Bond, Schoeneck & King invites 1L (Class of 2029) law students attending ABA-accredited law schools to apply for our Summer 2027 M. Catherine Richardson 1L Clerkship Program.
The purpose of this program is to provide meaningful law firm experience to aspiring first-year law students whose backgrounds and life experiences bring a needed, particularly unique perspective and/or skill set to the legal profession. Merely by way of example, a first-year student who brings uncommon cultural fluency, has had military or other significant public service experience, is from underprivileged family circumstances or has overcome other barriers, has been deeply involved in charitable or community causes, has worked to create diverse, inclusive and equitable spaces or has achieved uncommon success or recognition in a particular field may bring the kind of unique personal background this clerkship is intended to champion.
The clerkship runs for ten weeks and at least one applicant will be selected for each summer. Law clerks will work a full-time (on-site) schedule of at minimum 40 hours per week.
Office locations hiring for the 2027 program include Albany, Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse, NY, with a preference for Syracuse.
Eligibility Criteria- Full-time, first year law student (Class of 2029) in good standing at an ABA-accredited law school.
- Demonstrates strong academic performance, the ability to express ideas clearly and effectively (both in writing and verbally).
- Works well with a team, takes initiative regarding decision-making/guiding others, and is involved in activities that benefit the community.
- Brings a needed, particularly unique perspective and/or skill set to the legal profession as a result of personal background or life experience.
Required Application Materials- Official first-year law school transcript* (which may be only the fall semester). If grades are not available when applying, they may be submitted later.
- Current resume (which must include undergraduate GPA or class standing).
- A typed personal statement of 1,000 words or less.The statement should include an explanation of the following:
- professional aspirations as a lawyer;
- a discussion of how the student brings a particularly unique perspective and/or skill set to the legal profession as a result of cultural fluency, resilience, service and/or life experience; and
- the office location(s) of interest as well as a discussion of any connection to the geographic area(s), if any.
Applications will be reviewed after the final deadline of January 20, 2027.*If you are completing this application before 1L Fall Semester grades are released, please submit your undergraduate transcript. Upon receiving your law school grades, please update your application materials in the system. If you have issues updating your application materials, contact Hannah Retz, Recruiting Coordinator, at [redacted].
Selection CriteriaBond will review applications, conduct interviews, and select the successful applicant. Selected applicants will be contacted to arrange for interviews. In addition to the eligibility criteria above, an important factor on which selection decisions will be based is the student's interest in working at Bond. Immediate family or household members of Bond, Schoeneck & King members and employees are ineligible.
Please note, the selected applicant will be responsible for providing their own lodging for the duration of the clerkship. The anticipated weekly salary for this position will be $2,115.
