It has been an eventful summer for Fowler School of Law 2L student Holly Saleeb, clerking in Judge Eric Wersching’s family law courtroom in the Superior Court of California at the Lamoreaux Justice Center in Orange, CA. Along with gaining valuable courtroom experience and observing the to-and-fro of a family law court, Saleeb has made her own contribution to the court by recognizing a wanted person in the gallery and notifying the authorities, ultimately resulting in the rescue of a missing child involved in a Hague Convention case.

With little to no previous exposure to a courtroom, Saleeb was excited to start her externship in late May of this year. It represented a huge jump from theory to practice she says, “Things that were happening in front of me [in family court] can have a massive impact on a child or family’s future.” Family court, in particular, is a space threaded through with high emotion, where vulnerabilities are exposed, and people are seldom at their best. As a judicial officer pointed out during a presentation Holly attended, “Criminal law is where bad people are on their best behavior, whereas family law is where good people are on their worst behavior.”

Reflecting on the summer externship, Saleeb shares that her first few days in court were a shock to her system, often fraught, often sad, and constantly reminding her to be grateful for her own family. This role offers her access to the extensive courtroom experience of Judge Wersching, as well as some insight into a judge’s thinking, experience and application of the law. Saleeb also offers another, unexpected insight to her experience in the court, hinting at Judge Wersching’s enduring kindness and deeply respectful approach to everyone in his courtroom, an approach and demeanor that has consistently impressed this young student.

“It is not like you see in the movies,” she says, “where everyone is so dramatic. I’ve seen that every situation in court can be handled with kindness and respect. There really is no need to resort to disrespect.” An attitude she feels is shared by the courtroom staff as well, to preserve the dignity of the people appearing in the court through the judicious use of respect and kindness in their dealings with them.

Being a part of the day-to-day shuffle of this courtroom has also helped Saleeb shift some of her preconceived ideas about the law, about lawyering and about our court system. With the stereotypes and myths debunked through practical experience, the process of being a lawyer seems “much more doable now,” she adds, wholeheartedly endorsing this experience for other students.

“I loved it,” she says, speaking of her externship role over the summer, “I learned so much from being immersed in a courtroom, seeing how trials are conducted, how judges apply the law and the difference in styles from lawyer to lawyer.”

Saleeb’s interest in family law stems from her undergraduate years when she first considered a pre-medical degree in Public Health Science, later changing her mind to focus on a pre-law degree in Public Health Policy and ultimately finding her way, after her 1L year, to her current family law externship. The process itself was simple enough: she applied through governmentjobs.com, gave a great interview, and was accepted the next day. Once she had shared her interests in family and health law, she was assigned to Judge Wersching’s courtroom and the rest, as they say, is history.

Saleeb’s day-to-day activities as an extern are mostly observing courtroom practice. However, externs also take part in court events and field trips–usually excursions to tour and observe other courts where they can gain valuable exposure to various courts, including Federal Court, Court of Appeal, Criminal Court, Juvenile Court, Probate Court, Civil Court, and Civil Complex Court. Saleeb has also been assigned to assist a research attorney with writing up a memorandum on the five-year-old dismissal statute, another aspect that will no doubt deepen her experience of the law.

Although her role has been strictly limited to observing courtroom proceedings, Saleeb has taken the “observation” part to heart and, through her quick thinking and observant eye, spotted a wanted person in the courtroom gallery who was being actively sought by court security during the course of the day. Drawing the bailiff and deputies’ attention to the presence of the wanted individual, Saleeb was instrumental in assisting authorities’ efforts to rescue a missing child, themselves currently part of a Hague Convention case being tried in the courts, an act that drew high praise from Judge Wersching himself.

Entering her 2L year, Holly Saleeb remains keen to continue pursuing her law degree at the Fowler School of Law, something which she has gained valuable experience in over the summer. We are looking forward to following the development and growth of this eagle-eyed student as she matures as a jurist.