IN CHAMBERS: EFFECTIVE WRITING TIPS FOR

THE JUDICIAL INTERNS AND LAW CLERKS

Working for and with a judge can be an exciting but intimidating challenge. In

many respects, law school is great preparation, and many of the skills you have learned

will be invaluable. However, many challenges you will face in chambers can seem quite

foreign at first, and there is surprisingly little guidance out there on how to address them.

This handout is intended to fill some of those gaps.

A lot of the guidance contained in this handout will, like so many things in law,

vary depending on facts and circumstances. For example, this handout is intended to be

useful both for full-time clerks as well as summer interns and school-term externs. Of

course, the roles of each of these positions differs in some respect, so keep that in mind as

you read. In addition, as is elaborated further later on, every judge is different. No matter

what, respect his or her wishes at all times and never take anything contained herein or

elsewhere as advice to the contrary.

This handout assumes you have received an assignment from your supervisor in

chambers and that you are having a hard time with next steps. The goal is not so much to

tell you how to write it (there is simply too much variation out there for that), but,

instead, to provide some guidance as to what types of questions you can ask and what

next steps might look like. If what is contained here is not enough, a comprehensive list

of further suggested reading can be found at the end.

The following are central issues to keep in mind when working through an

assignment in chambers:

1. Audience.

2. Timing and process.

3. Type and scope of assignment.

4. Pre-work/Prewriting.

5. Writing basics.

6. Proofreading.

By Charlie Dobb (2017), based on an original handout prepared by Scott Meisler and Brian Wahlquist (2005).

1. Audience.

The question of audience is a challenging but critical one in chambers. An

obvious member of your audience, but one that bears identifying, is your judge. Keep in

mind that ultimately your goal in chambers is to assist him or her in the administration of

justice, something he or she has likely done for some time before you have arrived and

will continue to do for some time after you depart. As one leading guide to working with

a judge suggests: “Whatever the judge’s personal style, most prefer that their law clerks

not attempt to impose each clerk’s own style on opinions and court documents.”

So,

while most judges will appreciate you engaging with them intellectually and challenging

their logic in chambers (and, indeed, many judges cite this as a top benefit of having

young legal minds in chambers at all) ultimately what he or she says goes.

In light of all of that, do your best to familiarize yourself with your judge’s tone,

style, pet peeves, etc. Do the judge’s opinions tend to follow a certain structure? Does he

or she use a (relatively) casual tone, or something more formal? Some judges will

provide incoming interns and law clerks with a style guide similar to the ones used by

law journals. If yours does, adhere to it. If that is not available, ask the judge or another

supervisor for samples of writing that the judge considers superlative and be sure to read

a wide sample of the judge’s prior work.

While a judge will almost always be a member of your audience, he or she will

rarely be the only member. Who else is in the audience will depend on the type of

document you are working on. Document types are discussed in more detail in a

following section. Some documents, such as bench or single-issue memoranda, will stay

within chambers. Other documents, such as opinions and orders, will be published and

widely disseminated. For those documents, the audience will include the parties to the

case as well as other judges, lawyers, academics, and the general public.

2. Timing and process.

By now you are used to a natural but nonetheless frustrating tension in legal

writing: good legal writing is largely about (an often long) process but is frequently

needed quickly. Unfortunately, this tension is often exacerbated in chambers. Timing

may be unusually rushed and deadlines will be critically important. Judges decide real

cases involving real parties in real time. Dates for trials, motions hearings, and oral

arguments are often established weeks or months in advance and involve busy people and

high stakes.

Despite those timing pressures, you will rarely do work as process driven as the

work you will do in chambers. For example, a judge may have a clerk start an opinion by

preparing an outline, then the judge will review and comment on it, then the clerk will

prepare a draft, then the judge will comment on that, then maybe a co-clerk will review,

FED. JUDICIAL CTR., LAW CLERK HANDBOOK: A HANDBOOK FOR LAW CLERKS TO FEDERAL JUDGES 88 (Sylvan A. Sobel ed., 2d ed.

2007) [hereinafter FJC

HANDBOOK].

See FED. JUDICIAL CTR., JUDICIAL WRITING MANUAL: A POCKET GUIDE FOR JUDGES (2d ed. 2013),

http://www2.fjc.gov/sites/default/files/2014/Judicial-Writing-Manual-2D-FJC-2013.pdf [hereinafter FJC

MANUAL].

and then the judge will review again, etc. Judge Kozinski on the Ninth Circuit is rumored

to require upwards of 50 drafts of an opinion before it is published!

That process may be

even further extended if, for example, other judges who may be signing on to the opinion

need to review it.

In sum, in chambers, deadlines are important and process may be prolonged.

Therefore, be sure you understand at the outset what the process will be and what

deadlines are expected of you. Set intermittent deadlines to keep you focused. If you

anticipate being unable to meet the deadline for the assignment, notify the judge or

supervisor at the earliest possible moment. Even if you think you will get the document in

on time but are not certain, be upfront and honest; the judge might tell you that he or she

was not planning to look at the memo that day or might ask another clerk or intern to

assist you.

3. Type and scope of assignment.

While instinctively we may associate writing in chambers with opinions, there are

actually many types of documents chambers may produce. No matter the assignment, it

will be important to identify its goal and purpose early and structure the document

accordingly. While there is no finite list of the types of documents courts may produce,

there are certain common ones that are worth familiarizing yourself with.

A. The Bench Memorandum

A bench memo is a document that a law clerk (or intern) prepares for the judge to

help prepare him or her for oral arguments. The memo will normally contain presentation

and analysis of the parties’ arguments, the basis for jurisdiction in that court, the relevant

case law, and, when requested, the clerk’s recommendation on how the judge should

resolve the case.

Some judges will also ask their clerk to provide questions that the judge

might ask during oral arguments/hearings. While it is expected that you will start your

work from the parties’ briefs, that should not be where your research ends. Spend time

verifying the validity of the parties’ positions, and also searching for authority they did

not cite.

Bench memos are frequently used by appellate judges. However, trial judges may

also request them in advance of a motions hearing. For example, a trial judge preparing to

hear a defendant’s motion to suppress evidence may ask for a bench memo on the

relevant Fourth Amendment or state constitutional jurisprudence.

Carl Tobias, A New No. 1 at the 9th Circuit, L.A. TIMES (Nov. 30, 2007), http://articles.latimes.com/2007/nov/30/opinion/oe-

tobias30 [https://perma.cc/3EKN-LYEU].

This document provides only a cursory introduction to bench memoranda. For a more detailed discussion, see JESSICA KLARFELD,

THE BENCH MEMORANDUM (2011) https://www.law.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/The-Bench-Memorandum-Jessica-

Klarfeld-2011.pdf (available on the Georgetown University Law Center Writing Center webpage).

See, e.g., MARY L. DUNNEWOLD, BETH A. HONETSCHLAGER & BRENDA L. TOFTE, JUDICIAL CLERKSHIPS: A PRACTICAL GUIDE 134-

36 (2010).

B. Trial Court Documents

Law school education often focuses on appellate cases. Unless you have taken a

course in trial practice or certain clinics, your first day at a trial-level clerkship may be

your first substantial exposure to trial documents. Below is a non-exhaustive list of

documents that clerks and interns often work on in chambers.

• Orders announce the decision of the court on motions. The term “order” is used

broadly and can refer to everything from a two-dozen-page order resolving a

motion for summary judgment (sometimes also called an “order and

memorandum of law”), to a half-page “minute order” (a written order that

memorializes a ruling made by the judge orally), to a “letter order” (an informal

order sent to the parties in the form of a letter, often used for procedural details

such as setting a schedule).

• In cases where the judge is serving as the finder of fact, rather than a jury (a

“bench trial”), the judge will issue findings of fact and conclusions of law to

announce his or her resolution of the matter. As the name suggests, this document

will contain facts the court has been persuaded of (often with citations to the

relevant portions of the record) as well as legal conclusions regarding those facts.

• A judge will give jury instructions

to a jury usually before and after a trial. The

instructions are often a combination of proposed instructions from the two sides,

form instructions a judge and his or her chambers may use in every case, and

“pattern instructions” which are “best practice” type documents issued by

professional associations, academics, and similar entities. Because the same or

similar issues will appear before a judge repeatedly, it is important to see what

types of instructions your judge has given in similar cases and start from those.

C. Appellate Opinions

Along with bench memos, drafting appellate opinions makes up the bulk of many

appellate clerks’ experience in chambers. In terms of process, a clerk’s role will vary

between chambers. In some, clerks do research and prepare an outline, while the judge

actually drafts. In others, clerks prepare an entire first draft in consultation with the judge,

who reviews and significantly edits the final product.

In terms of substance, the term “opinion” (like “order,” discussed above) is used

broadly. The Federal Judicial Center discusses the term as a spectrum. At one end are

what it terms “full dress” opinions (which include a discussion of the facts, legal

principles, and governing authorities), at the other end are “summary orders” which just

give the disposition (and perhaps the briefest discussion of the issues) and somewhere in

the middle are “memorandum opinions,” which address issues that are complex enough

to warrant some explanation (these may appear as “per curiam” opinions).

Full dress

opinions, at least, will typically include five elements: (1) a brief introduction; (2) the

This discussion of trial court documents is based largely on the work of Professor Dunnewold and her colleagues. Id. at 147-214.

In addition to the work by Professor Dunnewold and her colleagues, detailed guidance on drafting jury instructions can be found in

ENNIFER L. SHEPPARD, IN CHAMBERS: A GUIDE FOR JUDICIAL CLERKS AND EXTERNS 157-193 (2012).

See FJC MANUAL, supra note 3, at 3.

issue(s) before the court; (3) material facts; (4) legal analysis and resolution of open legal

questions; and (5) disposition and instructions to the court below.

4. Pre-work/Prewriting.

This may go without saying, but being accurate on the law and facts is rarely

more crucial than when you are working in chambers. The judge you are working for will

be relying on you to know the nuances of the law and the relevant factual record. Keep in

mind that you will have less on your plate than he or she does (usually a fraction of the

docket), and therefore will be expected to take a deeper dive than he or she may be able

to.

In practice, this means that pre-work/prewriting will be key. As the next section

suggests with regard to writing mechanics, go back to basics for pre-work/prewriting as

well. When conducting research, keep notes of what you have covered and where you

would like to go next. Start from secondary sources to ensure you do not miss anything

and then narrow your focus from there; check every source you are using to ensure it is

still good law, etc. Even in chambers, the Georgetown Law Library’s research guides and

process overviews remain available to you.

Once the research is done, prewriting documents may take on new value in

chambers. For example, as already discussed, a judge may want to review a detailed

outline of an opinion before allowing you to move forward with a draft. Even if the judge

does not, consider preparing one anyway to verify the completeness of your research and

the soundness of your logic.

5. Writing basics.

Do not forget everything you have already learned in writing courses. Although

those courses may have focused on writing for legal practice or academia, what you

learned is equally applicable to writing in chambers. It is tempting to forget the basics

when thrown into more complex documents like those you might see in chambers, but

resist that urge!

While some documents you encounter may be entirely foreign (jury instructions,

for example), many will be familiar. Almost all legal writing relies on a few key

fundamentals, and most chambers documents are not exceptions. They are going to rely

on the same legal writing principles that you have familiarized yourself with in law

school: large- and small-scale organization, topic sentences, roadmaps, case comparisons,

and rule synthesis. If these concepts sound foreign to you, it might be a good time to

consult some of the Writing Center’s useful handouts on these and other fundamental

topics.

Id.

6. Proofreading.

It may seem obvious, but leave plenty of time to proofread and then do it,

carefully. Think of the term “proofreading” broadly. It certainly means what you would

typically think of: spelling, punctuation, grammar, bluebook citation, etc. However, it

also means checking that cited sources are accurately represented, that all issues from the

record (for example, parties’ names and case numbers) are accurate, and even that the

logic is sound.

Until a document is distributed, it is never too late in the process to

make both technical and substantive improvement.