Career Law Clerk Job in Norfolk, VA

Summary

This job is open to

• The public

  U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Duties

Law Clerk duties will include, but are not limited to, reviewing briefs and other case filings; performing legal research; writing bench memoranda; and drafting orders and opinions in a wide variety of civil and criminal cases. Administrative duties will include serving as principal administrative manager of chambers; reviewing the active case docket daily and drafting standard scheduling orders as necessary; training and assisting the term law clerks; and managing the judge's schedule. Exceptional writing and editing skills are required, and candidates with prior federal judicial clerkship experience will be preferred. Respect for the role of the judiciary and the rule of law is required.

Responsibilities

The Career Law Clerk manages a large docket of civil and criminal cases and has primary responsibilities regarding the drafting and finalizing of opinions and orders. This fast-paced "Rocket Docket" District demands excellent writing and analytical skills.

The successful applicant must meet multiple deadlines in a timely and organized fashion and must be able to produce written materials (i.e. orders, opinions, etc.) quickly and accurately. Flexibility to meet demanding deadlines and a concomitant strong work ethic are both required. Candidates must maintain a courteous and professional demeanor within chambers, the Court, and the Bar, and before the public.

Administrative Duties

• Closely monitor dockets of all pending cases and draft orders, as appropriate, for scheduling and discovery-related issues, default proceedings, service deficiencies, and other miscellaneous matters.
• Serve as chambers liaison for all outside personnel, including other District and Magistrate Judges, the Clerk of Court, the Clerk's Office staff, the Probation and Pretrial Services Office, and the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.
• Train, assist and supervise the two bi-annual term law clerks extensively.
• Receive, screen, and refer telephone and in-person callers.
• Prepare in final form the judge's written correspondence, memoranda, annual reports, and other items. Assemble and attach supplemental material as required.
• Monitor all incoming mail and email communication, screen incoming mail daily, routing the mail to appropriate recipients, reviewing all outgoing mail for accuracy.
• Maintain the judge's calendar; schedule, change, and cancel meetings, appointments, and hearings as directed; relieve the judge of routine details and oversee chambers supply stock and general chambers' management.
• Arrange all business travel itineraries for the judge, including plane tickets, hotel reservations, lodging plans, car rentals, and other arrangements.
• Perform other miscellaneous administrative duties as assigned by the judge and as necessary for the efficient operation of chambers.

Law Clerk Duties

• Research and analyze novel and complex legal issues in diverse areas of federal criminal law and civil litigation.
• Draft orders and memorandum opinions in civil and criminal cases for the judge's review.
• Prepare bench memoranda and other written materials for motions hearings and trial proceedings, as directed.
• Provide information and guidance to the judge on individual cases, as directed.
• Perform extensive computer legal research via Westlaw and/or Lexis.
• Monitor significant changes in federal statutes, sentencing guidelines, and Supreme Court and Fourth Circuit precedent.
• Review and edit orders, opinions and memoranda drafted by term law clerks and staff attorneys.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Employees must be United States citizens or eligible to work in the United States.
• Employees are required to adhere to the Code of Conduct for Judicial Employees, which is available to applicants to review upon request.
• Employees of the United States District Court are Excepted Service Appointments. Excepted service appointments are "At-Will" and can be terminated with or without cause by the Court.
• Employees will be hired provisionally pending the results of a background investigation.
• Employees are required to use the Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) for payroll deposit.
• The Court reserves the right to modify the conditions of this job announcement, to withdraw the job announcement, or to fill the position sooner than the closing date, if a closing date is shown; any of these actions may occur without any prior written or other type of notice.
• The United States District Court of the Eastern District of Virginia is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

How You Will Be Evaluated

Required Documents

How to Apply

Qualified applicants should submit one document in PDF format via e-mail to
Benjamin_Maxymuk@vaed.uscourts.gov and Madhuri_Belkale@vaed.uscourts.gov that includes the following:

• a cover letter describing the applicant's qualifications, skills and experience necessary to perform the job;
• a current resume, including a list of at least three professional references;
• a law school transcript; and
• a completed AO 78 Form, Application for Federal Judicial Branch Employment (document can be found under "Related Links" on the employment page of our website): https://www.vaed.uscourts.gov/.

In the same email, please include TWO writing samples consisting of (1) an analysis of a complex criminal issue and (2) an analysis of a complex civil matter. These samples should be primarily the work of the applicant and not heavily edited or rewritten by others. Applications should note if a particular individual referred the candidate to Judge Allen. Applicants selected for an interview will be asked to participate in a remote/zoom interview with the judge's staff and then a remote/zoom interview with the judge; successful candidates will then be asked to visit Norfolk for an in-person interview with the judge.

Next steps

Applicants selected for an interview will be asked to participate in a remote/zoom interview with the judge's staff and then a remote/zoom interview with the judge; successful candidates will then be asked to visit Norfolk for an in-person interview with the judge.