Updated
Updated · Original Jurisdiction | David Lat · Jul 3
David Lat Publishes Complete OT 2026 Clerk Roster, Citing 3 Recent Alito Hires
Updated
Updated · Original Jurisdiction | David Lat · Jul 3

David Lat Publishes Complete OT 2026 Clerk Roster, Citing 3 Recent Alito Hires

1 articles · Updated · Original Jurisdiction | David Lat · Jul 3

Summary

  • David Lat said he now has a complete roster of Supreme Court clerks for October Term 2026 after identifying the final three Alito clerks and the clerk to retired Justice Anthony Kennedy.
  • Three Alito hires surfaced only recently, including two to three made as recently as last month, which Lat argues undercuts this week’s false report that the 76-year-old justice was about to retire.
  • NPR retracted that retirement report after Nina Totenberg said she misheard a reference to staff retirement announcements and triggered publication of a prewritten Alito retirement story.
  • Lat’s roundup also highlights Adam Feldman’s clerkship data: Clarence Thomas leads justices with 12 former clerks now on the federal bench, while former Supreme Court clerks appeared on about 1 in 5 merits amicus briefs.
  • The OT 2026 roster still awaits Supreme Court Public Information Office confirmation later this month, when Lat plans a demographic breakdown of gender, feeder schools and feeder judges.

Insights

Beyond hiring clerks, what hidden indicators reveal the future plans of Supreme Court justices?
How does the 'clerk-to-judge' pipeline shape the future of the American judiciary?
When a top journalist makes a major error, does it strengthen or weaken public trust in media?