Don’t dismiss trial court clerkships! I was surprised when my appellate judge stated that she missed the power she had as a trial court judge. What? I took a double take. Did she really mean she had more power as a trial judge? That’s not what I learned in law school, but, yes, she did mean that. She explained that many issues are subject to deferential standards of review. The appellate court has very little to say about those issues. For example, issues reviewed for abuse of discretion must be affirmed so long as the decision was not an abuse of discretion even if the appellate court would not have resolved the issue in the way that the trial court had. These trial court decisions can play a major role in framing the case. I had never thought about the power of the trial court in that way. So I encourage you to consider trial court clerkships. The work is interesting, and there is much more power than meets the eye!
