Annie Ortega, a third-year student at Notre Dame Law School, praised the school for its ideological diversity. As president of the school’s chapter of the Federalist Society, she appreciates the lively conversations she has with her many liberal friends at the school. Joshua Mannery, a recent graduate and president of the student bar association, acknowledged that while he did not feel excluded as a liberal student, he agrees that the school leans conservative. Each of the nine Supreme Court justices hires four clerks a year, which is considered the most prestigious post a recent law school graduate can obtain. Clerks work on major cases involving issues such as abortion, guns, voting rights, and LGBTQ rights. Upon completing their clerkship, many clerks go on to high-profile careers in various fields, including corporate law, academia, and politics. Several current senators, including Republicans Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley, have clerked at the Supreme Court.
In the coming nine-month term starting on Monday, two recent Notre Dame Law School graduates, Kari Lorentson and Elizabeth Totzke, will clerk for Justice Barrett. Additionally, two law professors from the school, Christian Burset and Patrick Reidy, will clerk for conservative justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. Barrett herself graduated from Notre Dame Law School, making her the only current justice without a law degree from Harvard or Yale. Notre Dame has been successful in placing graduates in clerkships at the high court in recent years, outperforming some other high-ranking law schools. The school ranked fourth in the country in placing students in clerkships at all levels of the court system in 2023.
Traditionally, elite law schools dominate Supreme Court clerkships, with close links between justices and faculty members at schools such as Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Columbia, and the University of Chicago. While Notre Dame competes with these schools for clerkships, it has performed well in the past five years, outpacing law schools like Duke, the University of Pennsylvania, and Columbia. Similarly, George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School, known for its conservative alignment, has also had graduates placed in Supreme Court clerkships. Clerks at federal appeals court judges are also highly sought after, as many go on to clerk at the high court.
Nicole Garnett, a longtime Notre Dame professor who clerked for Justice Clarence Thomas, chairs the school’s clerkship committee. She downplays the significance of connections with conservative justices in securing clerkships, emphasizing that the process is highly competitive and based on individual merit. Notre Dame’s ranking in the U.S. News & World Report law school rankings is 20th overall, but it has been successful in placing graduates in prestigious clerkships. In recent years, more graduates from Notre Dame Law School have been clerking at the high court than some other top law schools, highlighting the school’s reputation and success in this area. About 20% of the most recent graduating class secured clerkships of some type, demonstrating the school’s strong track record in preparing students for these prestigious roles.
