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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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Inside Tottenham’s Europa League celebrations: Son Heung-Min keeps the party going past 3am as victorious Spurs stars (still in their kits!) sing the night away at Bilbao hotel

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Tottenham‘s stars partied late into the night in Bilbao as they celebrated their Europa League final victory on Wednesday.

Ange Postecoglou‘s side ended the club’s 17-year wait for a major trophy after beating Manchester United 1-0 following a first-half strike from Brennan Johnson. 

In addition to winning their first European trophy since 1984, Tottenham will now compete in next season’s Champions League after a disastrous Premier League campaign that sees them sit in 17th place heading into the final domestic weekend.

However, their league form will have been cast to the back of the players’ minds as they partied late into the night – with plenty of videos emerging on social media. 

Midfielder Yves Bissouma went on Instagram Live and offered a glimpse into the dressing room as the Tottenham players celebrated the occasion. 

His clips showed the Spurs stars in the changing rooms as they blared out music from speakers, tucked into pizza and popped champagne. 

Tottenham partied late into the night as they celebrated their Europa League final victory

A number of the squad’s players were seen celebrating until 3am in the morning on Thursday

The north London side ended their 17-year wait for a trophy after beating Manchester United 

Meanwhile, Spurs’ official account shared a video which showed the festivities as Son Heung-Min re-enacted the trophy lift inside the changing room. 

The South Korean was sprayed with champagne by his team-mates as they reveled in the occasion.

Spurs captain Son was later seen outside the team’s hotel in Bilbao rallying the travelling fans who had followed them back to offer their support. 

The forward, with his winners medal draped over his shoulders, cupped his ears to the supporters and waved them on as they cheered the team’s return. 

While videos from Spurs’ official accounts ended there, a number of the players showed off the late night celebrations via their own personal accounts. 

On Destiny Udogie’s story, posted around 2am, Spurs’ stars could be seen inside a hall – likely at their hotel – as their partied the night away in their full-kit. 

Kevin Danso and Timo Werner could be seen particularly enjoying the festivities as the squad, along with their family and friends, rejoiced in the moment. 

In another video that emerged on social media at 3am, a large number of the Spurs players – including James Maddison, Lucas Bergvall and Brennan Johnson – were all still enjoying the night. The caption read: ‘Party still going’.

The celebrations began inside the changing room and were lead by Son-Heung Min

Yves Bissouma offered a glimpse into the dressing room as he went live on Instagram

The midfielder was the life of the party as he kept his team-mates entertained on the bus back

Son was seen rallying fans outside the team hotel as they continued to cheer on the side

In the early hours, Spurs’ stars were seen inside a hall as they continued their celebrations

On Thursday morning, Spurs’ official account began the day by sharing another video from the celebrations the night prior – showing gold confetti being let off in the changing room. 

Full-back Djed Spence could be seen carrying the trophy before striking a pose alongside it – while Bissouma and Wilson Odobert danced amongst the confetti. 

Spurs’ stars also filmed a hilarious video that made reference to the fact they will play in the Champions League next season, after clinching the Europa League title. 

A number of Spurs stars lined up – similarly to a pre-match set-up – as the Champions League music played in the background. 

Back in north London, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium rocked with scenes of joy and jubilation as thousands of fans celebrated the win from their home ground. 

As as sea of white shirts descended on to the pitch in north London, several fans broke down in tears of joy while others wildly threw beer and items of clothing into the air.

Meanwhile Spurs boss Postecoglou, who after Tottenham’s poor start in the Premier League defiantly urged that he always wins trophies during his second season, admitted that he understands how much it means to the fans to win a major honour. 

Spurs made a hilarious video which referenced their qualification for the Champions League 

Gold confetti was scattered across the Tottenham dressing room floor after their historic win

‘I am still trying to take it all in. I know what it means to the club and the longer it goes it is harder to break the cycle, I could sense nervousness at the club because they have been in the situation before,’ he told TNT Sports after the game. 

‘We have a really young group but I hope them tasting this, it feeds into itself and they will feel differently about themselves.

‘I have always felt that knockout football is different from the league. We knew in the situation it came down to organisation and moments – if you can minimise the moments they have, with (Cristian) Romero and Van de Ven etc.

‘We felt we would be hard to break down. We could have been better in transition but I felt comfortable that if we went ahead we would negotiate it.’

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