U.S. Supreme Court Rule 28.7 provides that "friends of the court" (amici curiae in Latin) may participate in oral argument only with leave of the court. Unless the party supported consents, that leave will be granted "only in the most extraordinary circumstances."
From my observations of when leave is granted, I have deduced an unwritten rule based on who is asking: (1) U.S. Solicitor General: almost always; (2) States: often; (3) everyone else: once in a blue moon.
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