Yesterday, two weeks before the argument in People v. Superior Court 
(Johnson), the Supreme Court invited the respondent superior court to argue for 15 minutes in the case. The superior court has until the end of next week to decide whether to accept the invitation. A lower court rarely makes an appearance at a Supreme Court argument, but it does happen sometimes.
The case involves the intersection of Brady and Pitchess in the disclosure of police personnel files, so both the San Francisco District Attorney and the San Francisco Police Department are parties. The Supreme Court also yesterday ordered the DA and the SFPD to split 30 minutes of oral argument time.
