In Chambers: A Guide for Judicial Clerks and Externs
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Book length
256 pages
Publication Date
2012-03-12
Edition
Teaching Materials
NO
Description
In Chambers is a refreshingly brief and focused book that addresses the key concepts and basic skills clerks and externs need to have on day one. It explains rudimentary tasks, such as reading a docket sheet and working with a case file, and offers detailed instructions on drafting jury instructions. Sources of authority commonly relied upon by the courts are identified for specific topics, and a helpful note-taking system is provided. Standards of review are covered in detail, including the standard for mixed questions of fact and law. Useful checklists are provided as well for drafting documents. Exercises at the end of chapters evaluate the readerand#8217;s comprehension and application of the materials. The text of In Chambers is informed by the author's own experience as a judicial clerk as well as her involvement with the externship programs at Appalachian School of Law and Mercer University School of Law.
Features:
Addresses key concepts and basic skills that clerks and externs need to have on day one
Explains rudimentary tasks
reading a docket sheet
working with a case file
Offers detailed instructions on drafting jury instructions
Identifies sources of authority commonly relied upon by the courts in specific areas
Provides a helpful note-taking system
Explains standards of review in detail
includes standard for mixed questions of fact and law
Includes checklists for drafting documents
Features chapter-ending exercises
evaluate the reader's comprehension
apply materials to real situations
Informed by author's experience
served as a judicial clerk
involved in the externship programs at Appalachian School of Law and Mercer University School of Law
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About the authors
Jennifer Sheppard
Mercer University
Professor Sheppard's scholarship focuses on improving legal discourse in a variety of media, including appellate briefs, trial motions and memoranda, and judicial opinions. She teaches courses in Legal Writing and administers Mercer’s Advanced Legal Writing, Research, and Drafting Certificate Program. Professor Sheppard also coordinates judicial externships and teaches a section of the Judicial Field Placement course. She has also taught a course in poverty law.
Prior to joining the Mercer Law faculty, Professor Sheppard taught as a visiting professor at West Virginia University Law School and as an assistant professor of law at Appalachian School of Law. Before entering academia, she clerked for the Honorable Norah McCann King of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. Professor Sheppard graduated summa cum laude from Capital University Law School, where she was executive articles editor for the Capital University Law Review, a Dean’s Fellow for Legal Writing, and a teaching assistant in Legal Writing and Research.