Law students will go to great lengths for a good line on their resume. Luckily for UC Law SF students, those great lengths are still pretty close to campus. From UCLawSF:
Just a few steps from UC Law SF’s campus, Sheila Zerang ‘24 closely observed live courtroom arguments before sitting down to write the first draft of what may become a published California appellate court decision.
How did a third-year law student accomplish this feat? Through the law school’s Judicial Externship Program, which dispatches dozens of law students each year to work with judges in state and federal courthouses, most of them only a short walk from UC Law’s centrally located campus in the heart of San Francisco.
“This externship deepened my understanding of appellate procedures, refined my legal research and writing skills, and offered a real-world perspective on the judicial decision-making process,” Zerang said.
Whichever law school you attend, working with a judge is a great way to deepen your understanding of how the legal system works when the rubber hits the road. Few things will force you to double down on your civil procedure and legal writing notes like knowing an actual judge will be the one reviewing your work — getting taken to task for formatting errors has a lot more gravitas when it happens in judicial chambers compared to office hours. That said, you’d be hard pressed to find a better place to hone your opinions than at the right hand of a judge. Best of luck with your externships!
Students Shine as Judicial Externs [UCLawsSF]
Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s. He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who cannot swim, a published author on critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.
