[4] The solicitor general is considered an influential and knowledgeable member of the legal community with regard to Supreme Court litigation.

[citation needed] Six solicitors general have later served on the Supreme Court: William Howard Taft (who served as the 27th president of the United States before becoming chief justice of the United States), Stanley Forman Reed, Robert H. Jackson, Thurgood Marshall, and Elena Kagan.

For example, should the tort division lose a jury trial in federal district court, that ruling cannot be appealed by the Appellate Office without the approval of the solicitor general.

[8] Philip Elman, who served as an attorney in the solicitor general's office and who was the primary author of the federal government's brief in Brown v. Board of Education, wrote, "When the Supreme Court invites you, that's the equivalent of a royal command.

"[9][10] The Court typically issues a CVSG where the justices believe that the petition is important, and may be considering granting it, but would like a legal opinion before making that decision.

In 2009, for the first time, the invitation was directed instead to a state solicitor general,[11] James Ho of Texas, earning the request the nickname "CVSG-Texas.

Most obviously to spectators at oral argument before the Court, the solicitor general and his or her deputies traditionally appear in formal morning coats,[13] although Elena Kagan, the first woman to hold the office on other than an acting basis, elected to forgo the practice.

Some legal commentators such as Michael Herz and Timothy Sandefur have disagreed with this usage, saying that "general" is a postpositive adjective (which modifies the noun "solicitor"), and is not a title itself.