Is newly appointed DC Circuit judge destined for SCOTUS?
Washington litigator Srikanth “Sri” Srinivasan’s unanimous Senate confirmation this week to the nation’s second-highest court has some predicting a possible future as one of “The Nine.”
Srinivasan’s appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is another shining moment in a stellar legal career that includes representing the U.S. government in more than two dozen cases before the U.S. Supreme Court, USA Today reports.
“Sri is undoubtedly considered one of the best three or four Supreme Court advocates in the country,” said Walter Dellinger, a former acting solicitor general under President Bill Clinton, according to USA Today. The first time Srinivasan argued a Supreme Court case, he took a single sheet of paper to the podium so he would not appear overconfident. The paper was blank, Dellinger said.
Politicos point to Srinivasan’s swift embrace by Republicans as testament to his bipartisan credentials and collegiality, USA Today says. Currently principal deputy solicitor general, Srinivasan has received accolades from a dozen former solicitors general and principal deputies dating back to the Reagan administration and from 28 of his fellow law clerks from the 1997 Supreme Court term.
He’s described by current and former colleagues as a doting father, a loyal friend, a fanatical fan of University of Kansas basketball and an open-minded attorney who doesn’t come to each case with a predisposition, USA Today reports.
