The Inns of Court is a national organization with chapters throughout the U.S., including one in San Jose, named after prominent federal judge William Ingram. The concept of the Inns is based on the English Inns of Court which, among other things, provides an option for younger lawyers and law students to discuss issues of importance in the practice of law and the legal profession with more senior lawyers and judges. This prestigious opportunity for several Santa Clara Law students provides them with monthly dinner meetings with excellent area federal and state judges and lawyers in government and private practice. To learn more about the Inns concept and the Ingram Inn of Court, please see: https://inns.innsofcourt.org/
The Inn meets during the law school’s academic year (except there is no meeting in December) on the second Wednesday of the month at the University or at the Federal Courthouse in San Jose. Commonly, the meetings begin about 5:30 p.m. and last a couple of hours. In addition to a social period at the beginning of each meeting, the meetings involve presentations by Pupillage Groups (that include law students from Santa Clara and Stanford) and meals and refreshments. There is a membership fee for participating in the Inn as a Pupil but the law school covers our students’ fees; so you can participate without personal cost but you must attend and participate in monthly meetings as a member of the Inn. For that reason, you should not schedule Wednesday evening classes at the law school.
If you are interested in serving as a Pupil for the upcoming academic year, please reply to Noelia McKeever in the Dean’s office (nmckeever@scu.edu) by July 29, 2024. Include a current resume and a short (email is fine) statement of why you would like to serve as a Pupil. You will be notified if you have been accepted for one of the Pupil positions before classes begin. Professor Don Polden (dpolden@scu.edu) serves as the law school’s liaison to the Ingram Inn and he is pleased to answer any questions you have about the Inn, its upcoming schedule and your duties as a Pupil. He can be contacted at dpolden@scu.edu.
All the best,
Dean and Professor of Law
Santa Clara University School of Law
mjkaufman@scu.edu