U.S. Supreme Court. Credit: Diego M. Radzinschi / ALM

This may be the heyday for state solicitors general.

Three of President Donald Trump's five newly announced potential U.S. Supreme Court nominees have served in that capacity: Kevin Newsom, Britt Grant and Patrick Wyrick, who formerly argued before the Supreme Court on behalf of Alabama, Georgia and Oklahoma, respectively.

From Trump's earlier wish lists, Allison Eid and Tim Tymkovich also were former state SGs, both from Colorado. The departing head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Richard Cordray, was Ohio's first solicitor general.

And a new study reports that in the last three terms, 41 state SGs or their deputies argued before the high court—nearly double the number a decade ago. On Dec. 5, Colorado SG Frederick Yarger will argue in the marquee case Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission.

Also arguing in the current Supreme Court argument: sitting Deputy Illinois Solicitor General Brett Legner; former Florida Solicitor General Christopher Kise, now a partner at Foley & Lardner; and Stris & Maher partner Daniel Geyser, formerly assistant Texas solicitor general.

Those data points affirm the growing stature of state SGs who have replaced their bosses—state attorneys general—when it comes to taking on increasingly complex appellate arguments before the Supreme Court and other federal and state courts. It is a trend that fits in with the growing specialization of the Supreme Court bar.

Gone are the days when elected attorneys general, more accustomed to stump speeches than appellate arguments, would stumble and mumble as they addressed impatient justices. Only two state AGs have argued at the Supreme Court in the last three terms.

“The inclusion of five former state solicitors general on the president's list is yet the latest evidence of the stature that position now holds,” said Dan Schweitzer, longtime director and chief counsel for Supreme Court advocacy at the National Association of Attorneys General.

Schweitzer has been instrumental in enhanced state representation before appellate courts. Thirty-nine states plus Washington, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands now have state solicitors general, most of them modeled after the professionalism and traditional independence of the U.S. Solicitor General's Office.

State solicitors are in the news more than ever, adding luster and allure to the position.

Noah Purcell, solicitor for Washington state, took on Trump's travel ban in February, and won. Oklahoma's Wyrick may have gotten the attention of the White House for his 2013 defense of the state's death penalty protocols in the 2013 case Glossip v. Gross.

The trend grew as former Supreme Court law clerks—including Chief Justice William Rehnquist clerk and now-Sen. Ted Cruz—realized that they might have a better chance arguing before the Supreme Court, and building a future practice, from a position as state solicitor general than as an associate in a big law firm.

Jeffrey Sutton, who clerked for the late Justice Antonin Scalia, took a similar path to become Ohio solicitor general before developing an active private appellate practice. Sutton is now a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

More recent examples include: John Bursch who argued 11 cases at the Supreme Court as Michigan solicitor general, then as a solo practitioner; and Michael Scodro, who joined Mayer Brown recently after six years as Illinois solicitor general.

“Being a state SG provides the extraordinary opportunity to practice appellate and constitutional law at the highest levels,” said former Illinois Solicitor General Carolyn Shapiro, founder and co-director of Chicago-Kent College of Law's Institute on the Supreme Court of the United States. “So there's a bit of a positive feedback loop. As state AGs have increasingly recognized the value of having an SG … the job has become increasingly attractive to mid-career lawyers, especially those who are interested in public service.”

Supreme Court justices themselves have spoken glowingly about state solicitors. In 2013, Justice Elena Kagan said at a panel discussion, “Most states have solicitor general offices which have really exceptional, skilled, experienced appellate counsel.”

Read more:

Trump's Supreme Court Wish List Grows By Five Judges

DOJ's Noel Francisco Will Argue Against Gay Couple in Supreme Court Cake Case

Kagan Says Repeat Players at SCOTUS 'Know What It Is We Like'

U.S. Supreme Court. Credit: Diego M. Radzinschi / ALM

This may be the heyday for state solicitors general.