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After a routine Supreme Court argument on Wednesday, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. asked the lawyer who had represented the government to return to the lectern.

“You have just presented your 160th argument before this court, and I understand it is intended to be your last,” the chief justice told the lawyer, Edwin S. Kneedler, who is retiring as a deputy solicitor general. “That is the record for modern times.”

Chief Justice Roberts talked a little more, with affection and high praise, thanking Mr. Kneedler for his “extraordinary care and professionalism.”

Then something remarkable happened. Applause burst out in the courtroom, and that led to a standing ovation for Mr. Kneedler, with the justices joining, too.

“It was a rare moment of unanimity and spontaneous joy from all nine justices on the bench,” said Richard Lazarus, a law professor at Harvard. “They were all beaming.”

Kannon Shanmugam, a veteran Supreme Court lawyer, said it was “one of the most electric moments I’ve ever seen in the courtroom.”

The tribute to Mr. Kneedler’s candor and integrity came against the backdrop of a different kind of courtroom behavior. In the early months of the second Trump administration, its lawyers have been accused of gamesmanship, dishonesty and defiance, and have been fired for providing frank answers to judges.

Mr. Kneedler presented a different model, former colleagues said.

“Ed is the embodiment of the government lawyer ideal — one whose duty of candor to the court and interest in doing justice, not just winning a case, always carried the day,” said Gregory G. Garre, who served as solicitor general under President George W. Bush.

Mr. Shanmugam said Mr. Kneedler’s loyalty was to the rule of law. “He would much rather get the law right at the risk of losing,” Mr. Shanmugam said, “than win at the cost of misrepresenting the law.”

Seth P. Waxman, who was solicitor general in the Clinton administration, said Mr. Kneedler was the opposite of a partisan.

“In all the years that I worked with Ed in the Justice Department, I did not know his politics,” Mr. Waxman said.

Mr. Kneedler joined the Office of the Solicitor General, the elite unit of the Justice Department that represents the federal government in the Supreme Court, in 1979, served in many administrations and helped tutor the solicitors general who came and went.

“I was incredibly lucky to have Ed as a deputy when I was S.G.,” Justice Elena Kagan, who served as solicitor general in the Obama administration, said in a statement. “There’s pretty much no legal question he can’t answer. And he has a bone-deep understanding of the traditions and ethos of the S.G.’s office.”

She added: “I learned from him every day, and I did my job far better because he was there. In all the time I’ve spent in government, I’ve never known a finer public servant.”

That was something like a consensus view among former solicitors general. Mr. Waxman, for instance, called Mr. Kneedler “a national treasure.”

Noel J. Francisco, the solicitor general in the first Trump administration, said that Mr. Kneedler was “not just a font of knowledge, but of wisdom.”

Elizabeth B. Prelogar, the solicitor general in the Biden administration, said that “Ed Kneedler represents the very best of what it means to be a lawyer for the United States.”

Mr. Kneedler’s retirement is part of a wave of departures from the solicitor general’s office, which is quite small. After the solicitor general and a handful of deputies, there are just 16 line lawyers. About half of them are leaving, The Washington Post reported this month.

Mr. Kneedler, 79, did not respond to requests for an interview. When he received an award this month from the University of Virginia’s law school, his alma mater, he said he was “a career civil servant, not in the press if I can avoid it.”

At the ceremony, Mr. Kneedler gave extended remarks, making points that in another era might have seemed unremarkable. These days, they verged on provocative.

Calling himself a “citizen lawyer,” he praised the many federal employees he had worked with, saying he had been impressed by their “compassion and understanding for our country, and dedication to our country.”

He said his office analyzed legal issues with rigor and care, at least in cases on the court’s regular docket. Since Mr. Trump took office in January, the government has filed a torrent of emergency applications on what critics call the court’s shadow docket.

“When we don’t have emergencies like we have a number of now,” Mr. Kneedler said, “we have a very structured decision-making process.”

Leslie Kendrick, the Virginia law school’s dean, asked Mr. Kneedler a few questions, one of which was premised on his office’s “commitment to providing nonpartisan representation for the United States, regardless of cause, regardless of the political leadership of the other two branches.”

Mr. Kneedler did not quite adopt the premise. “We are lawyers for the United States,” he said, “and the administration in office is the ultimate determiner of what the interests of the United States are.”

But he ended his remarks on a hopeful note. “We’re all part of a process that is leading us to a more perfect union,” he said, “which means a union in which we are coming together, not apart.”

Before the standing ovation at the Supreme Court on Wednesday, Chief Justice Roberts, himself a veteran of the solicitor general’s office, added what he called a personal note as he spoke to Mr. Kneedler.

“I recall that on two occasions you and I argued on the same side here, me representing a private client and you the United States,” the chief justice said. “We lost each of those cases. I’m sure it was my fault. Mr. Kneedler, thank you for your outstanding service to court and country.”

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‘He’s with me all the time’

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Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou made an emotional tribute to his late father, Jim, after his historic Europa League win against Manchester United on Wednesday evening.

Postecoglou has come under heavy scrutiny from supporters and the media this campaign, as he sees his Spurs side languishing in 17th in the Premier League.

The Europa League has been the shining light in their season, and the Australian came under increased pressure as he famously claimed that he “always wins things” in his second year.

The 59-year-old duly delivered in spectacular fashion, breaking Spurs’ 41-year European curse, and ending their 17-year trophy drought.

\u200bAnge Postecoglou

Ange Postecoglou lifted Spurs’ first trophy in 17 years

PA

Following the game, he was quick to mention his family, who continue to be his “inspiration”.

“To my beautiful wife, my boys, my family my friends… you know, they’re all my inspiration,” Postecoglou said.

The former Socceroos manager was then asked about his father, Jim, who sadly passed away in 2018 while Postecoglou was in charge of Japanese side Yokohama F. Marinos: “He’s still with me, mate. His voice is in my head all the time.

“As I get older I look in the mirror and see his face sometimes, which is frightening. He’s with me all the time.”

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Ange Postecoglou celebrated his victory with his family, who he described as his ‘inspiration’

PA

The Australian continued: “My dear mum is in Greece with my sister and my nephews, I’m sure they’re over the moon.

“It’s massive in Australia and in Greece. I’ve got family in both countries, friends in both countries, and they’ve been along for the journey the whole way.”

Postecoglou has come under heavy, widespread criticism throughout the season, and he opened up on how this narrative has hit his family too.

“It’s hard because I’m big enough and ugly enough to take whatever comes my way, but they get hurt when people come at me and they pay the price, particularly those closest to me, my beautiful family and my friends,” he said.

READ MORE: Ruben Amorim offers Man Utd resignation ‘without compensation’ after Europa League defeat

“They want to defend me and I keep telling them, it’s a small price to pay when you have nights like this.

“Just seeing them tonight, and I know everyone in Australia… it’s another special night we share together.

“Because I’m kind of the frontman, it’s easy for me to take on the responsibility, but they’ve got no choice but to come along for the ride.

“Just seeing them out there now on the pitch, smiling faces, I couldn’t be happier.”

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Ange Postecoglou said he ‘couldn’t be happier’ after his Europa League triumph

PA

After enduring a difficult campaign, it was a relief for Postecoglou to end the season with such positivity, and a stark reminder of the toll Premier League management can have on an individual and a family.

Despite the constant speculation regarding his future, the former Celtic boss was keen to look to the future with Spurs.

“Obviously the way things have gone in the league, people are right to be concerned about, but I don’t think that’s a true reflection of where we are at.

“We’ve got a really young group of players and you can talk to them about success and what it means, but until they feel it, it doesn’t become real.

“As I said yesterday, I still feel there’s a lot of work to be done, I think that’s quite obvious, but not as much work as people may think.

“People can bang on about 20 league defeats and where we are, but they’re missing the point of what we’re trying to build, or what I’m trying to do anyway.”

He added: “I really feel that this can be a great platform for us to kick on.”

There’s no doubt Postecoglou and the Spurs side will have truly enjoyed their night, possibly for the first time this season, but, as the Spurs boss suggested, it could be a sign of things to come.

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