Job Details for Career Law Clerk
| Court Name/Organization | New Jersey Bankruptcy Court |
| Overview of the Position | Interviewing and hiring will occur on a rolling basis. 2025 Annual Salary ranges from JSP 12 (beginning at $104,436) with one-year prior work experience & bar membership) to JSP 14 (beginning at $146,754) with three years prior work experience & bar membership). Starting salary is dependent on qualifications and prior legal work experience. Two of the three years of legal work experience must have been served in the federal judiciary. |
| Location | Newark, NJ |
| Opening and Closing Dates | 09/03/2025 - Open Until Filled |
| Appointment Type | Permanent |
| Classification Level/Grade | JSP 12 - JSP 14 |
| Salary | $104,436 - $146,754 |
Position Description
Responsibilities for this full-time position include providing legal research, writing, and editing assistance to the Judge; reviewing uncontested matters and the related proposed orders; reviewing pending matters on the court calendar and occasionally helping with preparation for hearings. The Career Law Clerk also performs administrative duties for chambers such as: communicating with attorneys and pro se parties; assisting with the hiring and management of term clerks and interns; assisting with expense reimbursement forms for the Judge; assisting with or preparing annual and semi-annual reports; and ordering supplies for chambers as needed.
Qualifications
For consideration, candidates must be law school graduates from an ABA accredited law school with strong academic credentials and/or work experience. Applicants should be familiar with bankruptcy law and have prior experience working for a bankruptcy judge or practicing bankruptcy. Applicants must be skilled in legal research and writing, and must be able to use Westlaw, Lexis, Word, Outlook, and comparable products. Familiarity with electronic case filing is highly preferred. Excellent interpersonal skills, maturity, judgment, and discretion are required.
Employee Benefits
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court provides a generous benefits package, competitive salary, and telework opportunities. Judicial employees participate in the Federal Employees Retirement System, Thrift Savings Plan (similar to a 401K), health and life insurance benefits, long term care options, annual sick leave accrual, and eleven paid federal holidays per year. Career clerks also qualify for participation in pre-tax benefit programs (health, dental, and vision insurance coverage, flexible spending accounts, commuter reimbursement); and earn 10 to 26 paid vacation days per year depending on the length of past federal employment.
Miscellaneous
Responsibilities for this full-time position include providing legal research, writing, and editing assistance to the Judge; reviewing uncontested matters and the related proposed orders; reviewing pending matters on the court calendar and occasionally helping with preparation for hearings. The Career Law Clerk also performs administrative duties for chambers such as: communicating with attorneys and pro se parties; assisting with the hiring and management of term clerks and interns; assisting with expense reimbursement forms for the Judge; assisting with or preparing annual and semi-annual reports; and ordering supplies for chambers as needed.
Application Info
To apply, please submit a cover letter, resume, law school transcript, undergrad transcript, and a short legal writing sample by applying through OSCAR.
In your cover letter, please refer to the Career Law Clerk position in Judge Meisel’s chambers. The transcripts can be unofficial copies. Please note that the Court will only communicate with those applicants who are selected to interview.
If you are among the final applicants being considered for the position, you will be asked to provide two reference letters and will need to submit an Application for Judicial Branch Employment.
The federal Judiciary is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer.