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E-Newsletter

April 2019

Judiciary

Meet the OSCAR Working Group

The OSCAR Working Group has a key role with the OSCAR program and law clerk recruitment. Appointed by Administrative Office Director James C. Duff, the OSCAR Working Group consists of 11 judges (voting members), including at least one appellate judge, a district judge, a bankruptcy judge, and a magistrate judge, and up to five non-voting liaison representatives from law school career services offices. The Working Group provides feedback and recommendations to the Administrative Office so that the OSCAR program supports and promotes transparent federal law clerk recruitment and hiring practices. The Working Group meets annually to assess the prior law clerk hiring season, develop recommendations for new system requirements, and represent OSCAR users in setting priorities and assessing system implications associated with policy issues and decisions.

Director Duff’s newest appointments to the OSCAR Working Group are Circuit Judge Patty Shwartz, District Judge Christopher Reid Cooper, Chief District Judge G. Murray Snow, District Judge Terry F. Moorer, and Magistrate Judge Katie Nicole Mitchell.  See the current OSCAR Working Group members here.

Application Release Date for the Class of 2020

Law school students of the class of 2020 gained access to OSCAR on February 6, 2019 to register for an account, upload documents, search for clerkship positions, and build online applications. The system will store these applications and release them to judges on June 17, 2019 . If you would like to receive applications from this class on the release date, make sure you post your positions prior to June.

How Do I...Post a Position?

OSCAR makes it easy for judges, chambers staff, staff attorney offices, and other court staff to post positions online. Once you have posted your position, you can review applications and email applicants directly within OSCAR.

Update Your Profile and Hiring Practices

Thousands of applicants and law schools follow judge and staff attorney office activity in OSCAR each day. By managing a profile that informs applicants and law schools of your hiring practices and schedules, you greatly improve the law clerk hiring process by supporting transparency and efficiency. Use the Hiring Practices field (for judges) and the Office Profile and Additional Office Information fields (for staff attorney offices) to inform applicants and law schools of your current hiring preferences and schedules.

Training & Resources

The OSCAR Program Office provides training sessions to help judges, chambers staff, staff attorney offices, and court unit administrators become familiar with using OSCAR. Check below for upcoming training events, tools, and materials available throughout the year.

Coming Soon: Webinars in June

The OSCAR Program Office will offer webinars on managing and reviewing applications in OSCAR, including searching and sorting applicants, requesting document updates, organizing applications in folders, generating packets, sending emails, and more. Registration and more information about the webinars will be sent out in May-June 2019.

Message from OSCAR Management

The OSCAR Program Office is pleased to support judges, chambers staff, staff attorney offices, and other court staff through the 2019 hiring season. We look forward to sharing our progress on NextGen OSCAR in upcoming newsletters and continue serving you through an improved law clerk and staff attorney hiring system.

Follow OSCAR and US Courts Online

Visit, follow, and share OSCAR and the United States Courts online for news, updates, and educational resources regarding the federal judiciary and courts across the country.