Breaking Barriers in Appellate Law: Kendrick Peterson’s Journey from TAP Mentee to Federal Clerk
“It is my hope that even if not today, or tomorrow, that someday achievements like mine in the legal field – by people like me – won’t be headlines.”
On a Monday morning in early June, the quiet of a federal courthouse in West Virginia gave way to something rare in the legal profession: celebration.
Kendrick Peterson, a recent law school graduate and clerk in the federal judiciary, was sworn into the Washington, D.C. bar in an intimate ceremony surrounded by family, friends, and a mentor who had become like family. The moment was historic—Kendrick was the first Black clerk to be sworn in in his district this year. It was also profoundly personal: he was sworn in on the first workday of Pride Month, with his longtime mentor and fellow Black attorney, Armani Madison, making the motion for his admission.
“Throughout my life, regardless if it is in a professional capacity, academic capacity or in my personal life, it always has felt as if I was ‘sneaking through the cracks,’” Kendrick shared. “That somehow, people like myself were either not welcomed or lacked a large degree of utility, and I would be removed accordingly. In the law, this feeling was amplified when, even in spaces that actively sought to recruit individuals with diversified backgrounds and skillsets, people like me were missing.”
But not this time. Kendrick stood in a courtroom surrounded by those who had lifted him up: family members who had sacrificed to help him reach this point, co-clerks who made the ceremony feel like a team achievement, and a judge who not only granted the motion, but left the bench to personally welcome Kendrick’s family into chambers.
“The ethical code that we follow in the Federal Courts is quite explicit,” Kendrick explained. “We often refrain from attending political or certain ceremonial events, posting on social media, and work to uphold the independence and integrity of the Judiciary. My Judge takes both his oath and these codes of conduct seriously—so the fact that he took the time not only to move for my admission to the D.C. Bar, but to step down from the bench to personally welcome my family, which I have never seen him do in my life, is astounding.”
He added, “We do incredibly important work in this jurisdiction—often work that has a severe and permanent impact on people’s lives. The fact that not just my judge, but also my co-clerks, put the same level of care into my swearing-in as they do into our legal proceedings really shows how much I’m valued. That kind of affirmation—especially from the bench—means a great deal.”
Kendrick also reflected on what it meant to thrive in a region often mischaracterized. “I will forever be grateful that I received the opportunity to clerk,” he said, “but I am especially honored to have been able to clerk in West Virginia under this Judge. There are a wide variety of misconceptions not just about this jurisdiction, but the state of West Virginia as a whole. My ability to not just be welcomed, but thrive, alongside my co-clerks and under my Judge as both a Black/Queer person directly combats that narrative.”
A Mentor’s Commitment
Armani, Kendrick’s mentor through The Appellate Project (TAP), drove five hours from another state to attend the ceremony. “Kendrick reached out and I instinctively said yes,” Armani recalled. “He’s important to me, and we’ve developed a close relationship. The program ended two years ago, but we’ve stayed in close contact. I’ve been fortunate to have this relationship with Kendrick where we’ve both leaned in.”
For Kendrick, the support has been deeply meaningful. “There are not many words that can describe the level of gratitude I have for TAP pairing me with Armani,” he said. “He’s helped me navigate 18+ clerkship interviews, life decisions, career goals—every step of the way. When he couldn’t find an affordable flight, he rented a car, grabbed his fiancée, and drove five hours while working from the road to attend my swearing-in. I really consider myself lucky.”
For Armani, the moment was doubly meaningful: it was his first appearance in federal court. “Very few lawyers will say that their first federal court appearance was so gracious,” he joked. “I loved how intimate it was, and how big of a deal this was to the family and to [Kendrick]. Writing the speech was really great. I was able to share the things I admire about Kendrick and what I hope for his career. It was a rewarding experience for us both.”
That level of connection—emotional, enduring, and beyond the transactional—is exactly what The Appellate Project set out to foster when it launched its award-winning Mentorship Program, now in its fifth year. Kendrick and Armani’s relationship began there, but it deepened through trust, honesty, and mutual investment.
“As much as TAP is for the mentee, for the mentor there’s also some apprehension—what will this relationship look like? What kind of buy-in will there be?” Armani said. “Kendrick was very open about his life from the beginning: curious, frank, and humble. That openness facilitated everything. We still have frequent check-ins. I’ve learned as much from his excitement and joy—even in navigating challenges—as he’s learned from me.”
Breaking Barriers, Building Pathways
Moments like Kendrick’s swearing-in don’t just represent personal achievement. They disrupt a long history of exclusion at the highest levels of the legal field.
“In a profession that’s already lacking in diversity, once you get to the top echelon of our practice, it looks incredibly homogenous,” Armani explained. “But appellate law is where the stakes are incredibly high. You’re crafting the law in a way you can’t at the trial level—what is the law, what should the law be? Diverse voices can speak to the implications of one approach versus another.”
He recalled clerking on a Title VII case involving a Black employee and a string of microaggressions. “It was a classic ‘convincing mosaic’ case,” he said. “What do microaggressions mean? What do they indicate? What’s the psychological impact? I’ve seen firsthand how cultural awareness—or the lack of it—can shape a ruling.”
Programs like TAP, Armani noted, are essential in making sure those perspectives don’t remain on the margins. “TAP is aware the question isn’t just about leading students to the water—it’s about helping them drink. They make these spaces feel approachable and attainable, not just by providing information, but by helping students feel empowered to act on it.”
Kendrick echoed the structural barriers many underrepresented law students face. “The clerkship application process, and eventually clerking, requires a substantial amount of effort and time,” he said. “A lack of resources, time, knowledge, and finances really reduces the pool of clerks to a particular demographic or background. Organizations like The Appellate Project aim directly to fix this.”
Living Authentically, Leading Boldly
As Kendrick continues his legal journey, he does so with a fierce sense of self. “One thing I love about Kendrick,” Armani said, “is he is unapologetically himself no matter what space he is in—Black, Queer, big personality. We’re often told to put up a veil. It’s so refreshing and courageous to see him push back on that.”
While Kendrick has been able to show up as his full self and open doors for others like him, he’s unequivocal about the need for more representation in appellate spaces. “If we seek to uphold the integrity of the judiciary in the eyes of the American public, it is absolutely imperative that we ensure the American public is represented as best as possible,” he said. “We have a long way to go before we have a representative judiciary—but programs like TAP are building that bench.”
To students and early-career lawyers who find themselves navigating spaces where they are “the only,” Kendrick offers this: “It is statistically impossible that you made it to where you are by accident. There may be power in numbers, but there is also power in representation and authenticity. Proceed accordingly.”
As he embarks on the next stage of his career, Kendrick carries with him not just a bar admission and a prestigious clerkship, but a deep commitment to lifting others as he climbs—because no one should have to navigate these spaces alone.
“I hope that someday, achievements like mine in the legal field—by people like me—won’t be headlines,” he said. “But until then, I’ll keep showing up. And I’ll hold the door open for others, just like TAP and Armani did for me.”