LAWYERS ON SAMUEL ALITO . . .  According to lawyers who commented anonymously last year in the Almanac of the Federal Judiciary (Aspen Publishers 2004), Judge Alito is smart, pleasant, conservative, and a good writer--but sometimes a little bored. Here is a selection of the lawyers' comments that I think is representative:

• "He has brilliant ability."
• "He's pretty good in terms of making a coherent argument."
• "He is brilliant and of unquestioned intelligence."
• "He has adequate legal ability. He doesn't say much and is harder to read."
• "He has a fine, nice demeanor--he couldn't have keener demeanor."
• "He is demanding, but always courteous. He may occasionally demonstrate a little bit of impatience with lawyers that aren't quite getting it--this can be directed at either side; it's just a sign that his mind is working more efficiently than yours. He is never discourteous and never abusive."
• "He asks questions that are very pointed; get right to the heart of an issue. He's active."
• "He is conservative."
• "There is a conservative bent to his thinking."
• "He is conservative and on the far right of the court, but he is a truly decent person who believes in his heart that he is doing the right thing."
• "His opinions are very detailed, analytical and thorough. His judgment is quite considered."
• "His opinions are very well written."
• "His opinions are brilliant. They are concise, very incisive opinions."
• "His opinions are very, very conservative. He's very ideological and carefully writes his opinions to set up the next--he plants language that moves the law further to the right. He is dogmatically conservative. His opinions are succinct, but still scholarly."
• "I do not have much of a sense of him as a person. He looks bored at times."