in making informed, well-reasoned legal decisions. They spend most of their time conducting extensive legal research, analyzing case law, statutes, and precedents that apply to pending cases. A typical day involves reading through case files, reviewing motions and briefs submitted by attorneys, and preparing detailed memoranda that summarize legal issues and recommend courses of action. They draft preliminary opinions, orders, and other court documents that judges review and finalize. During trials or hearings, clerks may sit in the courtroom to observe proceedings and take notes on key arguments and evidence.

Programs That Prepare You

College programs linked to this occupation, ranked by graduate earnings

Law(professional)Columbia University in the City of New York, NY

Law(doctoral)Cornell University, NY

Law(professional)Northwestern University, IL

Law(professional)University of Pennsylvania, PA

Law(doctoral)Duke University, NC

Law(professional)University of Virginia-Main Campus, VA

Law(professional)University of Chicago, IL

Law(professional)University of California-Berkeley, CA

Law(professional)University of Southern California, CA

Law(professional)Harvard University, MA

Law(professional)Fordham University, NY

Law(professional)University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, MI

Law(professional)Georgetown University, DC

Law(professional)Stanford University, CA

Law(professional)Vanderbilt University, TN

Law(professional)University of California-Los Angeles, CA

Law(professional)Boston University, MA

Law(doctoral)Yale University, CT

Law(professional)Suffolk University, MA

Law(professional)Western New England University, MA

Law(professional)Boston College, MA

Law(professional)Massachusetts School of Law, MA

Law(professional)University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth, MA

Law(masters)University of Pennsylvania, PA

Law(professional)University of Notre Dame, IN

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