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.When it comes to food, I’m like a kid in a candy store.”Struggling to pay attention to the conversation, Ben thought about the various possibilities for escaping lunch.I bet if I set fire to the curtains, I could lose them in the confusion, he thought, staring at the menu.“I’m not sure if you know, but we’re going to be in front of you real soon,” Alcott said.“We’re representing the respondent in the Mirsky case.Our oral arguments are set for January.”“You have to put in a good word for us,” Nash said, laughing along with Alcott.Maybe I could start choking on mineral water, Ben thought.That would shut them up real quick.“So what’s the Court working on now?” Alcott asked.“Hey, don’t even think it,” Nash jumped in as one of their two waiters placed a tiny appetizer of blackened bass on his plate.“He can’t say anything.Court business is extremely confidential.When your clerkship is over, they even make you shred any documents you still have.”“Is that right?” Alcott said.“Definitely.The place is airtight.” Looking at Ben, Nash said, “How’s Justice Blake doing? Still as cranky as ever?”“That’s him,” Ben said.“The most miserable man on the Court.”“I spoke to him recently.I’ve been calling every once in a while to give advice to his current clerks, Arthur and Steve.They seem nice.”“They’re really nice,” Ben said.“I just try to be helpful,” Nash said, as a waiter refilled his water.“I know how crazy it can get there.”“Do most clerks call their former chambers?” Ben asked, taking a roll.“Some do,” Nash said.“It depends.I think all of Blake’s clerks do because a year with Blake can be such a miserable experience.”“He works them like dogs.”“That’s Blake.I think all of his former clerks are bonded by knowing that we’ve all lived through a year with him.Have any of Hollis’s old clerks called you?”“No,” Ben said bluntly.“That’s why I was curious.”“Wait, let me think.Who was clerking for Hollis when I was there? Oh, I remember, one of them was Stu Bailey.He’s a great guy.He works at Winick and Trudeau now.”Alcott looked annoyed at the mention of Wayne & Portnoy’s rival firm.“I’m actually not surprised no one’s called,” Nash added.“Hollis makes you work, but deep down, he’s a big teddy bear.”“Is that right?” Alcott asked.“That’s not a bad description,” Ben agreed.“Have you had any encounters with Osterman’s clerks?”“Not really,” Ben said.“They’re the only clerks who really keep to themselves.”“Unbelievable!” Nash said, banging the table.“Nothing changes.” Nash leaned toward Ben and lowered his voice.“When I was there, Osterman’s clerks were the worst, most obnoxious, conservative cranks in the whole Court.And the rumor I heard was that all of Osterman’s clerks were part of this tiny network.They all keep in touch, and they have a secret meeting once a year.”“I never heard this,” Ben said with a smile.“I’m not joking,” Nash said.“I heard they used to call themselves The Cabal, and the older clerks would teach the younger clerks how to sway decisions to their own agenda.I’m serious,” he added, noticing Ben’s doubtful expression.“You know how much influence you can have if you want it.When you write a decision, for the most part you can structure it your own way.You can emphasize certain points, or make other points extra ambiguous.It’s a subtle gesture of power, but it’s still power.”“Yeah, but you really can’t do anything the justice doesn’t want in the first place.”“That was the scary part.People said Osterman knew about all this and he just turned his back on it—letting his clerks do what they wanted.”“I think that’s how Hitler trained his militia,” Ben said as a waiter refilled the table’s breadbasket.“Didn’t I tell you this guy knows what it’s like?” Alcott said to Ben as he pointed at Nash.“So tell me,” Ben said, “how’s everything at Wayne?”“Fantastic,” Alcott said, putting both elbows on the table.“We just took on NFI Properties as a client, so if you need any tickets to a Redskins game, you let me know.In fact, any game in the whole country, whenever you want.We also took on Evian, so every water cooler in the firm has sparkling fresh Evian water.”“That’s great,” Ben said, noticing that Alcott had paused for his reaction.“And the pro bono department recently started doing work for the Children’s Defense Fund.”“There are no free benefits from them.” Nash laughed.Shooting Nash a look, Alcott said, “But we do get invited to their annual convention, where the president usually speaks.”“That’s great,” Ben said.“I’m on their mailing list because I did some work with them during law school.”“Did you really?” Alcott asked.“Then we’ll have to get you in on this.Whenever you have some free time, let me know, and I’ll get you in to see the chairperson.She’s a wonderful woman.Very charismatic.”“Meanwhile, did you tell him about the Supreme Court bonus?” Nash asked.Alcott smiled.“Ben, this one is wonderful.The hiring committee recently met to reevaluate compensation packages for first-year associates.Since we’ve always given bonuses to associates who have clerkship experience, we thought we should add another bonus if the candidate also clerks for the Supreme Court.So in addition to that number I gave you last week, you can add another ten thousand.It’s only for the first year, but we think it’s a nice token.”Staring at his plate, Ben wondered how he could take a $38,000-a-year job with the U.S.Attorney’s Office when a $100,000 job was staring him in the face and buying him an expensive lunch.“Listen, you don’t have to decide now,” Alcott said.“We know it’s a hard choice.I’ll be honest, we know you can write your ticket anywhere, but we want you at Wayne and Portnoy.You’ve been with us for one summer; you know our style.It’s a relaxed atmosphere.We work hard when we have to, but we try to enjoy all the perks our profession allows us.If you come to us, I can assure you that at least twenty percent of your work will be on pro bono cases, so you can still give a great deal back to the community.Obviously, this isn’t the last time we’ll be speaking this year, but I do want to keep you informed about your choices.”“I appreciate it,” Ben said.“You make it hard to say no.”“Good,” Alcott said, closing his menu.“With that said, let’s order some expensive food.”When Ben returned to the office, Lisa was still sitting at her computer.“How was lunch?”“It was great,” Ben said, lying on the sofa and patting his stomach.“I had the best snapper I’ve eaten in my entire life.It was crusted with macadamia nuts and covered with the most tantalizing lemon-butter sauce.Unreal.”“So let me ask you, how does it feel to sell your soul for a piece of fish and some designer butter?”“Don’t even start with me.I’m at least deciding whether to go to a firm.You’re the one who’s already decided to say yes, Ms.Faustus.”“Damn right I’m selling out.I’ve got a Saab to think about.”“Your soul for a car.How tainted you’ve become.”“Trust me, you’ll be right behind me.Guar-an-teed!”“First of all, I won’t be right behind you, because there’s no amount of money in the world that can get me to live in Los Angeles
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