Dear Mr. Chou,
Thank you for your interest in our firm. However, our Summer Program, if it is decided to have one, has not traditionally been extended to first year law students. Please fell free to touch base with us again next year.
On behalf of the firm, we wish you the very best in all your future endeavors and continued success in law school. Thank you again for your interest in our firm.
Dear Mr. Chou,
Thank you for your recent communication concerning employment with F & S, L.L.P. Unfortunately, we have completed our recruiting efforts for this season and are therefore not in a position to consider you for the upcoming summer. Our inability to consider your application, now, however, is in no way a reflection on your qualifications.
Dear Mr. Chou,
Thank you for your interest in our student associate position at S & F, L.L.P. Our Recruitment Committee has considered the candidates who have applied with relation to our employment needs.
Although we are very impresses with your credentials, we have thoroughly reviewed our hiring needs and find we will be unable to offer you a position at this time. We are in the fortunate position of having received many outstanding applications and have thus had to make some very difficult choices.
Dear Mr. Chou,
Given our limited number of available 1L positions, I am sorry to report that we will not be able to consider you for a position in our summer program. With many outstanding candidates such as yourself, our decision was not easy.
Dear Mr. Chou,
Thank you for your inquiry regarding summer associate positions with our firm. Due to the success of our fall on-campus recruiting, we have determined that we will not be able to offer you employment at this time. However, we do encourage you to reapply in the fall of our 2007 summer program.
Dear Mr. Chou,
Thank you for your inquiry about possible summer employment with our firm following completion of your first year of law school. Unfortunately, we are unable to extend an invitation to interview with us at this time.
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After the third rejection letter, I stopped feeling anything. Rejection is expected since I, as an 1L, have not built up any credential to demonstrate my capability. The lawyer market in America is like Major League Baseball--the toughest competition in the world.
A few weeks ago I attended the our school's moot court competition. The competition is basically an imitation of an appellate argument (上訴) in front of the higher courts, such as Circuit courts (高等法院) or the Supreme Court (最高法院). The issue in dispute is about whether one is protected by freedom of expression (言論自由) when he puts in a CD some inaudible insulting language (在CD中插入攻擊性的言論，但是必須要在快轉CD時才聽得見), which cannot be heard unless the CD was fast forwarded.
The argument was great fun. Both teams composed of 3L students performed well. The bench (法官席) constituted of the newly-elected Chief Justice (首席大法官) John Roberts, and two justices from the Second Circuit (第二巡迴高等法院). For those of you who are not familiar with the US government system, the status of Chief Justice in the judicial branch (司法系統 ) is similar to the President in the executive branch (行政系統).
What amazed me the most during the competition, however, was the awe the Chief Justice enjoyed. Everyone in the auditorium had to stand up when the justices enter the bench, and when they leave the court. You "explain" to the justice, but you never argue with the justice. When justice ask a question, you answer the question. What the justice decided is final, at least in a fairly long time. The justices' power, albeit sporadically checked by the higher court, is only limited by the justices' obedience to the law.
I envy that power, and hope one day I will possess that power. Not necessarily as a judge, but as some kind of legal professional. The competition reminded me that the reason I entered the law profession, is to obtain the power to significantly affect others' life; to witness and participate in the most intimate crisis in ones life; and to resolve and judge the crisis with the value that I believe in.
I get rejection letters everyday. But letters do not reject me.
