Supreme Court Historical Society

The Supreme Court Historical Society (SCHS) is a Washington, D.C.-based[3] private, nonpartisan, not for profit 501(c)(3) membership organization dedicated to preserving and communicating the history of the U.S. Supreme Court, increasing public awareness of the Court’s contribution to our nation’s rich constitutional heritage, and acquiring knowledge covering the history of the entire Judicial Branch.[4] In its Opperman House Library, the Society houses collections of judicial biographies, Justices’ writings, and histories of the Court. The Society was founded in 1974 by U.S. Chief Justice Warren E. Burger, who acted as its first honorary chairman[5] until his death in 1995.

Supreme Court Historical Society
Established1974 (49 years ago)
FoundersWarren E. Burger
Typesnonprofit organization
Legal status501(c)(3) organization
HeadquartersWashington, D.C.
CountryUnited States
DirectorsChilton Davis Varner (President)[1][2]
Gregory P. Joseph (Chair of Board of Trustees)[2]
ChairpersonsJohn G. Roberts, Jr. (Hon.)
Revenue2,995,537 United States dollar (2018)

The Society conducts educational programs for students and teachers,[6][7] and programs of interest to legal practitioners, scholars, historians, and the general public, including the Leon Silverman Lecture Series.[8] The Society supports historical research like demographic nuances of the justices,[9] promotes scholarship, and engages in civic education outreach. It also funds a print and digital publishing program that produces the Journal of Supreme Court History, with Johns Hopkins University Press,[10] and provides other educational materials such as reference books, documentary history, webcasts, and civic documentaries. Additionally, the Society identifies and acquires artworks, furniture, documents and artifacts of significance to Supreme Court history that are incorporated into exhibits prepared by the Supreme Court Curator’s Office for the benefit of the Court’s annual visitors. The Chief Justice of the United States serves as Honorary Chairman of the Board of Trustees,[11] a position held by John G. Roberts, Jr. since 2003.

Acquisitions Program

Since 1973, the Society has worked closely with the Supreme Court Curator’s Office to identify and obtain — through deed of gift or purchase — items of relevance to the Court. Special emphasis is placed on acquiring unique items and items that fill gaps in the Court’s existing collection. The collection includes furniture, decorative items and artwork, original antique newspaper clippings, historic photographs and drawings, diaries, scrapbooks, ledgers, histories, biographies, genealogies, maps, audio and video recordings of oral history interviews, color slides and films. Items owned by the Society are used in the Supreme Court Building as mounted exhibits which are open to visitors. Some of the graphic arts items are also used as illustrations in publications produced by the Society.[5]

One significant acquisition in recent years is the 1885 docket book of Stephen J. Field. It is the first, and only, docket book owned by Justice Field known to exist. The book lists cases on the docket but also the attorneys who argued them, including Belva Lockwood who became the first woman to argue a case before the Supreme Court in 1880.[12] Future Justices Melville W. Fuller and George Shiras, Jr. are also listed as advocates. During the 1885 Term the Court docketed 1,348 cases and disposed of 444. Field’s biographer, Paul Kens, author of Justice Stephen Field: Shaping Liberty from the Gold Rush to the Gilded Age,[13] says Field wrote many opinions that Term and that the book’s discovery is “really exciting.”[14]

The Society, which began to help raise funds "to restore dusty old portraits of justices of yore", still helps secure funding for portraits of the Supreme Court Justices which hang in the Supreme Court Building.[11] Renowned portrait artists have painted the Justices—Simmie Knox’s portrait of Justice Thurgood Marshall hangs on the ground floor of the Court building, as does Nelson Shanks' portrait Justice Antonin Scalia.[15]

Controversy

Faith and Action influence peddling

In July 2022, Rev. Rob Schenck, former head of Faith and Action in the Nation's Capital (Faith and Liberty since 2018),[16] revealed the NPO's program of, "for about two decades, forging friendships with conservative justices to 'bolster' their views, particularly on abortion", finessed by donating to the Supreme Court Historical Society to obtain stealth opportunities[17] to meet Supreme Court Justices. Schenck also alerted Chief Justice John Roberts of the extensive operation, by letter, that same month.[18] Access was integral to the "group’s extensive program to influence Justices Thomas, Alito and Scalia through meals and entertainment", dubbed "Operation Higher Court".[16]

Schenck advised people attending the Historical Society annual dinner "see a Justice − boldly approach." He wrote "Your presence alone telegraphs a very important signal to the justices: Christians are concerned about the court and the issues that come before it." Schenck further advised that Justices were more likely to let their guard down at the annual dinners, because they trusted the attendees.[19] In example, through their connection to the Historical Society, Hobby Lobby's owners attended a Christmas party in Supreme Court chambers shortly before litigation was initiated which would become Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. in 2014.[20] Justice Alito has denied advance disclosure of the court's opinion on the case.[21]

On December 8, 2022, the House Committee on the Judiciary convened a hearing to determine covert activity and influence on SCOTUS members by the Faith and Action group, entitled "Undue Influence: Operation Higher Court and Politicking at SCOTUS", chaired by Jerrold Nadler.[22][23]

The New York Times report

On December 30, 2022, The New York Times published an investigative report detailing the society as a "vehicle for those seeking access" to Supreme Court justices.[11] Trustees of the nonprofit society "are expected to give at least $5,000 a year, 'patrons' give between $12,500 and $25,000, and 'benefactors' give more than $25,000", and at least 60 percent of money the society had raised since 2003 was reported as originating from "corporations, special interest groups, or lawyers and firms that argued cases before the court." The article stated that these donors were given access to the inner workings of the court, and to the justices themselves.[11]

Board member Harlan Crow
Main article: Harlan Crow § Gifts to Clarence Thomas

Texas billionaire and Supreme Court Historical Society board member Harlan Crow was reported by ProPublica in 2023 to have presented numerous luxury gifts, over two decades, including expensive vacations and private-school tuition, to Justice Clarence Thomas and his wife, Ginni Thomas, as well as another relative.[24][25] Crow also supplied major funding for Liberty Central, founded in 2009 by Thomas' spouse, Ginni Thomas.[26]

References
  1. "Expert Panel: Chilton Davis Varner". The Law Reviews. Retrieved 2023-04-16.
  2. "Society Officers & Staff". Supreme Court Historical Society. Retrieved 2023-04-16.
  3. The Supreme Court Historical Society
  4. "The Mission of the Society". Supreme Court Historical Society. Retrieved 2022-10-10.
  5. "History of the Collection".
  6. "Supreme Court Summer Institute".
  7. "Supreme Court and My Hometown: St. Louis Application | SCHS Civics Resources".
  8. Leon Silverman Lecture Series
  9. Preston II, Matthew N. (October 9, 2022). "Ketanji Brown Jackson's historic rise leaves just one military veteran on the Supreme Court". USA Today.
  10. "Journal of Supreme Court History". Supreme Court Historical Society. Retrieved 2023-05-04.
  11. Becker, Jo; Tate, Julie (2022-12-30). "A Charity Tied to the Supreme Court Offers Donors Access to the Justices". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
  12. "The Society's Acquisition Program".
  13. Justice Stephen Field: Shaping Liberty from the Gold Rush to the Gilded Age (1997)
  14. "Justice Fields's Docket Book (October Term 1885)". 14 July 2020.
  15. "Justice Scalia on his Portrait | C-SPAN.org". www.c-span.org.
  16. "'Operation Higher Court': Inside the religious right’s efforts to wine and dine Supreme Court justices" Peter S. Canellos and Josh Gerstein, Politico, July 8, 2022. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
  17. "Advocate tells lawmakers of 'stealth' efforts to influence Supreme Court",The Washington Post, December 8, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  18. "SEN. WHITEHOUSE AND REP. JOHNSON PRESS SCOTUS ABOUT APPARENT ETHICAL LAPSES AFTER NEW OUTSIDE INFLUENCE SCANDAL EMERGES" Sheldon Whitehouse, whitehouse.senate.gov, November 21, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  19. Kantor, Jodi; Becker, Jo (November 19, 2022). "Former Anti-Abortion Leader Alleges Another Supreme Court Breach". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-11-23.
  20. Lithwick, Dahlia (22 November 2022). "The Real Problem With the Second Alleged Leak at the Court". Slate. Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  21. "Justice Alito denies disclosing 2014 Hobby Lobby opinion in advance" Robert Barnes and Ann E. Marimow, Washington Post, November 19, 2022. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  22. "Hearings Undue Influence: Operation Higher Court and Politicking at SCOTUS" December 08, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  23. "Christian advocate tells Congress of 2014 U.S. Supreme Court leak" Gram Slattery and Nate Raymond, Reuters. December 8, 2022. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  24. Kaplan, Joshua (6 April 2023). "Clarence Thomas and the Billionaire". ProPublica. Archived from the original on April 6, 2023. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  25. "Fighting for trust: The painful journey of the Supreme Court after Dobbs" Josh Gerstein, Politico, June 25, 2023. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  26. "Justice Thomas’s wife now lobbyist" Kenneth P. Vogel, John Bresnahan and Marin Cogan, Politico, February 5, 2011. Retrieved September 19, 2023.


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