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Well, we are officially back from the Mardi Gras holiday, and the CDO has a full plate of events scheduled for the coming weeks.  This afternoon, we'll host "Interview Tips from the Experts," welcoming recruiters from local law firms to discuss what they look for in interviews.  This will be a great time for the 1Ls to ask questions prior to On-Campus Interviews starting this Wednesday.  Tomorrow afternoon all of the CDO Counselors will attend a meeting for Class of 2013, where we'll answer job search questions, review application materials and discuss job search tactics generally. This will be a nice way to give the 2Ls a little bit of extra attention.  Wednesday, I will host the annual Judicial Clerkship Panel. I'm so excited to welcome some of our alumni clerks (past and present) to tell students about the benefits of a post-graduate judicial clerkship. This is always one of my favorite panels.  We'll also hold a Coast Guard JAG Information Session on Wednesday, a great event for anyone curious about this particular branch of military service.  We'll also start to look ahead to Visiting Day on Friday, where we'll welcome prospective students to learn more about Tulane Law School, as well as the Environmental Law Summit (student-hosted and focused on environmental issues) and the annual Corporate Law Insitute, with tons of great programs and events for students interested in corporate law.  The rest of the spring semester is going to be packed with programming, just the way we like it!

Not only was Tulane Law School very fortunate to host US Attorney General Eric Holder last Friday, but we also welcomed a panel of distinguished practitioners to speak to students about careers in Criminal Law. This panel was organized as part of the ABA Mid-Year Meeting which was held in downtown New Orleans this past week. The panelists included Judge Lance Africk of the US District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana, Jim Letten (TLS class of ’79), US Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana, and representatives from the New York City Department of Probation, the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, the Maryland Office of the Public Defender, and the Federal Public Defender’s Office of the Eastern District of Louisiana. Each of the panelists described what new attorneys in their respective offices are assigned to handle upon commencing their practice. It was very clear that practicing in criminal law allows new attorneys to have a great deal of responsibility very early in the career. In each of the offices, newly-hired lawyers are able to immediately practice in the courtroom, taking the lead on case management and trial. Judge Africk advised the room (which was predominately filled with students interested in careers in criminal law) to be prepared, work hard, get involved with the ABA and other activities, and to treat fellow attorneys with respect and courtesy. After the panel, the students had the opportunity to network with the panelists, and a few students were even able to schedule interviews with the representative offices. We are always very thankful for the wonderful opportunities presented to Tulane Law students in conjunction with great events like the ABA Mid-Year Meeting.

- this article was written by CDO Government Counselor Amanda Moeller

Although I don't always make the time to attend the wide variety of lectures and other events at the Law School, I am so glad that I did take the time today to attend the Dreyfous Lecture, named in honor and in memory of George Abel and Mathilde Schwab Dreyfous, civil rights leaders in New Orleans throughout the 20th century.  We were very fortunate to have US Attorney General Eric Holder speaking on voting rights.  General Holder is a terrific speaker, and he was most gracious (and funny, too!) in answering questions for almost half an hour after his address.  It is always so interesting to see the person behind the headlines.

Next up--a panel discussion on career opportunities in criminal law with the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana (TLS '79 alum Jim Letten) and Federal District Judge Lance Africk, among others.

The Career Development Office hosted a panel of students who have worked in various government internships to better inform other students of the many opportunities available in government. We were lucky to have both 2L and 3L students share their stories of working in a variety of agencies. The students discussed their experiences working with the Department of Justice, the US Senate Committee on the Judiciary and Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office, the Texas Attorney General and other agencies. We are very fortunate to always have a number of students interested in working for all levels in government. Moreover, most of these students secured their positions through CDO job postings or via Interview Programs organized by our office. Working for the government is a wonderful way to gain a great deal of experience while serving the public. Hopefully, we will have a new crop of first and second-year students working in state and federal government internships this summer.