Law internship vs appellate law clerk

The differences between law interns and appellate law clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an appellate law clerk has an average salary of $52,826, which is higher than the $39,394 average annual salary of a law internship.

The top three skills for a law internship include litigation, legal issues and trial preparation. The most important skills for an appellate law clerk are appeals, oral arguments, and appellate briefs.

Law internship vs appellate law clerk overview

	Law Internship	Appellate Law Clerk
Yearly salary	$39,394	$52,826
Hourly rate	$18.94	$25.40
Growth rate	10%	-
Number of jobs	51,663	66,866
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 68%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	-	-

Law internship vs appellate law clerk salary

Law interns and appellate law clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Law Internship	Appellate Law Clerk
Average salary	$39,394	$52,826
Salary range	Between $24,000 And $63,000	Between $29,000 And $95,000
Highest paying City	Washington, DC	-
Highest paying state	New York	-
Best paying company	NAIC	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between law internship and appellate law clerk education

There are a few differences between a law internship and an appellate law clerk in terms of educational background:

	Law Internship	Appellate Law Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 68%	Bachelor's Degree, 52%
Most common major	Law	Law
Most common college	University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill	Stanford University

Law internship vs appellate law clerk demographics

Here are the differences between law interns' and appellate law clerks' demographics:

	Law Internship	Appellate Law Clerk
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 46.9% Female, 53.1%	Male, 55.3% Female, 44.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 8.3% Hispanic or Latino, 17.8% Asian, 10.3% White, 53.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 7.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.1% Asian, 10.4% White, 54.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between law internship and appellate law clerk duties and responsibilities

Law internship example responsibilities.

Prepare probate documents, including petition for probate, inventory, and statement of account.
Observe investigations and write different court documents including subpoenas, court orders and affidavits
File commercial cases, develop affidavits and correspondence, and coordinate subpoenas delivery.
Draft summary judgment motions and answer interrogatories and production requests in medical malpractice cases.
Research proposed legislative bill allowing survivor access to a decedent s online accounts in probate proceedings.
Research and prepare for arbitration of labor contract disputes; participate in collective bargaining agreement negotiations.

Appellate law clerk example responsibilities.

Interview clients and handle inquiries regarding discovery and trial preparation; also communicate with opposing counsel and co-counsel; issue subpoenas.
Develop presentations for state police officers to reinforce drunk driving and highway safety initiatives via PowerPoint.

Law internship vs appellate law clerk skills

Common law internship skills

Litigation, 13%
Legal Issues, 9%
Trial Preparation, 6%
Legal Memos, 5%
Real Estate, 3%
Legal Intern, 3%

Common appellate law clerk skills

Appeals, 38%
Oral Arguments, 28%
Appellate Briefs, 22%
Court Cases, 12%

Law Internship vs. similar jobs

Law Internship related careers

Law Internship related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Legal Industry
Law Internship
Law Internship vs Appellate Law Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse legal jobs