PLSI's Judicial Clerkship Program
Pre-Law Summer Institute for American Indians and Alaska Natives PLSI Judicial Clerkship HandbookTribal Court GuideThe New Mexico State Bar honored the PLSI Judicial Clerkship Committee with the Outstanding Legal Program Award
While the data speaks for itself (data that reflects a great increase in judicial clerkships for Native American attorneys), it is an honor to be recognized by the State Bar of New Mexico for being an extraordinary law-related organization. But our work is not yet done. We dream of seeing a similar increase in Native Americans who serve on the state and federal benches. Take note: New Mexico has yet to see a Native American serve as a judge for the New Mexico Court of Appeals, Supreme Court, or in the United States District Court for the District of New Mexico!
The Pre-Law Summer Institute for American Indians and Alaska Natives (PLSI) started as an 8-week pre-law program in 1967. In 2013, a small group of PLSI alumni dedicated themselves to increasing the number of Native American judicial clerks and judges across all judicial benches. Before 2013, the program produced only 6 judicial clerks going back over 45 years since the creation of the PLSI program. The Committee started by discussing their clerkship experiences with students and informing them of the benefits of a judicial clerkship. The first PLSI class to work with the Committee graduated from law school in 2016. Since 2016, the PLSI Judicial Clerkship Program has produced 31 judicial clerks in 38 state and federal judicial clerkships (some have completed more than one judicial clerkship). This includes clerkships in several U.S. Courts of Appeals, federal district courts, and state supreme courts. This remarkable increase in Native American judicial clerks can be traced to the Committee’s unwavering commitment to the program and students.
The scope of the committee’s work includes outreach to students through panel presentations at conferences, offering meaningful mentorship opportunities, coaching on clerkship application materials, and funding students to attend professional development workshops. They also developed the PLSI Judicial Clerkship Handbook, a comprehensive guide designed to help students navigate the application and hiring process. The handbook also includes a section on applying for tribal court clerkships.
Learn more:
Handbook for Students
All you need to know about how to apply and get a clerkship, including in tribal court
The NEW Tribal Court Guide to Judicial Clerkships is here! The topics in this Guide reflect the results of a survey of tribal court judges and staff across the country by the PLSI Judicial Clerkship Committee and National American Indian Court Judges Association (NAICJA).
