Firm internship or judicial internship (both unpaid)

[keelhaul]

Hey! new to the boards 

I'm a 1L at a T2 school with a good local reputation. I'm top 10% of my class. I want to get into soft IP. Money is not an issue for the summer.

I'm studying abroad the first half of the summer but I'm not sure about the second half.

I accepted an unpaid internship with a local, mid-size firm's IP practice. It's very flexible- they will let me work on whatever I want (trademark apps, etc) and make my own hours. I can shadow any of the partners. One of the partners teaches as an adjunct at our school, so I could make some great connections. However, yesterday I got a call from a district court judge wanting to set up an interview.

Am I making a mistake by turning down this interview?

[babs22pa]

You've accepted the job. Unless you can figure out a way to do both, that's it. You do not want to start burning bridges before you even graduate law school.

[Aluhks]

It would be a mistake to take the interview and then renege on the job you already accepted if the judge made you an offer.

[likewise]

It would be a mistake to take the interview and then renege on the job you already accepted if the judge made you an offer.

TITCR

[sheltron5000]

Why don't you ask someone at the firm you're interning with what they recommend? Pose it as looking for advice: if you were in my position what would you do? what would be better for my career?

The adjunct professor would probably be a good source of advice for this, just frame it carefully, you don't want to sound like you're looking for an out...

[Matthies]

The connections and what you will learn outweigh working for a judge in my view. This is what you want to practice, if it was just some internship doing anything that would be different. But the connections you make now may help you land a paid position in that field later on, these people in IP know other people in IP. If this is what you want to practice, take the internship, make connections, get experience and parley that into something for 2L or when you graduate.

[Majmun]

What Matthies said is especially true in a niche practice such as Soft IP (Soft IP is probably one of the hardest fields to crack) , more so if you are not in a Major Market.  I can't see why you would take the judicial internship if Soft IP is really what your want to do

[lyre]

You have already accepted an internship doing exactly what you want to do.

Now, you're asking if you should go interview for an internship doing something else?  No.

[keelhaul]

Thanks everyone.

I turned down the interview with the judge and am really happy with my decision. You all confirmed what my gut told me. I wouldn't have even asked but my Career Services told me I should have taken the judicial internship  I don't think I'll be going back there for a while...