Yesterday the AP reported Justice Stevens' hiring at high court slows "Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens has hired fewer law clerks than usual, generating speculation that the leader of the court's liberals will retire next year."
"Stevens confirmed through a court spokeswoman Tuesday that he has hired only one clerk for the term that begins in October 2010. He is among several justices who typically have hired all four clerks for the following year by now."
"Stevens also is nearing two longevity records. When he joined the court, he replaced the longest-serving justice, William O. Douglas, and would need to serve until mid-July 2012 to top that service record. He would surpass Holmes as the oldest sitting justice if he were to remain on the court until Feb. 24, 2011."
The Blog of Legal Times adds in Justice Stevens: Exiting Next Year?: "'His pattern is fairly consistent to hire a whole slew of clerks by the end of the term,' said former Stevens clerk Joseph Thai, a law professor at the University of Oklahoma. Some justices hire their full allotment of clerks for a future term even if they are thinking of retiring, but Thai thinks that 'Justice Stevens is not that kind of guy. He is very considerate of the personal lives of his clerks, and he would not want to give people the false hope that they will be working for a sitting justice.' That would explain why he would hire one clerk for the 2010 term; retired justices are allowed to hire one clerk instead of four."
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