Alpena native working as law clerk in Supreme Court
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ALPENA -- Alpena native Tiffany Bates has taken the opportunity of a lifetime and is now working as a judicial law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas for the next year.
Because of policy with her job and the sensitivity of some matters, Tiffany Bates is unable to speak to the media, but her mother, Tammy Bates had plenty to say about the opportunity her daughter has.
"It's been a dream come true for her," Tammy Bates said.
As a law clerk, Tiffany Bates acts as Thomas's legal advisor, screens petitions, makes recommendations about cases before the court, and assists in writing opinions.
Tammy Bates said that her daughter has always dreamed of working in the Supreme Court and she has long admired Justice Thomas because he is faithful to the constitution and to the rule of law.
Justice Thomas was appointed to the Supreme Court in 1991. He is known for his quiet, stoic demeanor during oral arguments and his conservative viewpoint according to Oyez. Thomas is the second black justice to serve on the Supreme Court; the first was Thurgood Marshall.
Thomas attended College of the Holy Cross and graduated in 1971 with a bachelor's degree in English Literature and a passion for civil rights that drove him to pursue a career in law. He attended Yale Law School as one of the first students to benefit from the open admissions program that offered positions to black students in all-white colleges.
Tiffany Bates is a 2008 graduate of Alpena High School. She studied at Hillsdale College for her undergraduate degree and then interned in Washington. Tammy Bates said that Tiffany Bates was hired right out of Hillsdale by former Attorney General Ed Meese to work for the Heritage Foundation. That was when she decided she wanted to become a lawyer.
Tiffany Bates earned her JD from Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University. Tammy Bates said that Tiffany Bates worked as an adjunct professor there and ran the Supreme Court clinic and the Administrative Law clinic.
Tiffany Bates most recently worked at boutique law firm Consovoy McCarthy PLLC. A boutique law firm is a small, specialized practice that focuses on a single niche area of law rather than offering broad, general legal services.
Tammy Bates said that her daughter has worked on a lot of Supreme Court cases over the years as a lawyer. She said that Tiffany Bates was inducted into the Supreme Court Bar so she could practice as an attorney before the Supreme Court.
"It's quite an honor to have a daughter that is serving in an office in the Supreme Court," Tammy Bates said. "It gives Alpena something to be proud of, to cultivate the culture to have an individual reach her dreams."
Reagan Voetberg can be reached at 989-358-5683 or rvoetberg@thealpenanews.com.