Days Early, a Line Forms at the Supreme Court

Nearly 30 people formed a line in front of the Supreme Court over the weekend, hoping for one of the roughly 50 seats reserved for the public to witness arguments in the landmark same-sex marriage case that begins on Tuesday. With thousands of tourists streaming into Washington for the holiday break and the National Cherry Blossom Festival, gawkers and passersby alike paused to ask what people were waiting for or to offer their opinions on the case.

But not everyone in line could speak passionately - or even with feigned interest - about the laws at the center of the case: Proposition 8, which prohibits same-sex marriage in California, and the Defense of Marriage Act, which denies federal benefits and recognition to married same-sex couples. That is because some line-standers weren’t tolerating the swift winds and below-freezing nights in the name of activism or political interest. They were there for a paycheck.

By hiring companies like LineStanding.com and Washington Express, patrons can pay for a proxy to hold their place in line hours or days ahead of time, improving their odds of getting a font row seat to one of the most highly anticipated cases the court is considering this year.

The second and third person in line on Saturday seemed indifferent toward the cases and declined to give their names or say whether they were being paid to be there. One of them said that this was his third time waiting in line for a Supreme Court hearing, but he could not remember which cases he had waited in line to attend. This time he had been there since Thursday; seat assignments are to be given out on Tuesday morning.

“There’s been a huge demand for standing in line,” said John Winslow, director of operations for LineStanding.com, a service that charges $50 an hour to hold places in line for Supreme Court and Congressional hearings, among other events. “I’ve got between 50 and 60 people available, and I’m anticipating that I’ll have to dip into my fleet of couriers.” His company doubles as a Congressional messenger service.

Carisa Cunningham, a spokeswoman for the Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders, called it a “stampede panic going on right now” to get in line for the proceedings as activists and opponents from across the country arrive in town. GLAD sent a volunteer to stand in line on its behalf, and Ms. Cunningham knew of at least one private citizen who was paying to have someone hold a spot.

Some people or organizations with high stakes in the outcome simply do not want to rely on tweets or dispatches from inside the courtroom. They want a real-time experience, to see the expressions on the justices’ faces as the lawyers present their cases - and they are willing to pay for it.

“There’s probably about only two or three other big companies in this space, but it certainly is competitive,” Mr. Winslow said.

The practice has drawn ire from some in Congress who say that the services give an unfair advantage to those willing to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for access to Supreme Court hearings.

Former Representative Barney Frank, Democrat of Massachusetts, is not a fan of paying for a position in line. He made a wry remark on Saturday about wealthy lawyers paying poor folks to suffer in the cold on their behalf. He went on to suggest that it would not be necessary if the court would allow its hearings to be televised.

“It’s not a bad redistributive method, for those of us who care about inequality,” Mr. Frank said in an impromptu interview at the Reagan National Airport on Wednesday. “It’s a disgrace that they do not allow these hearings to be televised.”

But Mr. Frank, who is gay and whose home state was the first to allow same-sex marriage, will not be in attendance. “My presences [] couldn’t possibly influence anybody to vote for it,” he said.

In 2007, Senator Claire McCaskill, Democrat of Missouri, proposed banning line-standing services for congressional [] hearings, saying that lobbyists or wealthy individuals should have to stand in line like everyone else.

But the real tipping point in the business came in 2012, before arguments over the Affordable Care Act.

“That one was historically significant and the first time we’ve ever done three days in line at the Supreme Court,” Mr. Winslow said. “Prior to that, the max was 24 hours. Obama health care set the bar.”

After waiting in line together for days, those who were there for their own benefit said they held no animosity toward those who were being paid - after all, they sat on the same cold concrete and had saved one another’s place in line during coffee or bathroom breaks.

“I really like the individual people in this line. We get along really well, and they are very friendly people. I like all of them,” said Jason Wonacott, a 24-year-old Washingtonian who had been there since Friday. “But about place holding, I don’t think it’s about the people actually standing in line. It’s just another example of how in government if you have money you have access.”

Sheryl Gay Stolberg contributed reporting.