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The Judicial Field Placement class provides an opportunity for students to learn about both lawyering and judging by observing and participating in the work of a judge and his or her staff. Which judges and courts participate varies each term, but externships are typically available with federal magistrate judges and with judges at the federal district court, federal court of appeals, federal bankruptcy court, state trial court, state court of appeals, state tax court, and state workers’ compensation courts. State trial court placements are with judges handling criminal, civil, family, or juvenile court matters and with problem-solving courts (e.g., drug court). Externships may also be available at the Office of Administrative Hearings, American Indian tribal courts, and the federal Immigration Court.

Federal court placements (Federal District Court, Federal Magistrate Judges, Federal Court of Appeals, and Federal Bankruptcy Courts, as well as the state Court of Appeals) are made using an application process that occurs a few months before the start of the term. Notification will be sent to all students about deadlines for applying. At the same time as that notification students will be able to apply for placements with state trial court judges, though that process has a later deadline than the federal application process. For both federal and state applications, students will be asked to complete a form specifying their preferences and to submit a resume, transcript, and cover letter to be used in the placement process. Students will be assigned based on their requests and the judges’ needs. After placement, each student arranges a work schedule with the assigned judge and his or her staff. Students are encouraged to arrange their class schedules to have several large blocks of time available for fieldwork; free mornings are especially important for attending court hearings.

Fieldwork in chambers generally includes both substantive assignments in research and writing and observation of court proceedings. The precise nature of the assignments and observation opportunities in chambers is at the discretion of the judge and the judge’s staff.

Students will document and reflect on their fieldwork in journals and will interact with the instructor and with other students in the class through periodic group or individual meetings. During the summer, some meetings may occur via web technology.

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