Law School: Columbia Law School

Hometown: Taipei, Taiwan

Campus Activities: Alexander Hamilton Speaker Chair, Federalist Society

What were your duties as an NCLA clerk?

Mostly legal research on administrative law topics. There was also some editing work.

What did you most enjoy about your clerkship?

I was able to take on novel admin law issues that were still at an early stage. I enjoyed the freedom to browse through law review articles and case law to come up with creative arguments. Being able to think about the strategical components for future cases as a summer clerk was a great experience.

What interesting thing(s) did you learn about Administrative Law?

I was especially intrigued by the usage of “tradition” to justify agency actions. This Supreme Court term was especially rich in the discussion of “history and tradition.” Inspired by this trend, I wrote a memo detailing how the Court would likely deal with challenges against “longstanding” agency actions. Through this project, I learned a lot about constitutional doctrines and the conflicting precedents in this field.

How might you use what you’ve learned later in your professional career?

I am interested in litigation involving government agencies regardless of the political views of the administration. The knowledge I have acquired prepares me well to talk about these issues in job interviews and helped me understand the practical aspects of administrative law.

Any advice for other students who want to clerk at NCLA in the future?

Be prepared to discuss your passion in administrative law in the interview. Administrative law is not for everyone, so you should know that you are interested in the work before applying. Understanding the important concepts of previous NCLA cases would be a helpful way to demonstrate your interest.