Courts

Supreme Court Frontrunner's Former Clerk Takes Devotion To New Heights

Biglaw associate takes the battle to be the next Supreme Court justice to the pages of Wikipedia.

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Vector Comic Cartoon of Tired or Overworked Businessman or Man or Office Worker Typing or Working on ComputerThe relationship between a judge and clerk is often described as a unique one that can inspire devotion and long lasting bonds. A meaningful clerkship relationship can change the course of a young lawyer’s career, opening up opportunities and experiences that would otherwise would be closed. And if “your” judge becomes a Supreme Court justice, an already prestigious resume line takes an even bigger shot in the arm.

So, it’s not surprising that former clerks of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson want her to get the nod to the Court from Joe Biden. She’s reportedly the frontrunner (and who Above the Law readers believe will get the nomination) to be the replacement for Stephen Breyer on the Supreme Court — and she’s a former Breyer clerk to boot. But according to a report from Politico, one former clerk’s support of Brown Jackson has turned to an active online campaign.

According to Politico’s reporting, Matteo Godi, a former Brown Jackson clerk and current Paul Weiss associate, under the username “H2rty” has “as a matter of course” edited his former boss’s Wikipedia page for a number of years. (Godi was identified as H2rty by an anonymous group of former Brown Jackson clerks.) But now that’s she’s on the shortlist of SCOTUS nominees, he’s reportedly taken to not only editing Brown Jackson’s page, but the pages of other contenders to make Brown Jackson seem like a more compelling selection. H2rty’s Wiki edits include Brown Jackson’s (natch) as well as J. Michelle Childs and Leondra Kruger, Wilhelmina Wright, Tiffany Cunningham, Arianna J. Freeman, and Holly Thomas. Which is basically every serious contender for the seat.

Some of the changes to Brown Jackson’s page seem to be aimed at shining her record:

The most recent changes to Jackson’s page appear to be an attempt at swaying left-leaning opinion in her favor. On Jan. 30 and Feb. 1, user H2rty made significant changes to the body of Jackson’s page, cutting a reference to Jackson’s position on an advisory board of “a Baptist school.” Descriptions of two of Jackson’s rulings against the Trump administration, both of which were reversed by the D.C. Circuit, were erased and replaced with a defense: “Ahead of her confirmation hearing, ‘Bloomberg Law’ reported that conservative activists were pointing to certain decisions by Jackson that had been reversed on appeal as a ‘potential blemish on her record,’ in order ‘to tarnish her so she won’t get picked for the Supreme Court.’”

The portion detailing Jackson’s most famous ruling, a decision to require former White House counsel Don McGahn to obey a congressional subpoena, was also tweaked. The New York Times noted Jackson’s “slow pace” helped then-President Donald Trump “run out the clock on the congressional oversight effort” before the 2020 election; Jackson’s updated Wikipedia page seems to shift the blame for the ruling’s timing from Jackson to the D.C. Circuit court.

Which has a decidedly different tenor than the recent edits to other shortlisters’ pages:

Edits to Childs’ and Kruger’s pages by the user took a decidedly different tone, emphasizing characteristics of the potential nominees that call into question their liberal bona-fides. A passage on Childs’ tenure at South Carolina-based law firm Nexsen Pruet notes her “reputation for being an expert in employment and labor law.” User H2rty added that Childs worked on behalf of “employers dealing with allegations of race based and gender based discrimination, employee efforts to unionize, and other alleged civil rights violations.”

Kruger’s page notes she is “sometimes considered one of the swing votes” on the California Supreme Court. H2rty added that she “is seen as a moderate on the seven-member court — moderately liberal on civil cases, more conservative on criminal matters.”

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Of course, because it is a wiki, a Wikimedia spokesperson said this about the recent edits, “We do not write, edit, proofread, or determine what content is included on Wikipedia or how that content is maintained.” While Godi has remained silent about the attention his internet hobby has garnered.

Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

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