How to manage and profit from law student assistance in your office

If you ask any colleagues if it is worth hiring law students to work as law clerks, you are bound to receive a resounding "absolutely" and an affirmation of the practical benefits derived and the professional satisfactions gained. Law students are eager to experience and learn from every facet of law practice operation and management, and can do a lot to help a law practice of any size. What law clerks can do for your office Law clerks diligently: ? Conduct investigations, document review and due diligence ? Research novel issues presented from other jurisdictions or unusual situations ? Prepare and respond to discovery ? Draft pleadings and P & A's ? Analyze terms of transactions and propose contract language ? Summarize and extract relevant deposition testimony ? Prepare settlement brochures ? Respond to and screen telephone inquiries from existing and prospective clients Each of these projects is necessary to the advancement of a client's interest and is billable at an appropriate rate when reviewed and approved by you. Having this work done by a law clerk saves time and maximizes efficiency in your office. Law clerks present you with draft work, capably completed. Your time can then be dedicated to more complex undertakings, time sensitive matters, and continued business development. Professional satisfaction Additionally, your involvement with a law clerk will provide the hidden professional satisfaction of helping to shape the lawyers of tomorrow. A law clerk will require orientation to your practice, office and standards, as would most other employees. However, unlike most other employees, the law clerk is perhaps most impressionable and eager to take your guidance and to emulate your standards and style. Keys to a successful law clerk In order to successfully engage a law clerk and to receive top-notch law clerk work product you should: ? Recruit from a pool of candidates so you select a law clerk you know you will enjoy. ? Identify the concrete, client-specific projects backing up on your desk or causing you to stay late too often, and determine which you can assign to your law clerk. ? Identify recurring types of practice-specific tasks and projects, which you can assign to your law clerk. ? Identify which lawyer in your office will supervise the law clerk. Provide your law clerk with a brief verbal orientation to each project, including history and underlying facts; specific deliverable product you expect (oral summary, five-page summary, thorough analysis); estimate of time you expect the project to take; and a verbal summary from law clerk as to expectations. In early stages, check in with the law clerk midway through a project to ensure progress as you expect and to adjust as necessary. Review work product upon completion and provide verbal feedback. Law clerks are available all year long (Not Just for Summer Anymore) Some of the most successful law firm/law clerk relationships are established as summer clerkships upon completion of the student's first or second year of school. Bringing a law clerk into your office at this point in their careers affords you the opportunity to build the complexity of the work the clerk does over time. Throughout a summer, the clerk learns the works and quirks of your office. However, a law clerk from a local law school can stay with your office on a part-time basis throughout their second and third years in law school. Many law firms and organizations reap the benefits and rewards of law clerk service in their offices throughout the year. This provides these firms with competent, trained and familiar law clerk assistance and, if appropriate, a tested candidate for future associate attorney positions should the organization grow. Whether to clear your desk of backlogged projects, free your time for business development, enjoy the pleasure of contributing to the growth of a new lawyer, positively impact your bottom line, or simply to engage in a smart human resource and organizational development strategy, the hiring of a law clerk can provide concrete value to a thriving law practice. For more information about law clerks from California Western School of Law, contact the Career Services Office at (619) 525-7093.