Souter, Thomas Are Supreme Court’s Least-Wealthy Members

The Supreme Court’s two newest justices are also its least wealthy, according to financial statements filed by all nine of the high court members.

Justices David H. Souter and Clarence Thomas reported their assets at the end of 1991 to be from $65,000 to $150,000 and from $65,000 to $165,000, respectively.

Justice Sandra Day O’Connor remained the Supreme Court’s wealthiest member in 1991, according to the statements filed in compliance with the Ethics Reform Act. She said she and her husband, a lawyer, held assets worth between $1.77 million and $4.53 million at the end of last year.

The federal law requires only broad ranges of estimated worth for assets, and exempts personal property and the primary residence.

Justice John Paul Stevens was the court’s only other millionaire at the end of last year, according to the financial forms. He listed his assets at between $1.13 million and $2.5 million.

Two justices--Harry A. Blackmun and Anthony M. Kennedy--whose 1990 statements suggested that they might have been millionaires, apparently dropped out of that category in 1991.

The disclosure law requires judges and other high-ranking federal officials to list all of the gifts they received during a year, along with their estimates of the gifts’ monetary worth. Some of the justices’ guesses appeared a bit low.

For example, Justice Byron R. White received a pair of skis from his former law clerks at last year’s reunion. He listed the price at $100. A sales representative for a local sporting goods store said the price range for most skis is $200 to $300.

O’Connor said she received a pottery vase as a joint gift from the North Carolina Bar Assn. and the Women’s Professional Forum. She guessed that they spent $25.

Filing his first financial form as a justice, Thomas disclosed that his wife owns a piece of property in Omaha, Neb., worth between $50,000 and $100,000. He said the property was located “at Highway 50.”

Here are the 1991 asset totals reported by the court’s members:

--O’Connor, $1.77 million to $4.53 million; up from $1.35 million to $3.21 million in 1990.

--Souter, $65,000 to $150,000; down from $130,000 to $330,000.

--Thomas, $65,000 to $165,000.

--Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, $255,000 to $725,000; compared with $235,000 to $710,000.

--Justice Antonin Scalia, $265,000 to $565,000; compared with $295,000 to $650,000.

--White, $165,000 to $415,000; up from $145,000 to $350,000.

--Blackmun, $300,000 to $830,000; down from $495,000 to $1.09 million.

--Stevens, $1.13 million to $2.5 million; the same as in 1990.

--Kennedy, $245,000 to $920,000; down from $410,000 to $1.25 million.