Cottrell named fellowship finalist; accepts clerkship opportunity

“I was very excited and a little surprised when I was notified about it, because it’s such a competitive program,” said Cottrell, a West Monroe native who earned her undergraduate degree at LSU.

Cottrell has earned Dean’s Scholar honors for her academic achievement and served the Student Bar Association as Community and Media Vice Chair as a 2L, and she is currently a Board of Advocates member serving as Director of External Dispute Resolution Competitions. 

She has also been actively involved with LSU Student Government since her second year of undergraduate studies, and has served as one of seven Associate Justices of the 12-member University Court throughout her time at LSU Law.

Presidential Management Fellow finalists are selected based on their leadership skills, future career goals, and interest in working in public service. In order to officially become a fellow, a finalist must obtain full-time employment with the federal government with one year of being selected as a finalist.

Just days after being informed that she had been selected as a finalist, Cottrell got even more good news.

“I received an offer to be a clerk with United States Tax Court Judge Christian N. Weiler in Washington DC, which is pretty much my dream job,” she said, “but unfortunately it’s not a PMF appointment.”

Ultimately, Cottrell said the clerkship is simply too good of an opportunity to pass up. She has accepted the two-year appointment and has withdrawn from consideration to become a Presidential Management Fellow.

“Tax law is my passion and I’m very excited to work alongside and learn from Judge Weiler, who also earned his undergraduate degree at LSU,” said Cottrell, who met with Weiler at the Paul M. Hebert Law Center in February when he presented at the Louisiana Law Review “Let’s Get Fiscal: Contemporary Considerations in Taxation and the Law” Symposium.

When she graduates this spring, Cottrell will be among the first LSU Law students to earn a Graduate Certificate in Estate Planning and Taxation.

“Hannah is a wonderful student with a very bright future, and I am thrilled that she will be a clerk at the Tax Court for Judge Weiler,” said LSU Law Professor Elizabeth Carter. “Judge Weiler earned his undergraduate degree at LSU and he has been a tremendous supporter of LSU Law. It is a real honor for all of us that he considered our J.D. students for clerkships at the U.S. Tax Court, and we know that Hannah will make us proud!”