Delaware Law Salutes Wolcott Fellows
5/3/2018
Pictured left to right, Nicolas Jenner, Tricia Kazinetz, Dean Rodney Smolla, Jamie Goncharoff, Caneel Radinson Blasucci, and Travis Groski.
Five Delaware Law School students serve each academic year as Wolcott Fellows to the justices of the Supreme Court of Delaware. As Wolcott Fellows, students serve as judicial clerks, working approximately 20 hours per week, performing legal research, writing draft opinions, and attending weekly oral argument sessions at the Supreme Court Courthouse in Dover, Delaware.
Wolcott Fellows receive academic credit and either a cash grant or a tuition-remission scholarship grant, funded by Delaware Law School.
Now in its 30th year, the Josiah Oliver Wolcott Fellowship is the only fellowship program in American legal education that offers students an opportunity to serve as a clerk for a justice of the Delaware Supreme Court or the Delaware Court of Chancery. The program is named for Josiah Oliver Wolcott, a native of Dover, Delaware. Mr. Wolcott was a lawyer, politician and judge who was elected Delaware attorney general in 1912, and then elected to the U.S. Senate four years later. He resigned from the Senate in 1921 to become Chancellor of Delaware’s renowned Delaware Court of Chancery, where he served until his death in 1938 at age 61.
Wolcott Fellows are chosen through an application and interview process. Current Wolcott Fellow Tricia Kazinetz commented that, “working as a Wolcott Fellow has been the highlight of my law school experience. The opportunity to work closely with Justice Valihura and her law clerk has been invaluable. I was able to improve my writing and research skills, while also observing practical oral advocacy skills at oral arguments. The Wolcott Fellowship bridges the gap between law school and the legal profession by providing insight into appellate advocacy. The lessons I have learned will stay with me throughout my career.”
The 2017-2018 Wolcott Fellows are:
Caneel Radinson Blasucci, who is assigned to The Honorable Leo E. Strine, Jr., Chief Justice of the Delaware Supreme Court; Jamie Goncharoff, who is assigned to The Honorable Gary F. Traynor; Travis Groski, who is assigned to The Honorable James T. Vaughn, Jr.; Nicolas Jenner, who is assigned to The Honorable Collins J. Seitz, Jr.; and Tricia Kazinetz who is assigned to The Honorable Karen L. Valihura.