Underneath Their Robes

UTR Discovery Request: Even More About the Elect

Since she has no time to write words of her own, Article III Groupie will reprint the words of others. A3G has another UTR discovery request to propround to her readership on behalf of a third party (as she previously did for UTR reader Jeffrey Toobin)*. Here it is:

My name is Todd Peppers, and I am an assistant professor in the Department of Public Affairs at Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia.  I am presently completing a book manuscript on United States Supreme Court law clerks that will be published later this year by Stanford University Press.  The book examines how the hiring and utilization of law clerks has changed over time, from the 1880's to the present.

I have had difficulty finding former law clerks of current Supreme Court justices to talk to about their clerkships. I was hoping that some former law clerks who are fans of this blog might consider my plea for an interview. My questions do not focus on such confidential issues as the justice's views of a specific case/other justices or of a particular point of constitutional law.  Instead, I'm interested in how you were interviewed/hired and what job duties you were given.  I'm also interested in the personal bonds that developed in your chambers between the law clerks and the justices.  Part of my argument is that the close personal bonds that existed between former justices and their clerks -- Hugo Black, Felix Frankfurter, Stanley Reed -- are less likely to be found today, given the greater number of law clerks.

If you are willing to talk with me, either on or off the record, please contact me.  Many thanks.

Excellent! A3G can't wait to read Professor Peppers's book, which sounds like it will be fabulous. If you can help out Professor Peppers -- who is, it should be noted, not asking you to "pull a Vanity Fair" (i.e., to dish in substantive terms about your work on a recent Supreme Court case) -- please email him. Thanks!

* Jeff Toobin has been doing some great work for the New Yorker lately, such as this fascinating piece about Leslie Crocker Snyder -- the magnificent New York litigatrix who is challenging Robert Morgenthau in the race for Manhattan District Attorney.

UTR Discovery Request: Missing SOC Clerk

Article III Groupie thought she had biographical data for all 35 Supreme Court clerks for October Term 2005. Ever since she issued her UTR discovery request seeking this information, her email inbox has been flooded with helpful responses. But in the course of collecting material for a post on Justice Sandra Day O'Connor's clerks, A3G discovered that she is missing information for one SOC clerk. So she hereby supplements her prior discovery requests, by propounding this interrogatory to her readership:

Who else is clerking for Justice O'Connor in OT 2005, in addition to Ben H., Amy K., and Sasha V.?

A3G thanks her readers in advance for any info -- e.g., name, law school, prior clerkship, and tidbits -- concerning this unidentified clerk.

UTR Discovery Request: Tidbits, Please!

Article III Groupie has been very busy at work these days. If she had more time, she would join in the "comment war" taking place between UTR readers concerning Justice Scalia's recent visit to NYU Law (a judicial sight-ation that was even picked up by Page Six and Gawker). To read the comments, click here and scroll down the page; there's some interesting stuff.

If she had more time, A3G would also issue an updated version of her list of Supreme Court clerks for October Term 2005. But she is still processing the tons of helpful emails that she received in response to her UTR Discovery Request seeking information about the OT 2005 clerk class.

A3G thanks her readers for all of their OT 2005 contributions (and apologizes for not responding to each email personally). She believes that she now has information -- at least in terms of names, law schools, and prior clerkships -- about all of the elves who will be toiling at One First Street starting this summer.

But she must also chide some of you, for your inability to follow directions -- surprising in a bunch of people who owe much of their success to standardized test-taking. Many of you submitted name, law school, and prior clerkship information for OT 2005 clerks -- but omitted the requested juicy tidbits. And Momma Groupie wants her tidbits, chickadees!

So please email A3G with fun facts, trivia, or gossip about the OT 2005 Supreme Court clerks. And this request extends to the clerks whose names appeared in A3G's original post; just because A3G knows they'll be clerking at the Court does not mean she has any good dish about them. The sooner A3G has her tidbits, the sooner the full list will appear. She thanks you in advance for your help!

UTR Discovery Request: OT 2005 Supreme Court Clerks

Underneath Their Robes isn't just fun and games, gossip blind items, and federal judicial celebrity sightings. Every now and then, Article III Groupie does something approaching real journalism.

Through her Questions Presented series, A3G has interviewed distinguished federal judges. Her recent ruminations about possible Supreme Court nominees are not unlike what one might find on the op-ed page of a major newspaper (but funnier and more creative, or so she likes to think).  And, of course, UTR offers what journalists call "service pieces," or "news you can use" -- such as complete lists of past Supreme Court clerks for OT 2004, OT 2003 and OT 2002, and OT 2000. (When things calm down at work, A3G will post the 2001 list as well, to make a complete set for the past five years.)

Although the October Term 2005 clerks won't be reporting for duty for a few months, numerous readers have been emailing A3G and running Google searches in search of a list of the incoming crop of the Elect. A3G would like to help. In fact, she would love to scoop the mainstream legal news media, by publishing an informal list well before the Public Information Office of the Court certifies the official roster of the Anointed.

But she needs your help. Yep, you guessed it: time for a UTR Discovery Request! Do you know someone who will be clerking at the Court in OT 2005? Or perhaps you are one of the 35 young legal geniuses who will be gracing One First Street with your presence? If so, please email A3G with the following information for each OT 2005 law clerk that you know of:

1. Name
2. Law school (with graduation year if available)
3. Prior clerkship(s) (with years if available)
4. An interesting tidbit

What qualifies as an interesting tidbit? By way of example, here's an interesting tidbit about Sasha Volokh, a current clerk to Judge Alex Kozinski and a future SOC clerk (a tidbit received from Sasha himself, which A3G shares with his permission):

It's probably too late to bring this up, but since you "do" celebrity weddings, I'll mention that Judge Kozinski married me to quare.blogspot.com, in a tasteful five-line, one-minute-long ceremony in his office on October 29, 2004.*

Delightful! This gives you a good idea of what A3G is looking for. But in case you need a few more examples... What's Meaghan McLaine's favorite breakfast cereal? Where does Scott Martin like to shop for his clothes? And does Michael Passaportis (pictured at left) wear boxers or briefs? A3G can't wait to find out! She thanks you in advance for your tips -- and apologizes in advance for not being able to publish all of them.

What will you get in exchange for your information (besides the undying gratitude of a stylish blogress)? Well, A3G realizes that in order to get information, you need to give some up. So, in the spirit of "I'll show you mine if you'll show me yours," here's what A3G already knows about next Term's class of Supreme Court clerks (corrections welcome):

Chief Justice Rehnquist
Ann E. O'Connell (GW/Magill) (see here)
Michael Passaportis (UVA/Wilkinson) (see here)**

Justice Stevens
Sarah McCallum (Oxford/Georgetown/Rakoff (S.D.N.Y.)/Walker)

Justice O'Connor
Ben Horwich (Stanford '03/Becker/V. Walker (N.D. Cal.))
Sasha Volokh (Harvard/Kozinski)

Justice Scalia
John Demers (Harvard/O'Scannlain)
Scott Martin (Columbia/Kozinski)
Evan Young (Yale/Wilkinson)
Unidentified Quota-Filling Luttigator***

Justice Kennedy
Randy Kozel (Harvard/Kozinski)
Jeffrey Pojanowski (Harvard/Roberts)
Unidentified Garland Clerk

Justice Souter
Meaghan McLaine (Harvard '04/Garland)
Jon Michaels (Yale '03/Guido-maniac)
Allison Orr (Wilkinson/UVA) (see here, and picture at right -- meow, A3G's jealous!)
Unidentified Harvard Grad/Sack Clerk

Justice Thomas
James C. Ho (Chicago/J. Smith)
Larry D. Thompson, Jr. (NYU/Luttigator)

Justice Ginsburg
Joshua Civin (Yale/Bleeding Reinhardt)
Rebecca Deutsch (Yale '02/Rakoff (S.D.N.Y.)/Katzmann)

Justice Breyer
Jonathan Kravis (Yale/Garland)
Unidentified Garland Clerk

Footnotes:

* If this discussion strikes you as a little cryptic, worry not. Additional information about Sasha's celebrity wedding, as well as some fun facts about the wedding of his boss, The Easy Rider, will appear in a forthcoming "Courthouse Forum" post.

** A reader advises A3G that "Passaportis is not the rugby player -- that's his cousin." Oops! A3G apologizes for the error. (Hence the classification of this post under "Amended Opinions: UTR Corrections.")

*** Could we be just a little more cliched in our hiring practices, Justice Scalia? Trivia question: Since Judge Luttig joined the bench, has Justice Scalia ever had a year without a Luttigator?

An addendum: In her new capacity as self-appointed clearinghouse of information about the Elect, A3G would like to share with you an excellent article from last November analyzing the OT 2004 clerk class (written by the Liz Smith of One First Street -- a UTR reader, by the way). A3G reprints this most interesting piece, normally accessible only to Legal Times subscribers, with Mr. Mauro's permission. (If you're wondering why it took A3G five months to post this article -- well, she's been busy.) Enjoy!

The Legal Times, November 15, 2004

"Clerk Tally" by Tony Mauro

After a couple of years of hiring record numbers of minority law clerks, the Court this term seems to have slipped backward. None of this term's 35 clerks is African-American, and the complement of clerks in the chambers of Chief Justice Rehnquist and Justices Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, David Souter, and Stephen Breyer are all white. Rehnquist also has no female clerks.

Since attention was drawn to the demographics of law clerks in 1998, the Court itself has offered no official assistance in tallying the racial or ethnic backgrounds of its clerks. But based on research and observation, it appears that 19 of the clerks are white males, 11 are white females, one is a Hispanic male, and four are Asian-American females. Adding together the Hispanic and Asian-Americans, that totals five minorities, down from eight last term and a record nine the term before that.

Those familiar with the crop of applicants chalk up the decrease to the vagaries of law school competition and other factors. Justice Clarence Thomas was scheduled to have an African-American law clerk working for him this term -- Larry Thompson Jr., the son of the former deputy attorney general, who is a longtime friend of Thomas -- but his start was put off until next term. The impact of the law clerk hiring plan that slowed down the competition among appeals court judges for top candidates last year won't be felt at the Supreme Court level until next term's class of clerks.

The African-Americans who are at the top of the classes of the law schools most clerks are drawn from -- Harvard and Yale, primarily -- are often in demand for more lucrative positions, say some observers. "The pool just isn't there yet, and those who are available are snapped up instantly," says one judge familiar with the law clerk landscape.

The lagging economy may also be a factor, says Debra Strauss, author of the leading book on judicial clerkships. Minority law students saddled with debt may be under more pressure than usual to seek scarce law firm jobs rather than take a lower-paying two-year law clerk detour -- clerking for an appeals court judge, then a justice.

"The economy can definitely have an effect," says Strauss, who offers advice and information on clerkships through her Web site: www.judicialclerkships.com. Strauss says the American Bar Association and other organizations have stepped up outreach efforts to attract minorities to clerkships, but help with loan payments is still a problem.

As usual, Harvard was the predominant source for high court law clerks [nine], with the University of Chicago, placing seven clerks, not far behind. Five clerks are Yale Law School alumni, and four went to Stanford. Another recently noted trend has continued this term.

Eleven of the law clerks came to the high court after doing something else since their appeals court clerkship. James Dowden, for example, worked at Ropes & Gray in Boston and taught at his alma mater, Boston College Law School, before beginning his clerkship with Justice Breyer.

The top feeder judge was Alex Kozinski of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, who sent four of his clerks to the Supreme Court. Three of D.C. Circuit Judge David Tatel's clerks are at the Court this term.

Correction: In the Nov. 15 issue, the Courtside column's demographic tally of Supreme Court law clerks omitted a Hispanic female working in the chambers of Justice Stephen Breyer. The clerk, Christina Burnett, is of Puerto Rican descent. Her inclusion brings the total of minority clerks this term to six.

Courthouse Forum: Jeffrey Toobin!

Article III Groupie realizes that she has been neglecting her blog since the start of the new year. To be sure, one of her New Year's resolutions was to spend less time on UTR -- but perhaps she has now moved to the other extreme, spending too little time on her beloved blawg. She has numerous draft posts waiting to be revised and published, countless ideas for posts she hasn't even started drafting, and several weeks' worth of reader mail to reply to.

Part of the blame for her blogging backlog lies with her day job, which has been extremely busy as of late. But A3G is beginning to think that her reluctance to blog and to respond to e-mail -- or even to check her blog e-mail account, where the queue of unresponded-to messages grows longer and longer each day -- may be due to avoidant personality disorder. So please don't be upset at A3G for her inactivity; she can't help herself.

These days A3G will seize upon any excuse for avoiding UTR-related tasks. She rationalized her recent laziness by telling herself that she needed to give the blogosphere time to digest her last, massive post -- a deliciously dishy take on the Federalist Society's National Lawyers Convention. Unfortunately, to A3G's disappointment, only a brave few dared to comment upon or link to her Robing Room Report. But even though her latest post didn't get much of a public reception, A3G knows -- from her well-placed spies -- that it generated significant buzz among the legal profession's chattering class.

Well, now that over a week has passed, A3G no longer has that excuse. But she is still plauged by blogging lethargy. So she'll do what she does whenever she's feeling otiose: she will take someone else's words and reprint them (with permission) in her blog, in Courthouse Forum: Letters to Article III Groupie.

Today's magnificent missive, which also includes a request for information (a.k.a. a UTR Discovery Request), comes from a celebrity who needs no introduction:

Dear A3G,

I am a fan of your blog.  I am writing a book about the Supreme Court, and I wonder if you'd post a note -- or this note -- saying that I would welcome any tips, opinions or leads that your readers may care to offer.  I can be reached at [click here for email address].

Many thanks,
Jeff Toobin

No, you don't need Lasik surgery; yes, you read that correctly. A3G just received fan mail from one of our nation's foremost legal journalists, Jeffrey Toobin! For those of you who have been living in a cave for the past decade, Mr. Toobin is the renowned CNN legal analyst, New Yorker legal affairs writer, and bestselling author of several critically acclaimed books.

A3G encourages you all to contact Mr. Toobin with tidbits for his book on the Supreme Court. To kick things off, A3G offers Mr. Toobin her own shamelessly self-promoting suggestion: Wouldn't UTR, and its reception among federal judges, make a great subject for a brief, breezy, brilliantly funny Talk of the Town piece for The New Yorker? Article III Groupie is ready for her close-up -- and insanely jealous of the New York Times write-up received a few weeks ago by the Anonymous Lawyer blog of Jeremy Blachman (who appears to be parlaying his blog into a career as a television writer).*

Turning Prada green with envy,

Article III Groupie

* Speaking of lawyers-turned-writers like Messrs. Toobin and Blachman, lately A3G has been entertaining thoughts of making such a transition (perhaps out of growing frustration with law firm life). To this end, she requests any editors out there who might be willing to give her some freelance writing work to please e-mail her.

More specifically, would anyone be interested in picking up "So You Wanna Be a Supreme Court Clerk"? The piece is a delightful 1,000-word essay containing A3G's advice to law school gunners concerning how to join the ranks of the Elect.

A3G knows what you're thinking: "Dissembling harlot, you are one of the Great Unwashed. I can smell your foul stench through my computer screen. What do you know about getting a Supreme Court clerkship?" Well, even though A3G can't write from personal experience, her article reflects insights gleaned from years of keen, quasi-obsessive observation of those who have made it to One First Street.

Judicial SIGHT-ations: Federal Judicial Festivities

"Celebrate good times, come on!"

Some of us, including yours truly, have nothing better to do on a Saturday night than sit in front of the computer. Perhaps we could learn a thing or two from federal judges -- they sure know how to party!

Here are three quick sight-ations, some of them a little bit old, involving judicial celebrities spotted at celebratory events:

1. Loyal Cincinnati Correspondent, one of UTR's most prolific sources, offers this judicial sight-ation:

I saw Judge Susan Dlott and her husband [Stanley Chesley] at a benefit gala several weeks ago. They were also photographed for the society paper here (photos of your Loyal Cincinnati Correspondent did not make the cut, sniff, sniff).  The publication is not online, but I have it at home.  I did note that the photo's caption incorrectly identified her husband in such a way that it gave to him Judge Dlott's last name.

Delightful -- and eminently appropriate! Stan Chesley, one of the most successful plaintiff's lawyers in the country, may be as rich as Croesus. But it's Judge Dlott who wears the robes in that house! (And what a house it is! As you may recall, UTR Cribs visited the magnificent mansion of Judge and Mr. Dlott back in this post.)

2. Another UTR reader provides us with this celebrity sighting:

[Last month], at a quinquennial reunion, former clerks of the Honorable Boyce F. Martin, Jr. (6th Cir. -- Louisville, KY) announced to their judge and mentor the endowment of a scholarship in his name at the Judge's alma mater, Davidson College, in recognition of Judge Martin's 25th year on the federal bench. Judge Martin's first clerk, the Honorable [and Hot] John Gleeson, U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of New York, spoke on behalf of the over 70 former clerks.

While we're on the subject of Judge Martin, A3G would like to issue a UTR Discovery Request.  At some point in the new year, she would like to write a Bench-Slapped! exposé on the Sixth Circuit, with a specific focus on the super-friendly relations between Judge Martin and his successor as chief judge, Chief Judge Danny J. Boggs. Please e-mail her with the inside scoop!

3. Finally, in a post A3G linked to previously, PG of De Novo provided a commendably detailed account of the James Madison Award Dinner of the Federalist Society New York Lawyers Chapter. The honoree, Robert S. Smith, is a state court judge, but numerous federal judicial luminaries were in attendance, including Judge P. Kevin Castel (S.D.N.Y.), a former partner at the breathtakingly lucrative Cahill Gordon & Reindel, and the always well-dressed Judge Loretta A. Preska (S.D.N.Y.).

And now, a brief aside on Judge Preska. One of A3G's favorite correspondents writes:

I am a huge fan of Judge Preska, before whom I have tried two cases to completion, one with a jury, one without. A finer judge would be hard to imagine. Judge Preska is highly intelligent, professional, courteous and correct, patient, fundamentally pleasant and good-humored, fair, judicious and open-minded, and yet appropriately firm. Although she seldom displays even asperity, let alone anger, she does not suffer fools gladly. Her outstanding temperament and considerable intellect combine to make her a model district judge. (Just today, as it happens, I took over a pending case originally assigned to Preska and cursed a mighty oath upon seeing that my predecessor had unwisely stipulated to have the case tried by the magistrate judge). She is also, as your correspondent noted, possessed of striking, patrician good looks, faultlessly elegant, beautifully dressed, accessorized and coiffed, and in general, a treat for all the senses. She would be a great interview subject for you.

Finally, Article III Groupie has one more tidbit to share with you about what was surely a delightful evening: the individual at the James Madison Dinner who expressed enthusiasm for UTR is believed to be Jodi Balsam, the chief organizer of the dinner. A3G hopes this is the case! Ms. Balsam is a high-powered, conservative female lawyer, as well as a founder of the NYU Federalist Society. She sounds like a woman after A3G's own heart!

The Queen of Procrastination,

Article III Groupie

In Camera: Fabulous Photographs of Article III Stars!

Recently Article III Groupie received the following e-mail from a reader:

You tend to write about the same small group of judges over, and over, and over. How about casting your net a bit wider? There are so many judges about whom I'd like to learn. Mad props otherwise, Devoted Fan

Now, in A3G's defense, Devoted Fan's observation is not completely accurate. Several of the judges that A3G has written about this month--such as Judge Sotomayor, Judge Preska, Judge Dlott, and Judge Sprizzo--are new to the pages of this web log. In the wake of Grutter v. Bollinger, A3G grudgingly acknowledges diversity as a compelling state interest, and she does aim for a good mix of judges--from different courts, parts of the country, and personal backgrounds--in the pages of her blawg.

It cannot be denied, however, that there is some truth to this criticism. Article III Groupie has two responses. First, please don't forget how much A3G depends on her readers for information. The fact that she may write more about some judges and courts than others largely reflects that some UTR readers are much more diligent than others about writing her with tidbits. Second, not all federal judicial celebrities are created equal. Can A3G be faulted for spilling much ink over Article III boldface names like Judge Posner and Judge Kozinski, while neglecting district court judges in [insert obscure judicial district here]?

As noted in UTR's mission statement, Underneath Their Robes is like People or US Weekly, but for the federal judiciary. Would anyone ever write in to People or US Weekly to complain that they spend too much time on the likes of Julia and Jude, and not enough time on Wallace Shawn and Lupe Ontiveros? With all due respect to Mr. Shawn and Ms. Ontiveros, both of whom A3G deeply admires as actors, clearly the answer is no.

This train of thought got A3G thinking about why she enjoys pop culture and celebrity gossip rags like People, US Weekly, and In Touch. Sure, she does enjoy their insightful and well-written articles--just like many men read Playboy "for the articles."* But please, we're among friends, so let's dispense with pretense. What's the main attraction of such publications? It's the pictures, stupid! The celebrity photos that appear in such magazines tend to divide into a delicious dichotomy: dazzling or disastrous. Whether these pics show stars at their best or their worst, A3G loves them all.

On the subject of photographs, Article III Groupie recommends to her readers the remarkable 32-page portfolio by the great Richard Avedon that appears in the current issue of the New Yorker. Entitled "Democracy," the portfolio consists of Avedon's portraits of Americans, both famous and not-so-famous, in the weeks leading up to the election. Avedon passed away earlier this year, as did two other great photographers, Henri Cartier-Bresson and Helmut Newton (who took this awesome photograph of Judge Kozinski). The elegant, beautiful, soulful photographs taken by these masters of the medium differ greatly from the guilty pleasures of supermarket tabloid celebrity pics, but A3G loves them just as much.

And so, with the delights of both high and low photography in mind, A3G announces the newest feature of Underneath Their Robes: In Camera: Fabulous Photographs of Article III Stars! "In Camera" will offer UTR readers exclusive pictures, both artistic and trashy, of the federal judges that we all admire and adore.

Now, where will Article III Groupie get these photographs? In an ideal world, she would take them herself. She would just love to conduct a shoot with photogenic judicial celebrities like the highly respected Judge David M. Ebel (10th Cir.), who is a member of the Elect (he clerked for Justice White); the brilliant and larger-than-life Judge Edward R. Becker (3d Cir.), one of Article III's most colorful characters, who enjoys spirited legal discussion with his clerks over Chinese food; or Kerry Supreme Court short-lister Judge Diana Gribbon Motz, who has been known to mandamus her husband when he forgets to take out the garbage. A3G is not saying these judges are necessarily judicial hotties (although Judge Motz is assuredly attractive); she just thinks they have a lot of character, which makes them great subjects for portraiture.

Article III Groupie can picture the photo shoot now. Imagine a large studio in an airy loft. Swimming in the spotlight, judicial robe in full billow thanks to an industrial fan, Judge Ebel or Becker or Motz is vamping up a storm for A3G. The judge changes poses and facial expressions with the chameleon-like ease of Linda Evangelista; A3G is furiously snapping photographs in rapid succession, while simultaneously offering direction to her model: "Judge, let me see fierce. Fierce! Yes, just like that, fierce, fierce. Great, great stuff. Okay, now I'm looking for sultry, Your Honor. Sultry, sultry. Yes, perfect, that's it! Show me some love, Judge! Work it, work it!"

Unfortunately, for various reasons, the above scenario is not possible (although there is precedent for federal judicial photo shoots; in addition to Judge Kozinski and Helmut Newton, liberal judicial diva Susan Dlott has been photographed by Annie Leibowitz, as noted here and here). Accordingly, the success of "In Camera" will have to depend upon you, the readers of UTR. And so A3G hereby issues a UTR Discovery Request: Please submit federal judicial photographs for possible publication by e-mail. (Thank God for the rise of digital cameras! A request for such photos made just a few years ago would have yielded a fraction of what A3G hopes to obtain from her readers today.)

The "In Camera" submission guidelines are as follows:

1. Submissions should be exclusive, i.e., photos not available anywhere else. Please do not download pictures available elsewhere on the internet and send them to A3G (which she is perfectly capable of doing herself).

2. Feel free to crop or otherwise alter pictures for appropriate purposes. What is an "appropriate purpose" for A3G? Well, like Justice Stewart, she knows it when she sees it. Cropping a picture to remove people who are not fabulous federal judges is perfectly acceptable; pasting federal judicial faces on to naked bodies may be more problematic.

3. Feel free to submit information about the circumstances surrounding the taking of the photo and/or a suggested caption or captions (which A3G may or may not use).

4. By submitting a photograph, you are granting A3G permission to do with it as she will. Possible purposes to which pictures might be put include, but are not limited to, publication in "In Camera"; suitable deployment in another, non-"In Camera" post; and keeping A3G company in her bubble bath, as she relieves the stress of a long day...

To start things off, A3G offers you this photograph of Judge Kozinski, entitled "IMMOOSE." A picture is worth a thousand words, so no commentary is necessary (and the title pretty much says it all anyway). Enjoy!

Ready to make love to the camera,

Article III Groupie

*Speaking of Playboy, did A3G forget to mention that Judge Kimba Wood (S.D.N.Y.)--the #1 Female Superhottie of the Federal Judiciary--was once a Playboy bunny? Oh, and with Election Day just a few days away, John Kerry has asked me to remind you: MARY CHENEY IS A LESBIAN!!!

Questions Presented: A3G Interviews Federal Judicial Celebrities

Article III Groupie is tremendously excited about the latest addition to UTR, Questions Presented: Article III Groupie Interviews Federal Judicial Celebrities! Inspired by 20 Questions for the Appellate Judge over at How Appealing, as well as the "20 Questions" series at Crescat Sententia, A3G has decided to try her hand at celebrity interviews.

Alas, Article III Groupie can't do interviews without interviewees. So she hereby requests a brave volunteer to serve as the first interviewee for "Questions Presented." She is looking for a federal judge with a robust sense of humor, who doesn't take himself or herself too seriously (despite taking his or her judicial duties quite seriously), and who is willing to allow A3G to engage in a little "sub-robe probing."

To encourage positive responses, Article III Groupie makes the following promises to prospective interviewees:

(1) her 20 questions, to be be posed and answered over e-mail, will be devoid of substantive legal discussion (no surprise there);

(2) her questions will, for the most part, be sycophantic and adoring in tone--like the softballs tossed at Hollywood celebrities by the writers of puff pieces for InStyle or Vanity Fair;

(3) if you feel a question is inappropriate--which is not inconceivable, since A3G has been known to explore the boundaries of good taste--you may simply decline to answer it (and A3G will, consistent with Griffin v. California, not make fun of or otherwise comment on your exercising the right to remain silent); and

(4) any interviewee will be entitled to immunity from gentle mockery in the pages of UTR for, um, "a while."

Now, some of you Article III jurists are surely thinking, "Hmm, this actually sounds like fun. But isn't Underneath Their Robes beneath the dignity of the federal judiciary? Wouldn't an epistolary romance with the dubiously named 'Article III Groupie' torpedo my chances for elevation?"

To assuage your concerns, A3G would point out that she has corresponded with several federal judges, as well as several state court judges, since the debut of UTR. Most of these communications have been conducted on a confidential basis, pursuant to UTR's standard operating procedure. But A3G has also corresponded with two federal judicial superstars--Judge Alex Kozinski and Judge Richard Posner--and has, with permission, published their missives in these pages. And so, if you're thinking that consorting with A3G is beneath you, ask yourself: Am I more brilliant, more influential, and more respected than Judge Posner or Judge Kozinski?

(In the interest of hearing from new voices--and further enhancing UTR's legitimacy, by obtaining yet another federal judge willing to publicly associate himself or herself with this blawg--A3G would like to interview a judge other than Judge Kozinski or Judge Posner for the first issue of "Questions Presented." She hopes, however, that one or both of these eminent jurists might be willing to be interviewed in a future installment.)

In closing, to all you federal judges out there: "Hike up your robe a little more; show your world to A3G!"

Ready to prostrate herself before federal judicial divinity,

Article III Groupie

An Addendum on Feeder Judge Rankings

Greetings, dear readers. Article III Groupie must begin, as always, with the de rigeueur apology for her unexcused absence from these pages. Despite her election-year promises of shorter and more frequent posts--as well as "no new taxes" and "a chicken in every pot"--A3G hasn't been able to deliver the goods. Unfortunately, she has been suffering from a peculiar strain of writer's block.

Article III Groupie's writer's block does not stem from a lack of topics about which she'd like to write. If anything, right now she has too many pots on the stove, a cornucopia of promising subjects. Rather, A3G's literary torpor can instead be traced to two sources: (1) her perfectionism, which causes her to set a very high standard for her UTR posts, and (2) her obsession with things that are big and long (including but not limited to blog posts).

Indeed, A3G has received good-natured ribbing from such eminent bloggers as Howard Bashman of How Appealing (click here and here) and Will Baude of Crescat Sententia (click here) concerning her predilection for extra-long posts. What can she say? To use the argot of those friends of A3G who are also friends of Dorothy, Article III Groupie is a "size queen." (Speaking of A3G's friends, as previously noted here, Article III Groupie is on Friendster, and she is always looking for more pals. So please invite her to be your friend! You can check out her recently revised profile here.)

Oops, sorry for that rather bawdy digression. Where were we? Oh yes, we were talking about Article III Groupie's writer's block. Because Article III Groupie only allows herself to issue high-quality posts of impressive length, she needs a significant amount of free time for her blogging. Researching, writing, and editing such posts consumes many a billable hour! Thus, when A3G's life outside UTR heats up--which, truth be told, doesn't happen as often as it should--the pages of UTR cool down. And in the past two weeks, Article III Groupie has been surprisingly busy outside the blogosphere. Her time has been taken up with work, a new fitness regimen, and a charming lad that she has been seeing. As a result, she hasn't had the time to prepare the gargantuan, highly polished posts that she demands of herself--and which she likes to think her readers have come to expect of her. (In addition, A3G has been having some computer troubles, but she won't bore you with them.)

Okay, that's enough about Article III Groupie for now. She is not a federal judge, nor is she a member of the Elect, so why would anyone be interested in the petty details of her miserable existence? For present purposes, the most important thing about A3G is that the prodigal blogress has returned. (For the record, however, Article III Groupie is not without her admirers, including Rufus T. Firefly of Running With Lawyers (click here) and Dylan of The Slithery D (click here or here).)

Article III Groupie would like to kick off her renewed commitment to UTR with this follow-up to her recent post, Feed Me, Stephanie Seymour: Supreme Court Feeder Judge Rankings. She has some additional tidbits to pass along, as well as a request for information from her readers (i.e., a UTR Discovery Request).

1. Article III Groupie has been advised that the official list of Supreme Court clerks for October Term 2004 has been released. Hence the latest UTR Discovery Request: Would someone please send the list to her? A PDF file would be delightful, but A3G would be grateful for the information in any form. She would like to revise her feeder judge rankings to reflect the most current information. Her readers deserve no less!

2. An article in the August 17th issue of the Daily Journal (subscription required) had some interesting tidbits to report concerning the latest crop of Supreme Court clerks (material in quotation marks taken directly from the article; bracketed material courtesy of yours truly):

--Judge Kozinski of the Ninth Circuit is the #1 feeder judge for OT 2004, with four of his former law clerks joining the ranks of the Anointed this year.

--"The percentage of female clerks - 40 percent - is up slightly from last term and near the record 41 percent in the 2001-02 term. The female clerkships are slightly above the overall percentage of women in the legal profession but short of the recent percentage of women law graduates, which is about 50 percent."

--Chief Justice Rehnquist, who hires only three clerks (it makes for better doubles matches), has three male clerks this Term. Justice Scalia and Justice Kennedy, neither of whom had a female clerk during OT 2003, each hired one for OT 2004.

An aside: Justice Scalia isn't exactly a feminist--surely everyone remembers his rather spirited dissent in United States v. Virginia, in which the Court held that the Virginia Military Institute's exclusion of women was unconstitutional. But UTR sources say that Justice Scalia does have a preference for having at least one female clerk when possible.

--"The recent trend of the justices hiring clerks who have spent some time practicing law or teaching after their appellate court clerkship continued this year, but dropped below the 50 percent mark. This year, 11 of the clerks - 31 percent - took the nontraditional route to the high court."

A message to the justices from Article III Groupie: If any of you are interested in a law clerk who has had the valuable experience of toiling in discovery hell, er, working in "general commercial litigation" for several years--and who can offer you fashion advice as well as legal analysis--please e-mail A3G and offer her a job!

--"For the second year in a row, the Ivy League law schools - traditionally the top clerk producers - fell below the 50 percent mark. Still, those schools account for 15 of the clerks, with Harvard Law School providing nine, Yale Law School five and Columbia University School of Law one. The University of Chicago Law School was the top non-Ivy League school, with seven clerks. Among California schools, Stanford Law School sent four clerks and the UCLA School of Law one."

For historical information on how well law schools have done in ensconcing their graduates in Supreme Court clerkships, check out this table, prepared by Professor Brian Leiter of The Leiter Reports.

--"The [fearsome and omnipotent] D.C. Circuit, which regularly is the leading feeder court, [smashing down doors and knocking other circuits upside the head as it firmly plants its children in coveted spots as clerks to the High Court], again was on top, with 10 clerks. But the 9th Circuit was a close second, with nine, followed by the New York-based 2nd Circuit with five."

--"Following Kozinski from the 9th Circuit were Judge William A. Fletcher, who provided two clerks, and Judges Stephen Reinhardt, Diarmuid F. O'Scannlain and Jay S. Bybee, who sent one each."

Judge Bybee is a very recent addition to the Ninth Circuit bench, so his sending a clerk to the Supreme Court so quickly is quite impressive. Of course, UTR has every confidence that Judge Bybee's clerk did a great job clerking at the Ninth Circuit. As head of the DOJ's elite Office of Legal Counsel, Judge Bybee signed a controversial memo on torture that was widely decried in liberal circles--see, e.g., here or here, and here for Professor Froomkin's detailed exegesis. Surely Judge Bybee has his ways for squeezing superior work product out of his law clerks...

(Kidding aside, Judge Bybee is actually "a serious, soft-spoken, reflective man," as reported in this piece in the New York Times. One of A3G's favorite legal academics and commentators, Professor Doug Kmiec, describes Judge Bybee in the Times article as "a pretty gentle soul." So lest any law student readers be deterred from applying for a clerkship with Judge Bybee, please rest assured: he doesn't get Abu Ghraib on law clerk ass, at least not as far as A3G knows.)

--"Kozinski, who regularly sends two clerks a year to the high court, this year managed to beat out the regular top feeder judges, including 4th Circuit Judge J. Michael Luttig and 2nd Circuit Judge Guido Calabresi. His nearest rival was D.C. Circuit Judge David S. Tatel, who sent three clerks to the high court."

Article III Groupie is working on nicknames for former clerks to the top feeder judges, and she welcomes your input. Reader correspondence has yielded up two so far: "Luttigators" for Judge Luttig's former clerks, and "Tatel Tots" for Judge Tatel's. Please help A3G in the noble mission of getting these nicknames to stick by using them at every possible opportunity!

--"Kozinski sent all three of his clerks from last year, plus [UTR mystery hottie] Kathryn R. Haun, a Stanford graduate who clerked for him in 2000-01 and has been practicing with Sidley Austin Brown & Wood in Washington, D.C. 'I'm particularly glad for Katy, because she was left out the first time around,' Kozinski said."

--"This has been a good year for Kozinski. He recently was voted the 'Male Superhottie of the Federal Judiciary' by the readers of the blog underneaththeirrobes.blogs.com, beating out, among others, Justice David H. Souter. Asked about the double honors, Kozinski said with a laugh, "'Maybe there's a connection there.'"

(A3G suspects the answer is yes. Rumor has it that each justice who hired a Kozinski clerk for OT 2004 received an autographed picture of the #1 Male Superhottie wearing nothing but form-fitting Speedo trunks...)

3. Professor Yin of The Yin Blog makes a very good point in this post:

I wonder if the rankings change if you looked at the percentage of clerks sent. As I'm sure A3G knows, federal appellate judges have a budget to hire 5 staffers. As far as I know, they all use either the 3 clerk/2 secretary or 4 clerk/1 secretary model. Over a ten year period, a judge using the 4/1 model has 10 more clerks who potentially can be sent to the Court over one using the 3/2 model. So if a 3/2 judge has sent 15 clerks to the Court during the 10 year period, and a 4/1 judge has sent 18 clerks, the 3/2 judge is actually doing "better." (For the math-impaired, that's a success rate of 50% vs. 45%.)

Article III Groupie is aware of the discretion of circuit judges to choose their staffing configuration, and she believes Professor Yin's observation to be an important one, which is why she highlights it here for the benefit of her readers. She actually contemplated trying to come up with rankings based on the percentage of clerks sent, but ultimately decided against it, basically due to (1) her own laziness and (2) the potential complications of such a project. (Of course, if anyone would like to undertake such a project and share the results with A3G, she would be delighted to publish them.)

Here are some examples of headaches that A3G didn't feel like dealing with (and if you only knew how much time she already spends on her blog, you would understand her desire to keep things simple): What about judges who changed the number of clerks they hire at some point in the past ten years (e.g., by moving from three to four)? What about senior judges who have decreased their hiring (e.g., by moving from three to two)? What about new judges, such as Judge W. Fletcher and Judge Garland, whose total number of clerks is hard to calculate? For new judges who started in the "middle" of a clerkship year, did they have their first clerks for just half a year, or did their first clerks stay for a year and a half?

Okay, must run. A3G hopes to get out another post or two before she disappears for the Labor Day weekend--but she knows better than to make any promises she can't keep, so don't hold your breath. Ciao!

A Federal Clerkship Veteran for Truth,

Article III Groupie

Judicial SIGHT-ations: A Different Kind of Lexus Search

As a certain venerable canine might say, "Ruh-roh!" In the process of trying to score a "Judicial Sight-ation," one of A3G's best friends in the blogosphere, Dylan of The Slithery D, may have given a federal judge (or his wife) a bit of a scare on the road. Please click here for the account of Slithery D's vehicular misadventures, involving the trailing and photographing of a federal judicial vehicle with "U.S. Judge" license plates customized to read "USA 61."

The vehicle at issue, a Lexus SUV, is shown in the photograph at right (provided courtesy of The Slithery D). Does anyone know who the judge in question might be? If so, please send this jurist the profuse apologies of Dylan and Article III Groupie, and please reassure the judge that no harm was intended (and compliment the judge for having good taste in cars). As noted in this post, A3G loves federal judges "not wisely, but too well," and apparently The Slithery D shares her affliction. Just at teenage girls have been known to faint after setting eyes upon Justin Timberlake, seeing a federal judge outside the courthouse can drive even a normal and well-adjusted UTR reader like The Big D into a state of temporary insanity.

To those UTR readers who expressed concern to Article III Groupie about "Judicial Sight-ations" leading to invasions of Article III privacy, A3G can see how this incident may provide support for your position. Article III Groupie hereby urges her readers to use good judgment and restraint as they go about making "Judicial Sight-ations." (But one can't help thinking: If a federal judge wants to go unnoticed, should she really get a license plate advertising her judicial status? After all, getting out of speeding and parking tickets should come at some price...)

Seeing as we're on the topic of federal judges behind the wheel, this is as good a time as any for Article III Groupie to issue another discovery request to her readers. As previously noted, one of UTR's coming attactions is a special report entitled "The Wheels of Justice," discussing the vehicular preferences of federal judges. If you have any good gossip or funny stories about federal judges and their cars or driving skills (or lack thereof), please send them to me, Article III Groupie, via the information superhighway (i.e., by e-mail).

Rolling with her homies,

Article III Groupie