Ex-Marine, professor, MLB draft pick among Supreme Court clerks

WASHINGTON — A former Marine who deployed twice to Afghanistan. A patent law professor. A woman who’s blind. Two Rhodes scholars.

They’re among the lawyers starting work this summer as law clerks at the Supreme Court.

The group of 16 women and 23 men hired by the justices were already on paths to become leading judges, professors and Supreme Court advocates. The oneyear clerkship will cement their high-profile status.

“I think clerking on this court affects everybody’s career who does it . ... You put it on your resume and all of a sudden doors open, sometimes justifiably so and sometimes not,” Justice Elena Kagan has said . She should know. Kagan, who clerked for Justice Thurgood Marshall, is one of five current justices who was once a Supreme Court clerk. So was Chief Justice John Roberts. Justices Stephen Breyer, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh also clerked.

Justices hire four clerks annually; retired justices hire one. The clerks review potential cases, help their justice prepare for arguments, conduct research and write draft opinions.

Scholars disagree about how much influence the clerks have. But what is clear is that while the justices are the public face of the court, the clerks are their behind-the-scenes assistants who help the place run. Clerks generally decline to give interviews until after their clerkships are over. Even then, they are careful about what they will say.

For their work, they’re paid about $83,000. When they’re done, law firms have recently been offering bonuses of $400,000 to clerks who join them.