Clerk of the Supreme Court of the United States

Clerk of the Supreme Court of the United States

From Wikipedia

The Clerk of the Supreme Court of the United States is the officer of the Supreme Court of the United States responsible for overseeing filings with the Court and maintaining its records.

The first Clerk was appointed on February 3, 1790, two days after the first session of the court itself. The position had been authorized by Congress on September 24, 1789, with the position's purpose being to "enter and record all the orders, decrees, judgments and proceedings of the said court."

The Clerk is one of the Court's four statutory officers. The others are the Marshal, the Librarian, and the Reporter of Decisions.

Traditionally unlike others, the Clerk and deputies wear morning coats when performing their duties as the court is in session.

One of the traditional duties of the Clerk was holding the Bible at presidential inaugurations. James R. Browning became the last Clerk to perform this duty at John F. Kennedy's inauguration on January 20, 1961. Four years later, at Lyndon B. Johnson's inauguration, Lady Bird Johnson began the tradition of the First Lady holding the Bible, which continues today.

list of clerks

1. John Tucker (1790–1791)
2. Samuel Bayard (1791–1800)
3. Elias B. Caldwell (1800–1825)
4. William Griffith (1826–1827)
5. William T. Carroll (1827–1863)
6. D. W. Middleton (1863–1880)
7. J. H. McKenney (1880–1913)
8. James D. Maher (1913–1921)
9. William R. Stansbury (1921–1927)
10. Charles Elmore Cropley (1927–1952)
11. Harold B. Willey (1952–1956)
12. John T. Fey (1956–1958)
13. James R. Browning (1958–1961)
14. John F. Davis (1961–1970)
15. E. Robert Seaver (1970–1972)
16. Michael Rodak, Jr. (1972–1981)
17. Alexander L. Stevas (1981–1985)
18. Joseph F. Spaniol, Jr. (1985–1991)
19. William K. Suter (1991–2013)
20. Scott S. Harris (2013–present)

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• "A Brief Overview of the Supreme Court"