Pro Se Law Clerks: A Valuable Court Resource - U.S. Courts News

Pro Se Law Clerks: A Valuable Court Resource
April 26, 2011

Last year, nearly 73,000 cases were filed in federal district courts by people who did not have a lawyer’s help, most of them by prison inmates. A first stop likely was a “pro se” law clerk who helped ensure that each case was addressed fairly and fully.

Starting in the 1960s, district courts began to see an enormous increase in prisoner petitions. To help, a pilot program established in 1975 created pro se law clerk positions in a few of the courts.

And although pro se law clerks began by handling prisoner petitions, they now handle other types of pro se cases – those filed by non-lawyers.

“So many of the skills pro se law clerks develop handling prisoner petitions come in handy in other types of pro se cases,” said Judge Catherine Blake in the District of Maryland. “Our pro se law clerks ... help pro se litigants navigate the system. They save chambers time in initial screening and help judges identify the cases that have merit.”

Find more on pro se law clerks in The Third Branch.