Clerking on the U.S. Supreme Court
Application Procedures, 2011-12 Term

General Information

The U.S. Supreme Court Clerkship application process is naturally even more competitive than the process of applying for any other clerkship.  You will be competing for one of 35 or 36 slots, and your competition will include students and alumni from the top law schools. 

To have a realistic chance of success, you must have served on the managing board of the Law Review.  You need exceptional grades and strong recommendations.  It also helps your application if you have published your Note. 

The Justices are not bound by the Federal Law Clerk Hiring Plan, and determine their own hiring schedules.  Specific information about the hiring schedule for the 2011-12 Court Term follows below.  Paper applications are the exclusive method by which you will apply to the Court. 

We highly recommend that you “bundle” your applications to the Court.  Doing so will allow you to send a complete package to the Justices of the Court.  This means that you will send your resume, cover letter, transcript, writing sample, and non-faculty letters of recommendation to the Clerkship Committee to be bundled with your faculty recommendations.

If you would like the Clerkship Committee to bundle your applications, you need to write judicialclerkships@virginia.edu as soon as you intend to apply to the Court.  However, if you are not interested in using our services, you need to let us know as well.  This will allow us to inform the faculty assistants to mail the letters directly to the Court. 

What to Put in Your Application

A.  Cover letter
           
Your cover letter should be short and simple.  It should state the term for which you are applying, the name and contact information of your recommenders, and the name and contact information of any other judges for which you are clerking or have clerked. 

B.  Resume
           
For purposes of applying to clerk on the Supreme Court, it is more important to include all relevant items on your resume than it is to keep it on one page.  Do not assume that the Justices know UVA jargon (such as what a “Dillard Fellow” is) — spell it out.  Be sure to include your permanent address. 

C.  Your Transcript
           
Your unofficial UVA transcript is often better that the official version because it includes your professors’ names.  However, you must be a student to obtain an unofficial transcript.  If you have already graduated, you should use an official transcript and type up a separate sheet showing which faculty members taught the courses that you took.

E.  Writing sample
           
You should use the piece of writing that best demonstrates your ability with English prose and your analytical skills.  Usually, you would use your Law Review Note, which you are hopefully publishing. 

F.  Recommendations
           
Most of the Justices require three letters of recommendation.  These letters are sent directly by the recommenders to the Justices.  You usually would start by asking the faculty who wrote for your lower court applications, your judge, or anyone who knows your work well. The ideal recommender will be able to stay something about your writing. A weak letter can be fatal to your candidacy, so you should have a frank conversation with your recommenders about whether they can support your application wholeheartedly. 

H.  Update Information
           
You need to keep your application current.  Send letters to the Court updating chambers whenever you receive new information, such as additional grades, additional awards, or new contact information. 

Hiring Process

We have surveyed the chambers of the Justices and received the following information:

Virginia Law Alumni Who Have Clerked for the Supreme Court

The following chart shows the alumni who have clerked from the Supreme Court from 1998 to the present, including their lower court clerkship(s). 

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