When the high court gets new ‘low man’

JUDGE SANDRA DAY O’Connor of Arizona has become the first woman to be nominated to the Supreme Court, and every indication is that she will be confirmed with a minimum of trouble. However, there is potential trouble waiting for her when she actually arrives in Washington to join the court as a justice. It has to do with a centuries-old tradition of the Supreme Court. It wouldn’t make any difference, if she weren’t a woman; but she is, and it is likely that the male justices are fretting over what to do about it. Specifically, it’s this: When the justices of the Supreme Court meet to deliberate, no one else is allowed in the room. No one: no secretaries, no assistants, no clerks. This is how it has been down through the years, and this is how the justices like it. Actually, in an age when every underassistant press secretary has a flock of aides, it’s kind of nice that the Supreme Court justices like to do things all by themselves,- BUT THIS is where the problem comes in. Since there are no secretaries or assistants, any menial tasks that come up during deliberations have to be done by one or another of the justices. And, traditionally, the junior member of the court has been assigned to be the “gofer”-the person who has to do the annoying dirty work. It’s part of the fraternity atmosphere of the court. When you’re the new boy you do the menial work, and then when another spot opens up, you get to have the menial work done for you. It’s always been that way. Except now we are