Silence in the Supreme Court: Clarence Thomas hits five-year record without speaking during oral arguments



He is the judge who makes all the headlines without saying a single word.

Clarence Thomas, 62, has now passed the five-year mark without asking any questions during legal arguments at the Supreme Court.



What makes this even more remarkable is that no Supreme Court Justice has managed a single term - let alone five - without asking a question for at least 40 years.



Silent record: Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has gone five years without asking a single question during oral arguments

Explanations for his silence include being scared of public speaking as a young man because of his rural Georgia accent and disliking the ‘circus’ of oral arguments.

The other eight Supreme Court justices contrastingly ask 133 questions on average per hour-long session.

Before the silence he asked only 11 questions during his first 15 years at the court between 1991 and 2006.

He said he goes into oral argument sessions knowing his decision so he does not need to ask questions.

The last time Justice Thomas spoke spontaneously during a discussion between justices and lawyers was in a death penalty case in February 2006.

He passed an argument session yesterday as normal - sitting back in his chair, closing his eyes and making the odd remark to fellow Justice Stephen Breyer.

No words: Justice Thomas is known for sitting back in his chair, closing his eyes and making the odd remark to fellow justice Stephen Breyer, right

He is outgoing in private and when speaking before friendly audiences, but believes other talkative justices can fail to give lawyers enough chance to make their cases.

Justice Thomas told C-SPAN in 2009: ‘We all learn differently. I prefer to listen and think it through more quietly.



He added that oral argument helps vocal members of the court 'learn and process what they have been thinking on'.

Scholars debate whether his silence compromises his influence and if it is fair to lawyers who can’t address his unspoken concerns, reported NPR.

Timothy Johnson, of the University of Minnesota, believes he has lost some influence because oral argument is how justices usually start to move towards decisions.

‘If the coalitions are starting to coalesce (during oral argument) then, in that sense, it probably does matter to some degree.’

Younger days: Justice Thomas was controversially nominated by former President George Bush and became a Supreme Court justice in 1991

His career has not been without controversy after a nomination to become a Supreme Court Justice by former President George Bush.

Critics believed he was not experienced enough and would reverse the Civil Rights gains that outgoing Justice Marshall had fought so hard to achieve.

But Erik Jaffe, a lawyer and former Justice Thomas clerk, has criticised speculation of why he is silent.

He told NPR: ‘The notion that people, especially professors, can continue to say this after many, many opinions where I think he has more than adequately proven that he has the intellectual chops to run with the best of them is so staggeringly offensive.’

Controversy: Justice Thomas has been accused of sexual harassment and an ex-girlfriend described him as a 'raving alcoholic with a porn fetish'

Justice Thomas was also accused of sexually harassing a University of Oklahoma law professor and an ex-girlfriend described him as a 'raving alcoholic with a porn fetish'.

His most famous comments came during a passionate speech at a 2002 racial case over a Virginia law banning cross burning.



He talked about a ‘reign of terror’ by the Ku Klux Klan and other groups and the court ruled states can make it a criminal offence to burn a cross for intimidation purposes.