The U.S. Supreme Court entered an order yesterday in Seila Law inviting Paul D. Clement “to brief and argue this case, as amicus curiae, in support of the judgment below on the question presented by the petition.” The question presented is whether the Bureau’s single-director-removable-only-for-cause structure is constitutional.

With both the DOJ and CFPB agreeing with Seila Law’s position that the Bureau’s structure is unconstitutional, the Supreme Court was expected to appoint an amicus curiae to defend the Ninth Circuit’s judgment holding that the Bureau’s structure is constitutional.

A former Solicitor General in the George W. Bush administration and law clerk to Justice Scalia, Mr. Clement is held in high regard for his skill as a Supreme Court advocate. Indeed, SCOTUSblog reports that he is “widely regarded as one of the best Supreme Court lawyers of his generation.” His biography states that he has argued over 95 cases before the Supreme Court, and since 2000, has argued more cases before the Supreme Court than any lawyer in or out of government.