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United States Solicitor General
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Organization of Solicitor General's Office
The United States Solicitor General is the individual appointed to argue for the Government of the United States in front of the Supreme Court of the United States, when the government is party to a case.
Official duties
Nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate, the Solicitor General is the fourth-ranking officer in the United States Department of Justice, behind the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General, and the Associate Attorney General. Despite this formal "rank", the Solicitor General is removed from the administrative duties of the Justice Department, focusing instead on advocating for the federal government before the Supreme Court. Part of the Solicitor General's duty is to be the attorney representing U.S. federal government agents and agencies in cases appealed to the Supreme Court. While the Solicitor General's duty is defined as being to the Attorney General on behalf of the Constitution and the entire federal government, in practice the Solicitor General's "client" is the President of the United States. This means that when a suit before the Supreme Court concerns a point of law with policy implications for the executive branch, the Solicitor General's broad position is generally determined by the President. Such is the case with current litigation about the "War on Terror", wherein the Solicitor General advocates a technical legal position based upon the President's political position. Above and beyond actually arguing cases before the Court, the Solicitor General's office files amicus curiae briefs in virtually every case of significance to the federal government, even if it is not directly involved.
Significance
The Solicitor General, who has offices in the Supreme Court Building as well as the Department of Justice Headquarters, has been nicknamed the "10th justice", due to the frequent interaction and subsequent special relationship between the justices and the Solicitor General and their respective staffs of clerks and deputies. As the most frequent advocate before the Court (they appear dozens of times before the Court each term whereas even experienced private Supreme Court litigators often have fewer than ten appearances in their careers), the Solicitor General is extremely comfortable with the justices during the intimidating oral argument process. Further, when the Solicitor General's office requests or recommends that a petition be granted certiorari, it is frequently granted, which is remarkable given that only approximately 75–125 petitions are granted review by the Court out of the over 7,500 submitted each term. As a result, the Solicitor General is considered to be among the most influential and knowledgeable people about the Supreme Court and constitutional law, other than the justices themselves. Given the level of legal ability and expertise required by such an important position, the office of United States Solicitor General is generally considered to be the highest office for a practicing lawyer in the United States, as opposed to the United States Attorney General, which while always held by a lawyer, is more of an administrative, political office. Not surprisingly, many who have worked as or for the Solicitor General have gone onto appointment as Supreme Court Justices.
Traditions
The office of Solicitor General was founded in 1870 and several traditions have since developed. Most obvious to visitors at the Supreme Court building for oral arguments is the traditional practice of the Solicitor General and their deputies of wearing formal morning coats. Of more technical significance is the permitting the Solicitor General to "lodge" new evidence into an appellate record, evidence which normally would not be considered by the justices. Another tradition (that is possibly unique in the United States) is the Solicitor General's right and practice of confession of judgment in cases where he considers the government's prior official position to be clearly unjust: he can just drop the case, even if the government has already won in the lower courts.
Solicitors General since 1870
References
- Hall, Kermit. The Oxford Guide to the Supreme Court of the United States
External links
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United States Solicitors General |
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